Adoption Laws in Tunisia are clearcut in their protection of the child adoptee.

In 1957, Tunisia passed a landmark law on fostering and adoption. "The articles of Law No. 27 imposed strict rules and criteria for adopters so as to guarantee the best living conditions for the adoptee," stated Karim Hmaichi, a deputy director of research at the The National Institute of Children Protection.

Adoption in Tunisia requires many conditions on the part of the adopter, who should be "a rational male or female, married, ethical, healthy in mind and body, and able to look after the affairs of the adoptee. The age difference between the adoptee and the adopter must be at least 15 years," states Chapter 10 of the adoption law.

The law emphasizes the necessity of treating the adoptee as if they were the actual son or daughter of the adopter. Chapter 6 states that the adoptee has all the civil rights resulting from lineage, including the adopter's last name and inheritance.

According to Chapter 11 of the law, "a Tunisian can adopt a foreigner," but it is not possible for foreigners to adopt Tunisians. In the past, foreigners were allowed to adopt Tunisian children, but in 1996 this was abolished for fear that adoption by foreigners would change the child's identity. That year, Tunisia signed onto the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Child (UNCRC) in which Article 8 requires that "state parties respect the right of the child to preserve his or her identity, including nationality, name, and family relations as recognized by law."

The adoption process contains many procedures for the adopter, who must first complete a test in order to clarify the socio-economic situation of their family. The judge issues his adoption ruling once he reviews the background of the adopter. The adoptee would eventually receive a formal document from the court, stating his real name and the name of his real father and mother.

If a child rejects the custody of the adopter mother to whom the court ruled in favor, the court ruling is cancelled to conform to the wish of the child out of consideration of their best interest. This procedure is in keeping with Chapter 67 of the Personal Status Code and Chapter 4 of the Child Protection Code.

Hmaichi confirmed that adoption is showing practical success in Tunisia since it conserves the dignity of the adoptee as the real son of the adopter. However, from an Islamic point of view, adoption is not allowed. The main reason for this is that it is not always possible to know the real family name of the adoptee, which could lead the unsuspecting man or woman to marry a sibling. The Mufti of Tunisia considers adoption as religiously forbidden. "It is a tradition of Aljahiliyyah (the era that preceded Islam)," he said, adding that the Prophet Mohammed adopted a child before the advent of Islam but once Islam emerged he then considered his adoptee as a foster child.

The National Institute of Children Protection receives 800 adoption applications each year, according to Neema Boulaarass, who is the head of the Institute. However, of those applicants, 30% are successful in receiving a new son or daughter, meaning that only 240 children are adopted each year.

The Institute receives an average of 480 children each year, but Boulaarass pointed out that there are now fewer children up for adoption, because many biological parents are reclaiming them after they have been convinced to marry each other. The percentage of reclaimed children out of all those given up for adoption exceeded 40% last year. "The process of identifying children's parents has been improved in the last few years, and it's thanks to DNA testing," stated Boulaarass.

After adoption, the National Institute of Children Protection pledges to monitor the adoptee in his new family for a period of three months. "There is a special team that makes sudden visits to the house of family and the Institute's agents maintain surveillance. Once a threat is detected, we interfere to examine the environment of the adoptee and sometimes we have to abolish the adoption contract," Hmaichi stated.