Cuba-because of America's and Cuba's past, child adoption is rare. Either America is very scrutinizing of a Cuban adoption or Cuba is very hindering of it, or both. But, they are a Hague country, so if you really want to try, follow the Hague rules. I suggest that if you are looking to adopt a Cuban kid, adopt from Miami, Florida, USA. That is where many Cubans settled in America when they fled Castro's takeover of Cuba.
Bahamas-it is easy to adopt from the Bahamas, unless you are a single man trying to adopt a girl, then it is difficult. The problem is that there are actually few children available for adoption. Most children end up with extended family, which is great. You need to be at least 25 years old and 21 years older than the child you wish to adopt.
I love the Bahamas. Growing up in Florida, my parents took me there in their cabin cruiser several times and the people were so nice and the place was gorgeous.
Most Bahamians are black. Around 10% of the people are white. They are mostly some form of Christian or another.
Jamaica-there are 2 kinds of adoption in Jamaica. You need to be at least 25 years old for both kinds. Adoption License is where you can take the child out of the country to be adopted in your home country. For this one you can be expected to visit Jamaica at least twice, once to meet the adoption agent and then a second time to apply for the visa. Adoption Order is a full Jamaican adoption, which also gives the child a new birth certificate with the new family name on it and will be used to get a passport with that name on it. You will be required to stay in Jamaica while the adoption takes place, at least 4 months. Which is not so bad, think of it as an extended vacation in a tropical paradise.
Most of the people are black, I can't remember actually seeing anyone else living there who was black, but there are also some whites and mixed peoples. Almost all people there are one of the various kinds of Christians, though this is also the birthplace of Rostafarianism
Haiti-we all know the devestation that Haiti has been suffering, not only recently, but over the years. Because of the Earthquake and the Christian missionaries that tried to kidnap the children, the adoption rules are changing. I will put what the rules are at this time.
To adopt from Haiti, you need to be at least 35 years old! That is the oldest I have seen. And you need to be 19 years older than the child you wish to adopt. This can be waived, but only with presidential permission, which is a long, drawn out, difficult process. You can be married or single. With married couples, only one spouse needs to be 35 or older. There are no residency requirements, though they sometimes ask you to come for the finalization (which you should do anyways, that way you can see your childs homeland.)
Haiti is Vodou country. Fundamental Christians have labeled it as the devils land. How kind of them. Vodou is the Haitian version of an old African religion, Vodun, fused with some Catholicism and some Native Arawak (Amerindian) beliefs. The American version of it is called Voodoo (Hoodoo is the folk magic form of Voodoo) and is mostly in New Orleans, but also New York and Savannah. It is very easy to find information about Vodun and Voodoo.
Dominican Republic-the country right next door to Haiti. The Dominican Republic was once part of Haiti, but became independent. It has been aided by America for a while and has done a much better job of taking care of itself than Haiti, in regards to economy. It has had its shares of political troubles, but has been rather stable for almost 15 years.
Only married couples are allowed to adopt, and you have to have been married for at least 5 years. You need to be between 30 and 60 years old and 15 years older than the child. They have a residency requirement, which only one of the parents needs to fulfill. If you adopt a child 11 years old and under, then you need to stay for 60 days. If the child is 12 or older, then you need to stay for 30 days.
They are mostly Catholic, though there are an unknown number of Vodouists there, who don't want to be known. Racism is really bad there. If you are full black, they are not nice to you. This comes from the old slave days, as well as having been taken over by Haiti (who are very black.) The majority of the people there are multiracial, with black African, White European and Native Islander Indians (the Taino.) To make sure they are not identified as black, they came up with multiple terms for skin color, moreno/a (brown), canelo/a (red/brown) ["cinnamon"], indio/a (Indian), blanco/a oscuro/a (dark white), and trigueño/a (literally "wheat colored", or olive skin). I think that their mix of races makes them very attractive. I went to school with a Dominican guy and he was a little goofy looking when I knew him, but I saw him when he was older and I was jealous for sure.
St. Kitts and Nevis-adoption here is not easy. First you need to be a resident and domiciled (that means you have to be living there.) You need to be at least 25 years old and 21 years older than the child you wish to adopt. You cannot adopt a girl if you are a single man, unless you are a relative. Also, their version of an orphan may not fit in with the U.S. idea of an orphan, so if you want to come back to America right away, make sure it works, otherwise you have to stay overseas for 2 years to get a family visa for your child.
Dominica-it seems fairly easy to adopt from Dominica. The only requirement I see is that you need to be 25 or older. Few kids are adopted though, so I am guessing that few are available for foriegn adoption.
The people are mostly Catholic, with some protestants and muslims. They are mostly black, descendents of slaves, with some mulattos, some whites who stayed after the Europeans left and they have the only Carib indians left (the native Amerindians whom the Caribbean was named after.)
Barbados-only countries that have diplomatic missions in Barbados are allowed to adopt. The U.S. does have a mission there. You need to be 25 years old and 18 years older than the child you wish to adopt. There are 2 ways to adopt a child in Barbados. First you can be in Barbados for the adoption, but are required to stay for 18 months. This is mainly meant for people who are already living there. Or, you can start the adoption in your home country and come to Barbados for a couple of weeks to finalize it and take the child back home. Few people actually adopt from Barbados, both because few children are available, and few people even know about it.
Most people in Barbados are black. There are some whites of European descent and some Muslim Indians and Guyanese.
St. Lucia-to adopt in St. Lucia, you must have lived there for 6 consecutive months before you start the adoption. You must be at least 25 years old and 21 years older than the child to be adopted. Other than that it doesn't seem to be that hard to adopt from here.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines-other than being 21 years or older to adopt from here, I can't find any other requirements. The place is high in unemployment and rampant population growth, which unfortunately means there should be plenty of kids available for adopt. But, last year (2009) only 12 kids were adopted (by Americans, whom adopt the most children internationally, so the statistics are easier to find, I don't know how many were adopted by other nationals, if any.)
Grenada-you must be a resident of Grenada and domiciled there to adopt. Also, the child needs to be in your care for 3 continuous months before you finalize the adoption. This is the hard part. You need to be 25 years old and 21 years older than the child you wish to adopt.
Most the the people are Christians of one brand or another. There are a few buddhists, hindus and Rastafarians there. Most of the people are black, with mulattos making up the second largest group. Then there are some Indians (from India) and whites with just a touch of the original Amerindians left.
Trinidad and Tobago-there are 2 kinds of adoption a person can do. The first is for people who already reside in the country. The Adoption Order is a full adoption done through the court for people that are legal residents domiciled in the country. You must be at least 25 years old and 21 years older than the child. You must be married or a single woman, no men. The other is Legal Guardianship, done from your own country, which will allow you to come and take the child back to your country where you would finish the adoption. This is not as safe though, as it can be revoked later. You must be 25 years old, but there is not age specification between the child and guardian. You can be married or a single man or woman.
A quarter of the people are Catholic, another quarter are Hindu, with the rest being some kind of Christianity or another and some muslims. Almost half the people are Indian (from India) and the almost the other half is black, with the rest being mixed, white, some Chinese and a few native Amerindians.
These next few are part of other countries, so follow their laws
U.S. Territories: Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands
U.K. Territories: Antigua and Barbuda, Virgin Islands, Anguilla, Montserrat, Turks and Caicos, Cayman Islands
Netherlands Territories: Saba and St. Eustatius
French Territories: St. Martin, St. Marks, Martinique, Guadeloupe
