[WATCH] Child adoption credit scheme for adoptive parents launched

Parents who temporarily leave their jobs to raise children they have adopted will have their national insurance contributions credited by the government for a maximum of four years.

Such a scheme already exists for parents who leave their jobs to take care of children they have given birth to, and will now be extended to adoptive parents as a means of incentivizing adoptions.

Adoptive parents will be able to benefit from NI credits starting from the official date of adoption, irrespective of the child's age. They will be able to claim the four years of NI credits within the first six years of adoption, extended to ten years if the child has a disability. 

"This government had already introduced maternity leave rights for adoptive parents but we felt that it wasn't enough," family minister Michael Farrugia told a press conference. "This scheme is another step forwards towards giving adoptive parents the same rights as birth parents."  

Farrugia said that six foreign children (three from Slovakia, one from Albania, one from Russia, and one from India) and three Maltese ones were adopted in Malta last year. Between January and March, a further seven (three from Slovakia, four from India) were adopted. Moreover, a further 30 foreign children (17 from India, nine from Portugual, there from Slovakia, and one from Russia) were successfully matched with prospective Maltese parents throughout 2016 and their adoption process is expected to be completed later this year.

Farrugia added that the Maltese government is in advanced negotiations on new adoption agreements with Poland and in preliminary negotiations with Czechia, Latvia and Brazil.