In Montenegro a child can be adopted by a person aged 30 to 50 who is at least 18 years older than the child. A child can be adopted up to the age of 18, and no earlier than three months after birth. Adoption is established by the social work centre acting as the guardianship authority, and the application goes through the ministry responsible for social welfare. Adoption creates an unbreakable relationship equal to blood kinship, and the adopters are entered in the birth register as the parents. Since April 2026 adopters of a child under eight have one year of paid leave from the date of adoption.
This guide explains who can adopt, which child can be adopted, when parental consent is needed, how the procedure works, what adoption means for the child and the family, and how adoption leave works.
Who can adopt a child?
- The adopter must be aged 30 to 50 and at least 18 years older than the child.
- When two people adopt together, it is enough for one of them to meet the age requirement.
- For especially justified reasons the adopter may be older than 50, but the age gap between adopter and child may not exceed 50 years.
- A child can be adopted jointly by a married couple, by a stepmother or stepfather, by unmarried partners living together, and by the unmarried partner of the child's parent.
- The minister responsible for social welfare may exceptionally allow a person living alone to adopt, if there are especially justified reasons and it is in the child's best interests.
A person cannot adopt if they have been deprived of parental rights or had them restricted, have been deprived of legal capacity, have an illness that could harm the child, do not offer enough guarantee of proper parental care, or have been convicted of a crime against life and limb, sexual freedom or marriage and the family. Nor can a person whose spouse or partner falls into one of these categories.
- A blood relative in the direct line, a brother or a sister cannot be adopted.
- A guardian cannot adopt their ward until the guardianship authority relieves them of the guardianship.
- A foreign national cannot adopt a child who is a Montenegrin citizen, except when no adopter can be found among Montenegrin citizens, with the ministry's consent based on the opinion of a five-member expert commission.
Which child can be adopted?
- A child can be adopted up to the age of 18, and only if it is in the child's best interests.
- A child cannot be adopted until three months after birth.
- A child of minor parents can be adopted only one year after birth, if there is no prospect that the parents or close relatives will raise the child.
- A child of unknown parents can be adopted only three months after being abandoned.
- Twins and emotionally attached siblings are adopted together, and separately only exceptionally, when joint adoption is not possible and it is in their best interests.
When is parental consent needed?
- Adoption requires the consent of both parents or of the only parent.
- Consent is not needed from a parent who has been deprived of parental rights or legal capacity, who does not live with the child and has seriously neglected the child's care for three months, or whose whereabouts have been unknown for at least six months without caring for the child in that time.
- A parent gives consent on record before the guardianship authority, no earlier than when the child is three months old, and can withdraw it within 30 days of signing the record.
- For a child under guardianship the guardian's consent is required.
- The spouse of the person adopting and the child also give consent, the child without the parents or the prospective adopter present.
How does the adoption procedure work?
- The person who wants to adopt submits an application to the guardianship authority through the ministry responsible for social welfare.
- An expert team at the social work centre, including a social worker, a psychologist, an educational specialist and other experts, assesses suitability and prepares future adopters.
- The social work centre where the child lives runs the procedure, and it is closed to the public.
- The centre explains the legal consequences of adoption to the parents, the adopters and any child older than 10.
- Before the decision the centre may place the child with the future adopters for six months without payment, except when the adopter is a foreign national.
- An appeal against the adoption decision must be filed within eight days, the adoption is established once the decision becomes final, and the centre then sends it to the registrar for entry.
Tivat Health Centre, for example, charges 25 euros for a medical certificate of fitness to adopt a child.
What does adoption mean for the child and the family?
- An unbreakable relationship equal to blood kinship arises between the adopters and their relatives and the child and the child's descendants.
- Rights and duties between the child and blood relatives end, except when the child is adopted by a stepmother or stepfather.
- The adopters agree on the child's first name, and the child takes their common surname; if they do not agree, the guardianship authority decides.
- The child has the right to know about the adoption: adopters must tell the child by the age of seven at the latest, or immediately for an older child, and inform the guardianship authority.
- Adoption records are an official secret, and an adult adoptee, the adopter and a parent who consented to adoption by a stepparent may see the file.
- After adoption, maternity and paternity can no longer be contested or established, and an adoption ends only if a court annuls it.
Adoption leave
- Under the April 2026 amendments to the Labour Act, adopters of a child under eight have the right to one year of continuous leave from the date of adoption, in equal parts, with salary compensation.
- An employee must give the employer written notice of the leave one month in advance, with its start and end dates.
- An employer may not terminate an adopter's employment contract because they use adoption leave.
The newborn allowance, which an adopter can also receive, is explained in our guide to child benefit, and leave for fathers in our guide to paternity leave. Entry in the birth register is covered in our guide to birth registration, and changing a name or surname in our guide to surname changes.
Frequently asked questions
How old do you have to be to adopt a child in Montenegro? The adopter must be aged 30 to 50 and at least 18 years older than the child, and when a couple adopts, it is enough for one of them to meet this requirement.
Where do you apply to adopt a child? The application goes to the guardianship authority, that is the social work centre, through the ministry responsible for social welfare.
Can a person living alone adopt a child? Only exceptionally, with the permission of the minister responsible for social welfare, if there are especially justified reasons and it is in the child's best interests.
Can foreigners adopt a child from Montenegro? Only exceptionally, if no adopter can be found among Montenegrin citizens, and with the ministry's consent.
How long is adoption leave? Adopters of a child under eight have one year of continuous leave from the date of adoption, with salary compensation.
Can a parent withdraw consent to adoption? Yes, a parent can withdraw consent within 30 days of signing the record.
Sources
The conditions, consent, procedure and consequences of adoption are set by the Family Act (Articles 121 to 156), and the role of social work centres is explained by the Government of Montenegro and the social work centres. Adoption leave is governed by the Labour Act (Articles 135 and 137), as amended by the April 2026 act, Official Gazette 51/2026. The price of the medical certificate is published by Tivat Health Centre. The information was checked on 27 September 2026. Fijaka is a classifieds platform; this text is not legal advice.