For a country as big and diversified as the US, adoption records are very important to keep.

What is adoption?

Adoption is the lawful act of permanently admitting a child with a parent or parents other than the birth mother or father. In accordance to an adoption order a parent or parents are liable to transfer parental responsibilities and rights over the child onto the adoptive parent or parents. Once an adoption is finalized, there is no authorized distinction between adopted children and those born to the parents. According to adoption records adoption has gained persistent standing in American society.

Who adopts

At present, studies say that in the United States 1 in 5 couples of childbearing age encounter grave problems in trying to conceive a baby. For these people, being able to boast the joy of being a parent becomes a goal which is hard to pin down. They seek an adoption as a substantial alternate to their inability to ever become birth parents. Having a child to love and care for is what brings joy to millions of infertile couples around the world. Adoption is also undertaken by individuals and couples who wish to give an orphan child the love and importance of a parent in their poignant lives.

Adoption in the United States

1992 was the end year National Adoption totals were collected in the USA, however adoption records from foster care homes and other non-government bodies allows us to get a rough estimate on the numbers. Back then 127,000 annual adoptions in the U.S was recorded. As of 2002, United States consisted of 1.5 million adopted, which was over 2% of all US Children. Adoptive parents have to pay virtually nothing to US$40,000 to adopt a child.

In recent years International Adoption through agencies has also become very popular in the United States. Amid 1971 and 2001, U.S. citizens adopted 265,677 children from other countries. The figure of children pending adoption decreased from 132,000 to 118,000 during 2000 to 2004.

In 2005 the U.S. Department of State declared that 22,728 visas were given to orphans coming into the United States, 7,906 being from China(Mainland), followed by Russia with 4,639 and Guatemala 3,783.

Adoption law vary from state to state, and federal laws also influence many procedures prior and after, connected with the adoption record process. It is important that placing and adopting parents, as well as those looking for family members are aware of legislations beforehand.



Thanks to Brian Williams for contributing this article to our Adoption blog:

International Adoption Kazakhstan

Amendments in proceedings of adoption have been requested by the Guatemalan courts, and this resulted in problems. Despite the disadvantages, this has managed to attract adoptive families from America. Children of very young ages are seen at Guatemalan. In 2005, approximately 3,783 children were adopted from this place. No travel is involved in his adoption. Moreover, single parents are also accepted. But, before proceeding further, a test of DNA is done for the United States. The test is to establish the mother-child relationship. Also, after the adoption process, 6 months of surveillance is also done.

Latino (including Mayan Indian, Hispanic) and Mayan Indians form most of the population in Guatemalan. They began their international adoption process during the end of the 6 year old Civil War that came to an end in 1996.DNA testing of the birth mother and her child was asked to be done by the US as there were stories of stolen babies or of selling or giving them for adoption.

In the whole of Central America, Guatemala has the largest population with approximately 14,655,189 people. Sugar, banana and coffee are the main yield of this place. Three-fourth of the people in this place lies below poverty line. Guatemala is located in between El Salvador and Mexico and the North Pacific Ocean is bordered by this place.

The process of adoption involves the following steps-completion of application, compiling the dossier and home study-and once this is completed and been approved of, a formal referral will be sent from the agency. After choosing the referral, the agency will intimate Guatemala about the chosen child. Then documents like birth certificate, consent forms and medical records will be collected by a Guatemalan attorney. This is followed by conducting a DNA test. The adoption process is completed when all these formalities are done and the attorney goes to the court for hearings. A passport for the child is then made by the attorney. Once all the court hearings and other formalities are completed, adoptive parents have a choice to either choose a child from Guatemala or to have the child chosen by them and brought to you.

These adoptions allow both married or single women and men to adopt children. But, these adoptive parents should be of age below 50 years. After 3 to 6 months after receiving the paperwork, referrals are started. It takes around 6-8 months to finalize an adoption, once a referral is accepted.

Law makers endorsed a protocol which was international, as the United States started prohibiting the adoption of Guatemalan children by American parents. Provisions of secret systems are requested to be made by Guatemala. This is because the adoption cost is high and transactions take place through young girls and women who place their children for adoption. But this is still popular as it does not restrict single parents from adopting. This can also prove to be a good choice for people who look for domestic adoption as it involves a lawyer who deals with most of the formalities.



Thanks to Abhishek Agarwal for contributing this article to our Adoption blog:

Find Adoption Records

Can you answer blahblah’s question about Adoption?:

Can you file all paperwork, etc. yourself or do you HAVE to go with an agency to adopt internationally. Specifically Kazakhstan.

Adopt A Rescue Pet

Domestic verses International Adoption

This is an interview with Jean Stenzel, President/CEO of Forever Families, Inc., a licensed adoption agency, given by Patricia Bennett.

Jean Stenzel is one of the co-founders of the agency located in Novi, Michigan.

She has been working in the social work field since 1989 after completing her Bachelor of Science degree from Lake Superior State University. Jean went on to earn her Masters in Social Work degree in 1996 from Wayne State University.

Jean was the main facilitator in the adoption of my son in April of 2000.

PB: Is it a lot more difficult to adopt an infant here in the United States than to adopt over seas?

JEAN: Not really, it tends to be more expensive instead. Down sides are: expense, there are children in some countries who can be adopted under a year, but not an infant; you have to travel there – at least one parent – there are some escort adoptions but not as many as before; social/health history can be very little or sketchy. Up sides are: if you worry about birth parent or future birth family contact; children are waiting to be adopted; you can choose your child; you don’t have to wait to be selected; time – this process can many times be shorter than waiting for an infant – that depends on country you choose to adopt from. Another upside is that this pool of adoptive families doesn’t fill up and close – which can happen with domestic waiting family pools.

PB: How about the eligibility requirements between the two?

JEAN: Eligibility requirements are very similar; biggest difference is that all your supporting documents must be apostiled, a dossier must be created with these documents and you must complete an immigration process.

PB: What is the percentage of U.S. vs. Overseas adoptions with your agency?

JEAN: they are almost equal, since we do not do international placements ourselves, we could gauge it by the number of completed home studies. Once we complete the home study the family would go to another licensed agency for placement.

PB: Can you discuss the main differences between Domestic and International adoptions in terms of the wait for placement and costs?

JEAN: Waiting itself is probably the main difference between domestic and international adoptions because once your dossier is sent to the country of origin of the child the waiting time can be as little as 3 months to as much as 18 – 24 months depending on the country. Certain countries such as China only allow a certain number of adoptions per year and the families tend to travel in groups, so it really would depend. Also, certain other countries the wait depends on the age of the child you wish to adopt, older children the wait is not as long as it is for the youngest ones.

PB: What are some of the most important factors to consider when choosing an agency?

JEAN: Comfort, honesty, information they can provide you about their programs, no hidden costs or agendas, availability to families once they become clients. Denise and I believe that choosing an adoption agency is like interviewing a new employee, you want to meet with several to see who is out there and find the fit that’s best for your family. As I always tell people, I know we are great and will do a good job, but sometimes we are not the right fit for a family and that is a decision that only they can make by interviewing other agencies. Also, there are red flags that you should watch out for when interviewing agencies:

* Any agency that says they are the “biggest & best”

* An agency who says the can guarantee you a time frame.

* An agency that has a charge for all types of contact you have with them.

* Hidden charges – this is hard to tell but during an orientation you should be provided with a list of and an explanation of agency charges.

* Escrow accounts for birth parents – money they hold until they use it with no guarantee that they won’t spend it or return it.

* Pre-application fees – then will have an additional application fees

* How often and how much they charge for home studies, updates, etc.

* Won’t can’t provide you with references

* Don’t finalize your home study until they can put you in their pool to meet their guaranteed placement time frame they promised you.

* Says they completed the most adoptions of all agencies – you may want to ask them how many went past the consent hearings – disruption percentage.

PB: For people in the beginning stages of the adoption process, what else do they need to know?

JEAN: Mainly go through orientations with agencies before you select one and treat this like a business decision first – meaning use your head and then when you achieve placement use your heart. Get packets of information from agencies – get as educated as you can about the process before you begin. Don’t expect to have a placement within a certain time frame – you may never achieve it. It is a process, it does take time and patience – remember if you were able to give birth it would take at least nine months once you conceived and conception doesn’t always take place the first time. Listen to the adoption workers suggestions to keep busy, pay attention in orientation.

PB: Anything else you would like to add?

JEAN: Beware of shark like agencies who will take your money first and then take more money later – sharks only stay in business because of vulnerable, uninformed people who want to make a family so bad they will do anything to achieve it. Parents who come into adoption for infertility issues are a very vulnerable group who can be easily manipulated and taken advantage of if they are not careful. This is why I cannot impress enough on potential adoptive couples to treat this like a business transaction – you would not blindly follow someone who was building your house or selling you a car – yes children are humans and they do need families to call their own, but not every one out here who are placing children are not good people and are in it just for the money – that’s the reality of it. There are many many good adoptions agencies who put forth good practice, but check us out, all licensed agencies are on the State of Michigan website under licensed child placing agencies; follow up on references provided; get informed/educated about the adoption process. The adoption process can be a long one, patience is important, trust is important and it is with a good adoption agency that it will ultimately be a good process with a miraculous outcome.

PB: Thanks for your time and great informtion!

JEAN: You’re welcome.

P Bennett publishes a wealth of information and resources on this subject. www.bestadoptionhelp.com You can see Forever Families on the net at http://www.forever-families.org



Thanks to Patricia Bennett for contributing this article to our Adoption blog:

Guatemala Baby Adoption

Can you answer Alie’s question about Adoption?:

Other than taking the child out of his or her home country, why is international adoption frowned upon as an alternative to adopting in the US?
thanks, Gemma S. that was extremely helpful and insightful (:

Cost Of Domestic Adoption