Sending Countries
South Korea
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), re-established in 2020 under the Framework Act on Settling the Past, was tasked with the investigation of a range of historical human rights violations. Although its mandate covered issues such as wartime civilian massacres, political repression and abuses in state-run welfare institutions, it also became the first body in South Korea to formally examine past intercountry adoptions. The inquiry was triggered by petitions submitted by 367 adoptees that were sent abroad between 1964 and 1999 to eleven countries, including the United States, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Belgium the Netherlands, Germany, Australia and Canada.[1] These adoptees claimed that their right to identity was infringed upon, as they had been declared orphans during the adoption process through forced documentation.
Over the following years, the TRC assessed these claims as part of its truth-finding mandate, focusing on potential state role and agencies misconduct in facilitating irregular intercountry adoptions. In March 2025 it concluded that fundamental rights of adoptees were violated by the government’s adoption system.[2] The government had breached adoptees’ fundamental rights by allowing falsified documentation, failing to supervise agencies and approving the overseas migration of children who had never been eligible for adoption. Out of the 367 petitions received, the TRC completed investigations and issued reports for 98 cases. In 56 of those cases clear illegal acts were documented, the remaining cases were dismissed due to “insufficient evidence” or missing records.[3]
The report identified serious and systemic violations within South Korea’s intercountry adoption system. It found that adoption agencies colluded with overseas partners to “export” children to meet foreign demand, especially during the 1970s and 1980s when numerical limits on overseas adoptions were temporarily imposed and then lifted. Moreover, the investigation documented fraudulent orphans’ registration, as well as fabrication or alteration of adoptees information, so that more children could be considered adoptable.[4] The report revealed that South Korean agencies had full guardianship, which led to adoptions being consented without families’ approval. The TRC further revealed failures in the screening of the future adoptive parents, who were discovered to be unfit to raise children by authorities in foreign countries, which created legal issues.[5] The TRC explicitly stated that these abuses amounted to serious human rights violations against the children. It urged the South Korean government to publicly apologise and acknowledge these past wrongs. Among the suggestions, it also recommended remedial measures for adoptees and their families, and it recommended Korea to join the Hague Adoption Convention.
Political and policy responses
In July 2025, the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) announced that Korea would end private adoption agencies and move to a fully public adoption system, in light of the Commission’s revelations. The Ministry will act as the central authority to evaluate the eligibility of children and adoptive parents, and international adoptions will proceed only if an appropriate family cannot be found in the country.[6] In July 2025, South Korea ratified the Hague Adoption Convention. In October 2025, South Korea’s President offered a formal apology on Facebook for the country’s mishandling of past adoption practices and took accountability for the government’s failure to provide oversight.
In December 2025, South Korea’s government announced its plan to end intercountry adoptions, which will be phased out over a five-year period, ending in 2029. The announcement followed growing pressure imposed on the government by the United Nations.[8]
In January 2026, the South Korean parliament passed a reform authorising the formation of a new Truth and Reconciliation Committee (TRC). The revised law provides for a new investigation team tasked with examining adoption cases and problems within care institutions. The law will enter into force on 26th February 2026, after which adoptees may request an investigation into their adoption history. These investigations will assess whether any illegalities occurred during the adoption process and whether the state may be held liable.
In 2019, Adam Crapser, a South-Korean born adoptee, who was deported from the United States in 2016 after his adoptive parents failed to secure his United States’ citizenship, filed a lawsuit in Korean courts against the South Korean government and his adoption agency, Holt Children’s Services, claiming there had been negligence and institutional failures in his adoption process. Crapser argued that the agency and the state mishandled his adoption and failed to protect his right and sought damages for their role in these irregularities. In 2023, a South Korean court initially ordered the agency to pay him damages, but the government was absolved of liability. The ruling concerning the agency was overturned on appeal in early 2025. Crapser’s legal team indicated that the new decision will be appealed and the case is still ongoing.[9]
In August 2025, Kim Yoo-ree, a Korean adoptee, filed a compensation claim against the Korean government for negligence in her intercountry adoption. Her request is based on alleged falsification of her personal records, as she supposedly had a living family, but she was nevertheless placed for adoption abroad. The case is still ongoing.[10]
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[1] ‘South Korea sets up a truth and Reconciliation Commission to investigate adoptions’ (NPR, 20 December 2022) <https://www.npr.org/2022/12/20/1144311584/south-korea-sets-up-a-truth-and-reconciliation-commission-to-investigate-adoptio> accessed 16 November 2025.
[2] Se Eun Gong, ‘After complaints, South Korea admits it mishandled adoptions’ (NPR, 28 March 2025) <https://www.npr.org/2025/03/28/nx-s1-5341514/after-complaints-south-korea-admits-that-it-mishandled-adoptions> accessed 16 November 2025.
[3] ‘Adoptees urge new investigation and justice after South Korea confirms adoption abuses’ (Vietnam News, 11 April 2025) <https://vietnamnews.vn/world/1695633/adoptees-urge-new-investigation-and-justice-after-south-korea-confirms-adoption-abuses.html> accessed 16 November 2025.
[4] ‘“Serious violations found in South Korea foreign adoptions programme’ (Al Jazeera, 26 March 2025) <https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/3/26/serious-violations-found-in-south-korean-foreign-adoptions-programme> accessed 16 November 2025.
[5] ibid
[6] Lee Si-jin, ‘S. Korea tightens international adoption regulations, introduces adoptee visa’ (The Korea Herald, 1 October 2025) <https://www.koreaherald.com/article/10587875> accessed 16 November 2025.
[7] ‘S. Korean President apologises over foreign adoptions of stolen children’ (France 24, 2 October 2025) <https://www.france24.com/en/asia-pacific/20251002-south-korean-president-apologises-foreign-adoptions-1970-1980s-children-stolen-from-birth-parents> accessed 1 December 2025.
[8] Kim Tong-Hyung, ‘South Korea vows to end foreign adoptions as UN presses Seoul to address past abuses’ (AP News, 26 December 2025) <https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/south-korea-vows-end-foreign-adoptions-presses-seoul-128699370> accessed 8 January 2026.
[9] The Associated Press, ‘South Korean government and adoption agency cleared of liability in adoptee’s deportation from U.S.’ (NBC News, 8 January 2025) <https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/adam-crapser-korea-adoptee-deportation-rcna186803> accessed 31 January 2026.
[10] Lee, Hyo-jin, ‘Korean adoptee seeks government compensation for flaws in overseas adoption’ (The Korea Times, 25 August 2025) <https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/southkorea/society/20250825/korean-adoptee-seeks-govt-compensation-for-flaws-in-overseas-adoption> accessed 16 November 2025.
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Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Republic of Korea, Comprehensive Report 2020-2025 (2025)
English Report: https://jinsil.go.kr/en/nac/selectNoticeDetail.do?bbsId=BBSMSTR_000000000723&nttId=326649#
English Press Release: https://intercountryadopteevoices.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/250326-Press-Release-Human-Rights-Violations-in-the-Intercountry-Adoption-Process.pdf