Section 2

“adopted child” means a child who has been authorized by the

Court to be adopted or readopted;

“Adopted Children Register” means the Adopted Children Register established under subsection 25(1) and includes related registers kept and maintained in computer, on microfilm or in any other form of electronic and retrievable device;

“adopter” means a person authorized by an adoption order to adopt a child;

“applicant” means a person who is proposing to adopt, or who has adopted a child, whether in pursuance of an adoption order or otherwise, and, in the case of an application by two spouses,

6 Laws of Malaysia ACT 257

includes either of them;

“Certificate of Birth” means a Certificate of Birth issued under this

Act;

“child” means an unmarried person under the age of twenty-one and includes a female under that age who has been divorced;

“Court” means any Court having jurisdiction to make adoption orders under this Act;

“Director General of Social Welfare” means the Director General of

Social Welfare, Malaysia;

“father” in relation to an illegitimate child means the natural father;

“guardian” in relation to a child, means any person or body of persons other than its natural parents, who has custody of the child;

“Peninsular Malaysia” has the meaning assigned to it in section 3 of the Interpretation Acts 1948 and 1967 [Act 388], and includes the

Federal Territory;

“Registrar General” means the person appointed to be Registrar

General of Births and Deaths, Malaysia, in accordance with subsection 3(1) of the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1957

[Act 299];

“relative” means a brother, sister, grandparent, uncle or aunt, whether by consanguinity or affinity, and in the case of an illegitimate child, a person who would be so related if the child were legitimate and his father;

Adoption 7

“spouse” means in relation to a woman her husband, in relation to a man of Chinese race his principal wife, and in relation to any other man his wife.