Ontario Adoption Records
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Accessing Adoption Records in Ontario
In 2008, Ontario opened adoption records to allow adoptees and birth parents access to personal and family information. The province keeps records for all adopted children born in Ontario, even if the adoption was handled elsewhere.
While Ontario adoption records are open, the steps you need to complete to access the information you want can be overwhelming. Lengthy processing times may delay your search, and some information isn’t available to biological siblings, grandparents, or other relatives.
If you’re having trouble getting adoption records in Ontario, Adopted.com is here to help. Our voluntary reunion registry allows anyone impacted by an adoption to register and search for their family members. Reunions happen through mutual consent, whether you have official records or not.
To begin your search, you just need to fill out a simple form with ten questions you likely know about your adoption. If there’s a potential match on the platform, you’ll be notified right away.
We have the largest voluntary adoption registry in the world, with people searching for family members in Toronto, Ottawa, and across the entire province. Register today to take the first step toward a potential reunion.
Register Now Directory
11,079 Are Adoption Records Public in Ontario?
Yes, Ontario passed a law in 2008 to open adoption records, including birth registrations and adoption orders. Under this law, adoptees and birth parents can access information from sealed adoption records. The information includes an adoptee’s original name and their birth parents’ names. Birth parents can learn the name the child was given after the adoption.
By request, the Ontario government will release this information, as long as the adoptee or birth parent has not filed a disclosure veto to protect their privacy.
How to Find Adoption Records in Ontario
There are different steps to find adoption records in Ontario, depending on your involvement in the adoption and the information you want to access. You can request both identifying and non-identifying information through ServiceOntario.
Non-identifying information refers to details that don’t reveal the names or contact information of anyone involved in the adoption. This information can include the adoption date, the adoption agency, and the birth family’s medical history.
You can request non-identifying information in Ontario if you’re:
- An adoptee who’s at least 18 years old
- An adoptee under 18 with your adoptive parent’s consent
- An adoptive parent
- A biological parent, grandparent, or sibling of the adoptee
- A child of a deceased adoptee
- A birth parent’s sibling
You may also have access to identifying information from an original birth registration or an adoption order. This information can show you the identities of people involved in the adoption. It may include the adoptee’s name at birth or after adoption, the birth parents’ names, and the adoptive parents’ names.
You may be able to access this information if you’re:
- An adoptee who’s at least 18 years old
- A birth parent if the adoptee is at least 19 years old
There’s no fee to access adoption records in Ontario. You just need to complete the correct form and mail it to the address listed. You can’t fax, email, or deliver an application in person.
How Can I Find a Biological Parent in Ontario?
If you’re an adoptee, you can find your biological parents’ names by requesting post-adoption information through ServiceOntario. However, if one or both of your birth parents have asked to keep their identities private, you will not receive this information.
Birth parents can also agree to release information but ask not to be contacted. If your biological parent has completed a no-contact notice and you attempt to contact them anyway, you can be fined up to $50,000.
How Can I Find Someone Who Was Adopted in Ontario?
You can only request an adoptee’s identifying information if you’re the biological parent. The adoptee must also be at least 19 years old before you can search for them. This rule gives an adoptee one year after they turn 18 to file their privacy and contact preferences.
Just like birth parents, an adoptee has the right to keep their identity private or ask not to be contacted by their biological family. If the adoptee has a no-contact notice on file and you contact them anyway, you can be fined up to $50,000.
Other biological relatives, including grandparents and siblings, can’t access identifying information from adoption records, but they can join the Adoption Disclosure Register. If you register, you’ll be notified if or when a match occurs.
Let Adopted.com help you find your lost family today!
Adopted.com is a powerful adoption reunion registry designed to help you reconnect with your birth parents. By registering, you gain access to a growing database of over 1,198,407 profiles, increasing your chances of finding your biological relatives. The platform respects your privacy and allows you to update your profile anytime.
Registration is free, and the unique search tool ensures measurable match results. When you find your birth parents, remember to approach the reunion with an open heart and understanding, as it can be an emotionally significant experience for everyone involved.
Register NowRECENT MEMBERS IN Ontario
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A Few of Our Members Currently Searching Within Ontario Who Chose To Be Featured
121. Chrispanting1973 : I am looking for parents, relatives and siblings Was born sept 4 1973 in Burlington Ontario. Was born with heart defect Name at birth was Curtis Wilcox Mothers name I believe to be J.Wilcox
122. Chucky : Male 46 Born February 23rd 1971, Adopted in North York, Ontario. Was told I was 1 yrs old when adopted. I was told my birth name that was not changed was Gerald. In search of Birth Mother or relatives so that I may answer questions to my own children about their roots. Was told I am Metis.. But who knows. Adopted family abuse , neglect, mental anguish. Not looking for much just answers about who I am , what I am , Where I am from. So that my children may have roots, and not grow up as I did with none.
123. Chucky : Male 46 Born February 23rd 1971, Adopted in North York, Ontario. Was told I was 1 yrs old when adopted. I was told my birth name that was not changed was Gerald. In search of Birth Mother or relatives so that I may answer questions to my own children about their roots. Was told I am Metis.. But who knows. Adopted family abuse , neglect, mental anguish. Not looking for much just answers about who I am , what I am , Where I am from. So that my children may have roots, and not grow up as I did with none.
124. AmyBradshaw : Hello my name is Amy. My birth name is Amber Taylor Coombes. I was born on October 23, 1996 at North Western Hospital. I don’t have much information, but what I know is my birth mother is originally from Newfoundland and my birth father is originally from El Salvador. I have had no contact with any birth family since being put up for adoption.. I need to find them, I feel like I don’t know who I am or where I come from..I need answers!
125. Gbaylady : Looking for info for a friend.
126. Voltan1 : I am looking for my birth mother. I was adopted and born in London‚ Ontario‚ at St. Joseph’s Salvation Army Hospital on June 6. I would like to get to know my birth mother and thank her for giving me life. I am also looking for some medical history also
127. Steven69 : I was born may 25th 1969. My birth name was Glenn Ross Macdougall . I was born in Hamilton Ontario. At the Henderson hospital. I was told my mother was around the age of 16 or 17yrs old and sge was from somewhere up north Ontario.
128. HelenTomes : Born at MacMaster University Hospital. Hamilton‚On Canada. Possible adopted name Corey.
129. Rpulford : Born in Etobicoke Ontario
130. KandC : Adoption would likely have been through a Catholic agency. My understanding is that the parents were Portuguese and Irish.
131. Eveline : Born at women’s college hospital in Toronto‚ Ontario. Private adoption. Birth mother was attending U of T for music (piano). My birth name given by birth mother was Frances Macey.
132. DarleneBumstead : You could contact me.
133. Dinthecreek : My birth mother would have named me David.
134. Buzzardballs : Looking for parents or family members of Gordon Murray Budd. Born October 28th 1925 in Toronto. Adopted by Budd family in Ontario. Gordon was adopted at age 11 or so. Gordon’s last name was Christian at the Orphanage… I am the son of Gordon. Gordon passed in 1987. He was born to an unwed mother. I believe his birth mother’s name may have been Leota Christian. She kept him for a 1 and a half‚ but could no longer care for him. She was a servant and the father was a Labourer.
135. AAalten : I was born in Kitchener
