The MoE Black List Blues

I have heard from several of you, both in comments here on the blog and in e-mail, since I posted the article last week about the new revision to the black list. This blog set new records for visitors from Europe, particularly from Ireland, Spain, and the UK. It seems that there is not much other information available about this situation on the Internet.

I have received several requests for specifics regarding whether and when adoption cases are being affected. Unfortunately, I don't have specifics on individual cases, other than some anecdotal reports from blogs, Internet forums, and e-mails. One report was from a family who had traveled all the way to Primorski Krai in far east Russia for their first trip (to meet their referral) but were turned away because their home study provider was added to the list just a couple of days prior. I am curious, now that the list has been out for a few days, how your agencies in Ireland, Spain, and the UK are dealing with the situation. I am also curious whether other pre-adoptive parents are running into any difficulties yet.

If you or your agency is affected, please leave a comment on this blog entry to help others better understand what you are running into and how you are working around it. You may leave an anonymous comment if you don't want to be identified, but please include your country, and, if possible, the region in Russia where you are working on an adoption.

I hope that this will be a brief issue for those who are affected, and that you will be home with your children soon.