Adoption can be an uplifting way to grow your family and help a child who has experienced loss, trauma, abuse, or a troubled start in life. No matter the age — newborn, infancy, toddler, preschool, school-age, or adolescence (and up to age 21 in some states) — of the nearly 400,000 children in foster care within the United States, about 117,000 are waiting to be adopted,1 and would undoubtedly love a forever home.
Whether you want to adopt a child in foster care, a step-child, grandchild, relative, or looking to keep siblings together, for whatever your reason — be it, the inability to have a biological child of your own or simply desiring to parent and provide care for a child who needs a home — there are several children who are in need of a world of love, protection, advocacy, stability, and more.
Ways to adopt2
Before beginning your adoption journey, it's a good idea to educate yourself about the different types of adoption:
Foster care. Children in this type of care are usually waiting to be adopted and may be in the system for a number of reasons like their birth parents losing their parental rights. In many cases (but not all) children in foster care return to their families or are placed with relatives.
Foster-to-Adopt. This program typically presents the opportunity for a family to first foster a child with the expectation of potentially moving towards either adoption by that family or reunification with their biological family.
Infant adoption. This is one of the most sought-after forms of adoption that involves adopting a child during the newborn-infancy stage.
Independent adoption. This involves direct placement or an arranged adoption between the birth and adoptive parents.
An open adoption allows birth parents to have some form of contact between their biological child and the adoptive parents. There is an open line of contact. This can include scheduled visitations, sharing of pictures, and phone or video calls.
Closed (confidential) adoptions. There is no contact or identifying information shared between the birth parents, their biological child, and the adoptive parents.
Domestic Adoption3
Domestic adoption is the process of adopting children within the United States. This can be done through a licensed adoption agency or through an attorney.
Adoptions through an agency are often called private or independent adoptions that involves direct placement between the biological parents and the adoptive parent. Most states allow private adoption, even allowing birth parents to look for adoptive parents on their own and place the baby in a new home without an agency, while other states require a legal procedure through an agency.
It can be difficult to navigate state laws and understand your rights, so it's good idea to hire an adoption attorney, even when going through an agency.
International (intercountry) adoption
While adopting internationally can create a multicultural family, the process may not be a streamlined process. For this reason, consider an adoption placement agency that partners with licensed U.S. agencies.
You may be able to adopt a child from a country that is a party to the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption — an international agreement to safeguard international adoptions in an effort to protect children, birth parents, and adoptive parents. Children may also be adopted from non-convention countries but must be classified as an orphan. Take a moment to learn more about the services involved depending on the country you're seeking to adopt from. There may be:
- U.S. Citizenship and Immigration requirements and fees
- Background checks
- Travel preparation expenses
- Passport and visa fees
- Foreign government fees
For this reason, it's a good idea to hire an attorney to help you navigate international laws, processes, and understand your rights to avoid pitfalls.
To learn more about international adoptions visit Travel.State.gov.
How to adopt a child
When beginning your adoption journey, it's not uncommon for agencies to offer an initial orientation that provides information on steps to come and the overall understanding of the process. Attending orientation would be an opportune time to get your questions answered and receive any pertinent resources.
Some states require specific trainings, courses, and completion of assessments before advancing through the process. Other requirements to anticipate could include background checks, interviews, home visits, or license requirements. Be sure to become more familiar with your state rules and expectations so you'll be better informed and prepared before creating a profile or any steps towards matching with a child.
Know where to find information. For example, your agency, your local Department of Social Services, reliable sources, and replicable resources.
Adoption cost to consider3
According to the Adoption Network, most adoptions through foster care are free to the adopting family; however, in some states, the adopting family pays for the finalization of the adoption. The adopting family also pays for:
- Travel expenses.
- Private domestic or international adoption, typically all services permitted by state and federal regulations.
Domestic agency fees can range from $15,000 – $30,000.
Private placement fees can range from $25,000 – $50,000.
International adoption may cost between $30,000 – $80,000.
- Adoption home study and post placement supervisory visits.
- Individual attorney representation and all legal costs, including court filing fees and serving notices.
- The baby’s hospital bill; however, the birth mother’s expenses are not.
- Prenatal and hospital cost if the birth parent has no medical coverage and does not have Medicaid.
- Recommended specialist appointments or testing.
Useful information to keep in mind is that each adoption has its own budget and costs. It could be beneficial to ask the agency or attorney for a description of all fees before agreeing to work together. Also, be transparent about your budget or any financial limitations you may have.
Helpful things to remember when adopting
While every adoption experience is different and special, having knowledge and reliable information can help the process flow more smoothly. Other valuable information to consider:
- Some adopted children come from less-than-ideal backgrounds and could benefit from therapy options that may help process their emotions, mental challenges, or any issues associated to their adoption.
- Placing siblings together is ideal but when that can’t be done, making every effort to help them keep those connections can support feelings of identity, belonging, and well-being.
- Gather health records and family information. If possible, obtain any genetic history to help in uncovering genetic predispositions to certain diseases.
- Adoption financial assistance is available in the form of grants and fundraising opportunities.
- State adoption programs may provide financial assistance for children who are not covered by Title IV-E funds, although eligibility and amounts vary by state. For more information about your state's requirements visit, AdoptUSKids.org
- There is a federal tax credit for adoption that can be applied to international, domestic, private, and public foster care adoption — not to those who adopt their spouse's child.4