In mid-June 2025, after more than 12 years of parliamentary debate, the Chilean Senate overwhelmingly approved a new adoption law, marking a historic milestone for the country. The imminent enactment of this legislation represents a profound change in the Chilean adoption system, aligned with international human rights standards.
The new law establishes a model centered on the rights of children and adolescents, reinforcing the right to identity, participation, and the best interests of the child, with a comprehensive approach and ongoing protection. Key advances include:
- The transition to a model considering the full protective trajectory of the child or adolescent
- Strengthening the subsidiary role of adoption, prioritizing work with the family of origin
- Incorporating fundamental principles and rights already established in the Ley de Garantías: the right to be heard, access to information, legal representation, identity, and knowledge of origins
- Creating a new judicial stage of family reunification and strengthening, integrated into the protection process
- Eliminating the order of precedence based on marital status in the selection of adoptive families
- Allowing adoption by foster families, under certain conditions
- Including post-adoption contact between the family of origin, adoptive family, and adoptee, according to their needs and circumstances
- Strengthening the right to know origins by establishing a guarantee procedure and the duty of institutions to preserve information
- Enhancing the crime of illegal acquisition of children for adoption purposes by broadening its scope and typification
At AFIN, we particularly celebrate this advance, which reflects years of advocacy and collaborative work among state agencies, civil society, and academia. Irene Salvo Agoglia, AFIN researcher and current Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow at UAB, has actively participated in this process. Over the years, she has contributed technical input, research, and proposals that strengthen a human rights–based vision of adoption, especially regarding the right to identity of adopted persons.
In 2025, Irene Salvo Agoglia published two key works systematizing much of her research trajectory and advocacy experience:
- Salvo Agoglia, I. (2025). Past, present and future of adoption in Chile: towards a child rights-centered approach. UNICEF Chile.
- Salvo Agoglia, I., LaBrenz, C., & Piché, A. M. (2025). “A Better Adoption? Evolution, Challenges, and Projections of Chilean Adoption Policies and Practices.” Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal. Online first.
Both publications offer fundamental guidance to face the sociocultural, programmatic, and legal challenges Chile will need to address to ensure an adoption process centered on rights, well-being, and active participation of children and adolescents.