The Government is progressing an urgent law change to adoption laws that have, in some cases, allowed convicted abusers to adopt children from other countries.

The Adoption Amendment Bill, introduced to the House today, proposes changes to the Adoption Act 1955 that will “immediately and temporarily suspend New Zealand’s recognition of unsafe overseas adoptions for citizenship and immigration purposes“, according to Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee.

It will also restrict the Family Court from granting adoptions where the adoptive parent or child is overseas.

McKee was first briefed on the issue in November and requested further briefings which came to her in May. She indicated there were cases currently before the courts which proved the need for an urgent change, but said she couldn’t comment on them.

While recognising families planning to adopt would be disappointed, McKee said there was “evidence that our international adoption laws do not provide sufficient safeguards for children and young people“ by not ensuring an adoptive parent’s criminal or child protection record is checked.

“We know, for example, about instances in which people with known care and protection histories, or previous convictions for violence or sexual abuse, have been able to adopt overseas,” she said.

“They have then been able to bring those children and young people back to New Zealand where they have been neglected, abused, or exploited.”

In 2020, Joseph Auga Matamata was sentenced to 11 years in prison after being found guilty on 13 charges of dealing in slaves and 10 of trafficking in persons.

It was New Zealand’s first prosecution for dual offences of people trafficking and slavery.

McKee referenced Matamata’s case, which involved three adopted boys from Samoa, as the “tip of the iceberg”.

The suspension, implemented through today’s law change in the House under urgency, would expire by July 1, 2027 at the latest but McKee said she wanted to introduce a bill as a “long-term solution”.

There would be some international adoption pathways retained, including exemptions for countries where McKee was “satisfied” children were sufficiently protected.

“International surrogacy arrangements will continue to be recognised by the NZ Family Court and ministerial discretion will be able to be exercised in individual cases for citizenship and immigration,” she said.

Adam Pearse is the deputy political editor and part of the NZ Herald’s Press Gallery team based at Parliament in Wellington. He has worked for NZME since 2018, reporting for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei and the Herald in Auckland.