1. Learn about Ontario’s adoption records

In Ontario, adoption records are available to people who were involved in an adoption. It doesn’t matter if the adoption is “open” or “closed”.

This means that after an adopted child turns 18, they can ask for information about their adoption from the Ontario government.

If your child was born in Ontario and the adoption took place in Ontario, your child can ask for 2 types of information: identifying information and non-identifying information.

Non-identifying information will not reveal your identity as the birth parent. It tells your child:

• the date they were adopted
• the name of the agency that handled their adoption
• the care they got before they were placed with their adoptive family
• their birth family’s social or medical history

Identifying information reveals your identity as the birth parent. It tells your child:

• their full name at birth
• the names of their birth parents
• their date of birth
• the place where they were born
• the hospital or other location where they were born
• the name of the doctor or midwife who was there at their birth

Getting this information does not give your child the right to automatically contact you. You can ask the government not to share your record and say that you don’t want to be contacted.