International adoption country guide
China: adoption records and family tracing
Practical guidance for adoptees based in the UK who were adopted in China, were born there and adopted in the UK, or have a birth parent from there.
Research last refreshed: September 2026
Ask the Adoptee Rights Assistant
Start by identifying the records and rules that apply
Record creation and retention vary greatly by province and period; the 1999 foreign-adoption registration framework and 2006 Hague era are important breakpoints.
Much preparation can be done from the UK: document review/retranslation, online search groups, GEDmatch and other DNA tools, Nanchang Project resources, and Chinese social-media/search preparation. On-the-ground searching, local media and some Chinese DNA testing normally require China-based help.
Check the current procedure before applyingThis guide explains the likely process, but forms, contact details, eligibility and access rules can change. Check the linked source before sending identity documents or paying a fee.
Choose the situation that describes you
Adopted in China
What applies: First establish the date and place of the legal adoption in China, and identify the original birth/civil, adoption, court, agency or welfare records separately.
How to look for records: Start with the provincial civil-affairs/adoption registration trail, welfare institution/orphanage material, finding/abandonment material, police or hospital clues, and UK receiving records. There is no single national adult-origins service verified for all cases.
How to look for family: Use a multi-track search. Re-examine Chinese adoption papers, finder/police/orphanage clues and the exact finding place; have Chinese documents retranslated if useful. Search projects such as Nanchang Project can combine locality research, birth family appeals and DNA. Use Chinese DNA databases/search networks as well as international DNA databases, because close Chinese matches may not appear on Western platforms.
Important: Do not assume that access to one China record repository gives access to the whole adoption file. Historic law and record survival may differ from the current adult process.
Born in China and brought to the UK to be adopted
What applies: First establish whether the legal adoption was completed in China or in the UK. If that is unknown, keep both procedures open rather than assuming where the adoption order was made.
How to look for records: Use the China birth/civil and before adoption record procedures described for this country, while separately tracing the UK adoption/receiving-agency, local authority, court and immigration trail.
How to look for family: Use a multi-track search. Re-examine Chinese adoption papers, finder/police/orphanage clues and the exact finding place; have Chinese documents retranslated if useful. Search projects such as Nanchang Project can combine locality research, birth family appeals and DNA. Use Chinese DNA databases/search networks as well as international DNA databases, because close Chinese matches may not appear on Western platforms.
Important: The original birth-country record and the later UK adoption/recognition record are different sources. Nationality of the adopters does not determine where the original birth record is held.
One parent was from China
What applies: Do not process this as an intercountry-adoption record case unless the user's own adoption occurred there. Start with the verified identity of the parent and the strongest known place/date in China.
How to look for records: Use civil registration, archives and genealogy resources for China once the parent's identity and locality are established. Adoption-specific authorities are relevant only if the parent's own adoption/history makes them so.
How to look for family: Use a multi-track search. Re-examine Chinese adoption papers, finder/police/orphanage clues and the exact finding place; have Chinese documents retranslated if useful. Search projects such as Nanchang Project can combine locality research, birth family appeals and DNA. Use Chinese DNA databases/search networks as well as international DNA databases, because close Chinese matches may not appear on Western platforms.
Important: A parent being from this country does not by itself create an entitlement to adoption records. Living-person privacy and civil registration access rules may restrict what can be obtained.
Records and family finding
Start with records
Start with the provincial civil-affairs/adoption registration trail, welfare institution/orphanage material, finding/abandonment material, police or hospital clues, and UK receiving records. There is no single national adult-origins service verified for all cases.
Looking for family
Use a multi-track search. Re-examine Chinese adoption papers, finder/police/orphanage clues and the exact finding place; have Chinese documents retranslated if useful. Search projects such as Nanchang Project can combine locality research, birth family appeals and DNA. Use Chinese DNA databases/search networks as well as international DNA databases, because close Chinese matches may not appear on Western platforms.
DNA
Use DNA as a separate source of evidence, not as proof by itself. Prefer multiple matches/shared match analysis plus documentary evidence. Country-specific DNA programmes are listed where verified.
Peer support
China has a comparatively mature adoptee-led ecosystem. China's Children International runs an adoptee-created Birth Parent Search and Reunion group; Chinese Adoptee Alliance is adoptee-led; Nanchang Project offers search resources and an adoptee-only Discord/reunion peer space. Live-check eligibility/current activity before referral.
Practical next steps
If you have no namesFirst establish the strongest available identifying information from adoption, birth, court, agency, welfare/institution and receiving-country records.
If you have a name or placeUse the verified name plus place/date to move into civil registration, archives, genealogy databases, local history and specialist tracing processs.
If the search has stalledIf documentary clues stall, map the finding place/orphanage, join the relevant province/orphanage search community, test/upload DNA across appropriate databases, and consider a structured China search project rather than relying only on general genealogy.
Verified sources and resources
Official services and independent or adoptee-led resources are shown separately. Check current eligibility, security, costs and capacity before supplying personal information.
Adoptee-led peer and search resources
Adoptee-created search/reunion group, search strategies, confidential peer support
Things to check: Does not provide tailored on-the-ground China search service
China-wide birth family searching, DNA guidance, province groups, Chinese DNA options, reunion peer support
Things to check: Not a government authority; service model and DNA logistics change and must be checked for current information
Other verified resources
Adoptee-focused birth family search guidance, China search methods, DNA/search preparation
Things to check: Not an official authority; verify current service status before referral
Jiapu, village/street chronicles, Chinese genealogy methodology
Things to check: Useful after locality/surname clues; not an adoption tracing authority
Current China search projects, DNA/search methods, region groups and practical preparation
Things to check: Directory/resource site; individual services must be checked independently
This country guide provides general information, not legal advice or a tracing service. Records and family finding across borders can involve privacy, consent and personal safety considerations. Verify the current official procedure before acting.
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