International Adoption

  A growing number of Americans are choosing International Adoption as a way to add children to their families. In 2002 nearly 20,000 foreign orphans immigrated to the United States under the loving care of their new families. The number of children adopted internationally is expected to continue to rise in the next several years as more and more families learn about the International Adoption option.

 

  While all countries vary in their requirements for adoptive families, there are several universal procedures that Americans who wish to adopt from abroad must complete. An international adoption can be thought of as a process that is completed in parts.

 

 

Part I: Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS):

  In order to bring your foreign-born child into the United States of America, you must satisfy the requirements of the INS. Your family must first be approved to adopt a child internationally by filing a form called the Application for Advance Processing of Orphan Petition (Form I-600A). This process takes anywhere from 1-4 months, depending on the speed of your local INS office. Your family will also need to file the INS form entitled Petition to Classify Orphan as Immediate Relative (Form I-600). The I-600 approval is one of the documents needed in order for your child to be eligible to receive a U.S. Visa and immigrate to the United States. The I-600 is filed late in the adoption process, after your child has been identified (normally filed at the foreign embassy during your adoption trip). To receive the forms needed to adopt a foreign-born child, please go to www.ins.gov and order the I-600/I-600A free of charge. At this site you may also locate the local INS office with whom you will be working . If you choose to work with A World of Hope we will help you with this step.

Part 2: The International Homestudy:

  You will also begin the homestudy process very early in your adoption journey . A homestudy is simply a process by which a licensed Social Worker in your state of residence determines that you are eligible to bring a child into your family through adoption. Some states require that your homestudy be completed by a licensed child-placing agency, while other states allow independent Social Workers to complete the homestudy. Remember, the person or agency conducting your homestudy must be licensed in your state of residence. The homestudy must be in compliance with all of your state laws as well as satisfy the requirements of the INS (since it is submitted as a supporting document for the I-600a). Depending on which country you choose to adopt from, this same Social Worker may need to prepare a separate homestudy report specific to that country.

  It is important to work with a Social Worker who has experience with international homestudies and is up-to-date with your state laws.Should you work with A World of Hope we will be happy to help you locate a competent Social Worker in your state. In addition, we work directly with your Social Worker to make sure that your homestudy also meets the requirements of the country from which you have chosen to adopt.

Part 3: The Foreign Dossier:

  A dossier (pronounced dos-see-ay) is the collection of documents that are required by the foreign government in order to process an adoption in that country. The documents required for your dossier will vary, depending on the country from which you have chosen to adopt. Some countries only require documents to be notarized, while others require that further authentications and legalizations be obtained. The dossier sounds intimidating, but it's not with the right guidance and support. Common documents to be included in many foreign dossiers include:

 

v      Medical Clearance

v      Police Clearance

v      Employment Verification

v      Homestudy

v      Birth Certificate

v      Marriage Certificate/Divorce Decrees

v      INS Clearance (INS form I-171H)

v      Financial Statement

 

  At A World of Hope we will send you all of the documents required for your dossier either in email format (in the case of documents that will need to be modified for your specific family) or by post (in the case of documents that are multi-lingual or must be originals from the country). We will help you obtain any authentication, legalization, or translation that is required. Our goal is for your family to be able to "print and sign" the dossier as much as possible. We do not want the dossier to intimidate or frustrate you and will do everything within our power to make sure this process remains simple and goes smoothly for your adoption.