Receiving Countries
Switzerland
Switzerland’s examination of intercountry adoption began in 2017, following a major scandal involving children adopted from Sri Lanka. The Dutch public service broadcaster BNNVARA aired an episode of the documentary series Zembla, which reported that hundreds of Sri Lankan infants had been taken for adoption by Europeans, including Swiss families, illegally.[1] These revelations led Rebecca Suiz, a former Social Democratic Party Member, to file Postulate 17.4181.[2] This was a procedural request to the Swiss Parliament demanding the Federal Council to investigate illegalities into intercountry adoptions, which was referred to the National Council in 2018.[3] The National Council approved the postulate, instructing the Federal Council to examine, together with the cantons, the practices of private adoption intermediaries and the role of cantonal and federal authorities in relation to adoptions from Sri Lanka during.[4]
Prompted by this initiative, the Federal Council wanted to develop a scientific basis on which to handle the matter of Sri Lankan adoptions. In 2019, the Federal Office of Justice within the Federal Department of Justice and Police commissioned This study was supposed to answer the Ruiz Postulate and provide basic information on the activities of Swiss adoption placement agencies and the processes by which children from Sri Lanka were brought to Switzerland for adoption.[6]
The ZHAW report is divided into three sections and was published in February 2020 and was adopted by the Federal Council in December of the same year. The first section addressed the historical research and analysis; the second examined the current avenues available to adoptees in tracing their origins and birth family; and the third analysed the legislative framework governing intercountry adoption, offering recommendations for future improvements. The researchers involved were Sabine Bitter, Annika Bangerter and Nadja Ramsauer. They consulted archives across Switzerland and abroad, building on the Sri Lankan findings. The results of this study prompted the canton of St. Gallen to commission a second study, focusing specifically on Sri Lankan adoptions as well. This project was headed by Francesca Falk, which was a lecturer at the University of Bern, and her research assistant Danielle Berthet. They examined all international adoption procedures, between 1973 and 2002, which included couples from St. Gallen adopting a child from Sri Lanka.[8]
Moreover, following the publication of the ZHAW report (2020), in 2021, the Federal Council commissioned ZHAW another inquiry on intercountry adoptions of children from ten additional origin countries: Bangladesh, Brazil, Chile, Guatemala, India, Colombia, Korea, Lebanon and Romania.[9] The Federal Council wanted to investigate whether irregularities were limited to Sri Lanka or affected more countries of origin of intercountry adoptions. These countries were chosen because either Switzerland had a high volume of adoptions from there or there were specific allegations or red flags about illegal practices from those places.[10] This investigation continued until 2023 and reviewed archival documents relating to these then countries of origin, held in the Swiss Federal Archives, covering the period from the 1970s to the 1990s.[11] This interim review was then published and its results acknowledged by the Federal Council in 2023.
The ZHAW report (2020) confirmed that all adoption procedures examined had been flawed to varying degrees, both in Sri Lanka and in Switzerland. The study found that Swiss authorities were aware of these problems but did not take the necessary measures to address them. It also revealed significant disparities in procedures and practices among the cantons, which were responsible for implementing adoption laws.
Particularly serious was the finding that both federal and cantonal authorities had been aware, from an early stage, of the commercial and sometimes illegal nature of the placements. The research showed that irregularities were recognised and discussed within Switzerland: officials at the time repeatedly added explicit and cautionary handwritten notes to official documents and a dossier labelled “child trafficking” was found in the Federal Archives. Authorities turned a blind eye to missing or contradictory documents, and efforts to improve the situation of foreign and adopted children through legislation reform between 1973 and 1977 were only partially successful.
The report advocated for a structured, state-level specific policy on intercountry adoption to be established in Switzerland. This should include clear regulation and oversight mechanisms, legal and institutional safeguards to prevent illicit practices and support for persons adopted internationally. Although recognising that the regulatory situation within international adoptions had improved since the 1980s.
The report commissioned by the canton of St. Gallen confirmed the previous findings, concluding that cantonal and communal authorities also played a role in the commitment of errors and shortcomings, together with the Sri Lankan procedures. This study moreover confirmed that the Swiss adoption agent Alice Honegger, which was involved in most of the illegal adoptions from Sri Lanka, must have been aware that she was involved in commercial adoptions.[12]
The broader ZHAW interim review (2023), which was commissioned after revelations that the Sri Lanka case was not isolated, also found irregularities in the ten additional countries analysed. The report mentioned illegal practices, child trafficking, falsification of documents and missing declarations about origins as instances of illegal practices.[13] The report showed that irregular and even illegal practices were not limited to Sri Lanka, but that all the countries analysed were affected to varying degrees and that the Swiss authorities were aware of this.[14]
Political and policy responses
In December 2020, after reviewing the Sri Lanka study, the Swiss Federal Council formally expressed regret for the negligence and misconduct of the authorities in handling the Sri Lankan cases. It also committed to providing greater support in the future for those affected. In its communication, the Federal Council announced the request for the additional research project into the ten additional countries of origin to identify irregularities in adoptions outside of the Sri Lankan case, which will culminate in the 2023 ZHAW interim review. Moreover, it announced the institution of an Experts’ group to review the current system of adoption and propose the necessary changes to legislation and practice.[15] This experts group was chaired by Monika Pfaffinger and included Priti Aeschbacher, Yvo Biderbost, Hervé Boéchat, Sarah Ineichen, Maryse Javaux Vena, Sandro Körber, Gian Paolo Romano, Joëlle Schickel-Küng and Judith Wyttenbach. Again in 2023, after the wider study, the Federal Council expressed its regret to all adoptees from the affected countries for the authorities’ negligence.[16]
By May 2022, the federal and cantonal government were providing up to 250,000 Swiss francs annually to support the “Back to the Roots” pilot project, which helps Sri Lanka-born adoptees trace their biological families.[17] “Back to the Roots” is a Swiss association founded in 2018 by people adopted from Sri Lanka, which represents and advocates for the interests of adult adoptees who were adopted from Sri Lanka into Switzerland. Following the revelations of the expert group, in January 2025, the Federal Council decided that Switzerland would no longer allow intercountry adoptions. The Federal Department of Justice and Police (FDJP) was instructed to prepare a draft law to introduce a ban on international adoptions by the end of 2026.
This decision was based on the experts group’s conclusion that, even with well-drafted adoption laws, abuses could not be prevented and that a complete ban represented the most effective way to protect those affected.[18]
Additionally, Switzerland established a free advisory service (BARO) to help adoptees search for their origins and cope with the psychological impact of their experiences.[19] Discussions are currently underway regarding possible reparations for the victims.[20]
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[1] Elvira Loibl and David M. Smolin (eds), Facing the Past: Policies and Good Practices for Responses to Illegal Intercountry Adoptions (Eleven 2024), p. 183.
[2] https://www.parlament.ch/fr/ratsbetrieb/suche-curia-vista/geschaeft?AffairId=20174181
[3] Elvira Loibl and David M. Smolin (eds), Facing the Past: Policies and Good Practices for Responses to Illegal Intercountry Adoptions (Eleven 2024), p. 184.
[4] ‘International adoptions’ (Federal Office Of Justice, 29 January 2025) <https://www.bj.admin.ch/bj/en/home/gesellschaft/gesetzgebung/internationale-adoptionen.html> accessed 8 November 2025.
[5] Michael Shields, ‘Swiss to help adopted Sri Lankans trace their roots, in wake of scandal) (Reuters, 16 may 2022) <https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/swiss-help-adopted-sri-lankans-trace-their-roots-wake-scandal-2022-05-16/#:~:text=> accessed 8 November 2025.
[6] Elvira Loibl and David M. Smolin (eds), Facing the Past: Policies and Good Practices for Responses to Illegal Intercountry Adoptions (Eleven 2024), p. 189.
[8] ibid
[9] Michael Shields, ‘Swiss to help adopted Sri Lankans trace their roots, in wake of scandal) (Reuters, 16 may 2022) <https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/swiss-help-adopted-sri-lankans-trace-their-roots-wake-scandal-2022-05-16/#:~:text=> accessed 8 November 2025.
[10] ‘Illegale Praktiken bei Tausenden Adoptionen befürchtet’ (SRF, 8 December 2023) <https://www.srf.ch/news/schweiz/nicht-nur-aus-sri-lanka-illegale-praktiken-bei-tausenden-adoptionen-befuerchtet> accessed 1 December 2025.
[11] ‘Internation adoption law: Swiss Federal Council sees need for action’ (News Service of the Swiss Federal Government, 8 December 2023) <https://www.news.admin.ch/en/nsb?id=99228> accessed 8 November 2025.
[12] Elvira Loibl and David M. Smolin (eds), Facing the Past: Policies and Good Practices for Responses to Illegal Intercountry Adoptions (Eleven 2024), p. 189.
[13] ‘A new report on irregularities in intercountry adoptions and next steps’ (Child Identity Protection, 8 June 2025) <https://www.child-identity.org/a-new-report-on-irregularities-in-intercountry-adoptions-and-next-steps/> accessed 8 November 2025.
[14] ‘Irregular adoptions’ (Swiss Federal Council) https://www.bj.admin.ch/bj/en/home/gesellschaft/adoption/illegale-adoptionen.html accessed 1 December 2025.
[15] ‘Adoptions from Sri Lanka: the Federal Council regrets the negligence of the authorities’ (Swiss Federal Council News Service, 14 December 2020) <https://www.news.admin.ch/en/nsb?id=81577> accessed 8 November 2025.
[16] ‘Irregular adoptions’ (Swiss Federal Council) <https://www.bj.admin.ch/bj/en/home/gesellschaft/adoption/illegale-adoptionen.html> accessed 1 December 2025.
[17] Michael Shields, ‘Swiss to help adopted Sri Lankans trace their roots, in wake of scandal) (Reuters, 16 may 2022) <https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/swiss-help-adopted-sri-lankans-trace-their-roots-wake-scandal-2022-05-16/#:~:text=> accessed 8 November 2025.
[18] ‘Federal Council to stop international adoptions’ (Swiss Federal Government, 29 January 2025) <https://www.news.admin.ch/en/nsb?id=103957> accessed 8 November 2025.
[19] Michael Shields, ‘The Swiss illegally adopted thousands of children from abroad’ (Swissinfo.ch, 22 December 2023) <https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/business/the-swiss-illegally-adopted-thousands-of-children-from-abroad/49077816> accessed 8 November 2025.
[20] Lynelle Long, ‘Governments Finally Recognising Illicit and Illegal Intercountry Adoption Practices’ (Intercountry Adoptee Voices, 4 September 2021) <https://intercountryadopteevoices.com/2021/09/04/governments-finally-recognising-illicit-and-illegal-intercountry-adoption-practices/> accessed 8 November 2025.
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Illegale Adoptionen von Kindern aus Sri Lanka: historische Aufarbeitung, Herkunftssuche, Perspektiven (Federal Council Adopted Report) (2020)
Report: https://www.bj.admin.ch/bj/en/home/gesellschaft/adoption/illegale-adoptionen.html
Partial Official English Translation: https://www.bj.admin.ch/bj/en/home/gesellschaft/adoption/illegale-adoptionen.html
Hinweise auf illegale Adoptionen von Kindern aus zehn Herkunfts-ländern in der Schweiz, 1970er-
bis 1990er-Jahre Bestandesaufnahme zu Unterlagen im Schweizerischen Bundesarchiv (2023)
Report: https://www.bj.admin.ch/bj/en/home/gesellschaft/adoption/illegale-adoptionen.html
The Adoption of Children from Sri Lanka in the Canton of St Gallen 1973- 2002 (2022)
English report: https://www.hist.unibe.ch/unibe/portal/fak_historisch/dga/hist/content/e11168/e44569/e875636/e875637/pane875642/e1287857/Report_EN_ger.pdf