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Intercountry Infant Waiting Child

 

INTERNATIONAL ADOPTION - HOW TO GET STARTED

There are a number of steps required in completing an International adoption.  The basic steps are as follows:

The Home Study

Every prospective adoptive parent must have a home study completed by a state-licensed agency. A typical home study involves a minimum of three visits between the family and their home study worker, one of which must take place in the family's home. In addition, Coordinators²inc requires attendance at two additional educational workshops during the study process. Immigration clearance (USCIS clearance) is contingent upon the recommendation for approval by your home study agency. The home study process with Coordinators²inc involves submitting an initial application. Once received, a social worker will contact you within two weeks to schedule your first home study meeting. Typically, a home study takes 2-4 months to complete. Rush service is available for an additional fee. We believe the home study process is an opportunity to educate and assist families as they prepare to become adoptive parents, for every family is a potentially valuable resource for one of our children.

Application to USCIS to Adopt a Foreign-Born Child

An application must be made to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS –formerly known as the INS). This is done by completing and submitting an I-600A form. You may obtain this form by calling 1-800-870-3676 and requesting an I-600A packet. You may also download the form and accompanying instructions at: http://uscis.gov/. Submittal of FBI fingerprints is part of this process. Once your completed home study is received by USCIS and your fingerprints are submitted, the typical time to approval is 6-10 weeks. Please consult your social worker if you have any questions at all about how to fill out this form, as it must be accurate and complete to avoid delay in processing.

Completion of a Dossier

Families adopting a foreign-born child must submit a completed dossier to their placing agency, which will then be forwarded to the country you have selected for adoption. A dossier is simply a packet of legal paperwork on your family, submitted to the foreign court on your behalf, in order to comply with the country's legal adoption process. Many of the documents include vital record documents (birth, marriage, divorce decrees); therefore, it is prudent to obtain several certified copies of each document ahead of time. The dossier worker assigned to your case can advise you as to the number of copies you will need. If you plan to use our China or Guatemala programs, Coordinators²inc will complete your dossier for you.

Referral and Placement of a Child

Once your dossier is complete and you have received notice of immigration approval from USCIS, you are ready for referral of a child. A referral simply means written and visual information on an available child, usually in the form of medical, developmental, and social information as well as photos of the child. Although this part of the process differs from country to country, the amount and quality of information on the child is similar, usually consisting of 1-3 pages of written information and 1-4 photographs of the child. It is important that you are straightforward with your dossier worker in stating your preferences for the type of child you are hoping to parent (i.e., age, gender, health status). Coordinators²inc will do their best to honor your preferences, however, please be advised that if your criteria are too restrictive, you will narrow your options for referral and lengthen your wait time to referral. Be assured that Coordinators²inc will assist you every step of the way, as you make your decision about a particular child referral. Once you have accepted a referral, Coordinators²inc will help you with pre-travel preparation, travel arrangements to and from your child's birth country, and coordination of services during your in-country stay.

Post-Legal Services

Both your state of residence and your child's birth country require some form of post-placement supervision. This entails visits with your home study worker for a period of time following your arrival home with your child as well as submittal of supervision reports to adoption officials in your child's birth country. In addition, Coordinators²inc can assist families with the steps required for a re-finalization of your child's adoption in the U.S. Most importantly, should your family encounter future challenges related to adoption issues and need more intensive assistance, Coordinators²inc has a family-support component which provides direct support to families as well as valuable information and referral resources as the family seeks assistance best suited to their particular situation.