U.S. Policy Stalls Adoptions in Haiti

HAITI – A United States policy change leading to a rush for passports at Haiti’s main immigration office has left dozens of children are stuck in orphanages across Haiti.

U.S. President Joe Biden announced last month that the U.S. will accept 30,000 people a month from Haiti, Nicaragua, Cuba and Venezuela if they pass a background check and have an eligible sponsor and a passport to travel.

Adoptive parents say the U.S. State Department has declined passport waivers as they worry their children will succumb to hunger, cholera or gang violence.