exploring options in international adoption

[sesa70]

I am pretty bummed about the recent changes in China and Guatemala. We had planned on adopting our next child from Guatemala, and now it is looking like that is not really a possiblility. Our second choice was China, and with the new rule changes thats iffy as well.

Our oldest daugher is 7, our second and youngest is 13 months. We were planning on starting our international paperwork around this time next year when dd#2 was about 2 years. She was adopted through the foster care system, and while I feel so lucky that she is ours and I am glad we are all finalized, I am not in a hurry to go through that again. i need a break from the bureaucracy of the state. I am sure that we will use them again for future adoptions, as we can only afford one non foster care adoption, however, I really need a break from them.

Guatemala had alot of appeal to me for several reasons. I am hispanic, and my dd#2 is as well. The age of the child was a huge appeal, and the short travel time a neccesity. China came in second for the age/health and travel time reasons, however it would be further down the road since dh and I are 26 and 27, and would be 27 and 28 when we are interested in starting.

So, my question is, where else can we concider? Because of older dd's special needs, she cannot leave the country and only one of us can travel. I cannot make several several week trips, and one of us must stay behind to care for her and dd#2. A spanish speaking country would be ideal, but at this point probably not so possible. Also, we do not feel able to adopt a special needs child, and would prefer a younger child. What suggestions do you guys have?

[Tigeresse]

Taiwan may be an option as only 1 parent needs to travel, you may be as young as 25, and the wait is very reasonable for families interested in infant boys. I think there are fairly stringent income/net worth restrictions, but don't know details.

http://www.journeysoftheheart.net/in...al/taiwan.html

I know this program is new so I'm not sure how many agencies are involved with it. Looks like a good alternative to China with the upcoming restrictions and longer wait times.

Good luck!

[dharmamama]

Ethiopia does not require you to travel at all (although you can if you want to), the cost is reasonable (both of our adoptions cost ~$13,000 each), and you can get children with special needs. The wait for young children (toddlers and younger) is pretty long. Usually you can get a referral of a child 4 or older pretty quickly.

However, if you feel able to adopt a child with HIV, there are lots of babies and toddlers available. If you're interested in this, please PM me, as we have adopted an Ethiopian child with HIV and I would be happy to share our experiences with you.

Namaste!

[Diane B]

I have been reading the posts about all the rule changes and it reminded me that when we started looking into adoption, Guatemala was completely on hold, Ethiopia was mostly older kids, and Vietnam was closed. By the time we got to actually doing the paperwork, Guatemala was running full-steam, but the Ukraine had closed, and we were hearing of folks bringing babies home from Ethiopia. Now Guatemala looks iffy again, but Vietnam has started again, etc. etc. My point is that it's difficult to plan too far ahead in international adoption because things change. I was really glad that we were flexible and didn't get our minds set on one particular country or another. Guatemala opened back up just as we were starting, and it turned out to be a great fit, but it wasn't even on our list until we walked into the agency's information meeting.

[elmh23]

I know of an agency who has a program in Columbia. PM if you want the name (I'm not sure if we're allowed to mention agencies on MDC, so I'm playing it safe.)

[PiePie]

India and Cambodia will let just one parent go.

[sesa70]

Originally Posted by Diane B

My point is that it's difficult to plan too far ahead in international adoption because things change. I was really glad that we were flexible and didn't get our minds set on one particular country or another.

This is good advise


I know that next year so many things will and could be different. Its just hard for me, I am one of those people that has to have a plan, kwim? I suppose I will explore the options I have as they stand now and not get my heart set on any particular country until we actually have our paperwork started.

[RedOakMomma]

Korea is an option. We'll be adopting a little girl (though boys are more common) who is around a year at the age we bring her home. With our agency, babies are flown over by escorts (so no travel). Age-wise, you and your partner would be fine. It's worth looking into...I think the website www.adoptkorea.com would answer a lot of your questions.

Good luck!

[sesa70]

Originally Posted by RedOakMomma

Korea is an option. We'll be adopting a little girl (though boys are more common) who is around a year at the age we bring her home. With our agency, babies are flown over by escorts (so no travel). Age-wise, you and your partner would be fine. It's worth looking into...I think the website www.adoptkorea.com would answer a lot of your questions.

Good luck!

Thank you for this info. Dh has a friend from work who has adopted two of is children from Korea, and has nothing but positive things to say. Somehow we had forgotten about this option!

Dh and I agree this seems like our best choice thus far. We spoke with an agency that say there is a limited number of children in Korea who are adoptable internationally. They try to promote domestic adoptions for the first 6 months of the childs life, and then they become eligable for international adoptions. At a certain time of the year they let the agency know how many children will be offered to them for their us familes and then the program fills up rather quickly. We hope to start our paperwork for this program within the year, if all goes well. Thanks again for the nudge!

[RedOakMomma]

No problem!

Remember, too, to look into all the agencies that are certified for Korean child placement in your area. The timelines, policies, and requirements can be different for every agency (in the US, the agency sets some of the big rules for the Korea program...as opposed to the China program, where almost all the rules/policies are set by the Chinese government). We had three agencies that could place healthy Korean infants, and all three were different in what they required from us as a couple as well as if we could request a girl, a boy, or the age of an infant. Worth checking into.

Good luck!

[sesa70]

Originally Posted by RedOakMomma

No problem!

Remember, too, to look into all the agencies that are certified for Korean child placement in your area. The timelines, policies, and requirements can be different for every agency (in the US, the agency sets some of the big rules for the Korea program...as opposed to the China program, where almost all the rules/policies are set by the Chinese government). We had three agencies that could place healthy Korean infants, and all three were different in what they required from us as a couple as well as if we could request a girl, a boy, or the age of an infant. Worth checking into.

Good luck!

Thank you! I had no idea it worked this way. How do I find the different agencies in the area that are certified for Korean adoptions? Is there some look up tool somewhere on the net or do I just call around all the local agencies?

[astra]

Vietnam, has recently reopened. I've been hearing some positive things about that program. As far as I know Cambodia is still closed to the US still.

Colombia has a great program, the referral time is pretty long though. We are keeping that in mind for the future. We are hopeful that maybe Guatemala will be able to figure out away to comply to the Hague, as we'd really like to adopt from there again.

I seem to remember reading something about Korean adoptions, slowing down recently, but it could be all cleared now.

You can also check out the US Immigration site, it has great basic info on each adoption program from different countries.


http://travel.state.gov/family/adopt...untry_369.html

[mcng]

Colombia seems like a fit to your family

http://www.losninos.org/colombia.html

http://colombia.adoption.com/foreign...factsheet.html

or how about El Salvador

http://www.losninos.org/el_salvador.html

[sesa70]

Originally Posted by mcng

Colombia seems like a fit to your family

http://www.losninos.org/colombia.html

http://colombia.adoption.com/foreign...factsheet.html

or how about El Salvador

http://www.losninos.org/el_salvador.html

Thank you! both of these seem like excellent programs, unfortunatetly the travel requirements will be difficult for us. With one small child and one special needs child, only one of us can leave the country to pick up our new baby/toddler, and neither of us are comfortable with a lengthy stay.

[RedOakMomma]

We have special needs kiddos as well....at first we were bummed about not being able to pick up our daughter from Korea, but now we're pretty excited at the thought of being able to involve her three brothers in her arrival (travel would have meant her two special needs brothers stayed at home, which would have been sad). Our SW had a great idea...she suggested taking several trips to Korea as our daughter ages--even taking a homecountry tour specifically designed for international adoptees. So, as much as it stinks not to be able to travel when she's an infant, we're hoping to make up for it as a family.

As for where to look for your local Korea programs...the www.adoptkorea.com has a page where it lists the various agencies in each state. That's a pretty easy way to start. Also--watch for places where you can accept placement from one state (ours is in MI) and get your homestudy done by a local state agency. That works, too. Simple phone calls will make everything more clear.

http://www.adoptkorea.com/us-agency.htm

As for the changes in 2007 (the 5/6 month domestic adopt wait)....with some agencies it's not even affecting the program. With ours, for instance, most of the referrals coming to US parents were already babies older than 5 months (5-8 months was pretty typical). What seems to be more of a "problem" with Korea are the increasing waiting times...Korea has a visa quota of how many children can leave the country for overseas adoption, and often that annual quota is reached in the early fall. If your baby is on the waiting list to go, and the quota is reached, there isn't any movement until January. It sucks all around. The one great thing is the fantastic foster care system in Korea...so even if the quota system keeps you from your baby for a few extra months, you know he/she is in a loving home. The families I chat with on our Korea yahoo group have been waiting for their babies that got caught in the quota....it's not easy, but the foster system really helps.

Just keep in mind that you might be waiting a little longer than the agency tells you...and ask the agencies how each of them is dealing with the annual visa quotas. If an agency gives you an unrealisically quick timeline for adoption, definitely ask a few more questions. With all the differences in the Korea programs here in the US, it's hard to expect the timelines to be the same between different agencies. At the same time, the Korean process is predictable and has been prety stable....so, no matter the wait, you know you'll bring home your child.

PM me if you have any questions... I hope you find the program that's right for you!

[mamanicki]

We just completed a Vietnam adoption in Nov 2006. It is a great country to adopt from. The program fee is competitive with China, the restrictions are extremely few, only one parent needs to travel and the travel is between 2-3 weeks. The most difficult part of the adoption process in Vietnam is finding a reputable agency. Even though adoptions just recently reopened (this time last year), there are already many unethical and corrupt agencies working in Vietnam. It can be difficult to weed out the bad ones. The best ones have pretty long waiting lists already (to rival China) although if you are open to a baby boy, you can often find waiting referrals. With the restrictions in China, Vietnam is becoming quickly VERY popular. I expect waits will go up across the board pretty soon.

[Starr]

I wouldn't try to feel rushed to decide on a country until that time comes. Right now Guatemala is supose to be shutting down or even shut down, but I have heard that some agencies are still taking applications because they feel it will all be resolved and the adoptive parents will be able to continue. We too are looking for more hispanic and have also looked at Colombia as well as a domestic adoption through Texas.

[Jyotsna]

Consider India

India may be something to think about. Many Italian families adopted from India because the kids are similar looking. I had thought about adopting from Gautamala, because some of the kids look like my kids (from India).

Just a thought. I adore my kids, and would like to adopt one more from India, but I think that I may have out-aged and my family size is now possibly too large. If I had one or two kids, likely I would be able to adopt again. However, I haven't given up hope! A toddler, or a special needs child may put me back in India again.

[Mamm2]

Because of your age, you can adopt via ICBF in Colombia. Because of our ages, we can only adopt thru a private adoption house which will cost alot more!! Even with the private adoption house option, we are rushing to get our paper in quick. They are very funny about older parents (late 30's) adopting babies.

Good Luck!

[Ilaria]

Originally Posted by Jyotsna

India may be something to think about. Many Italian families adopted from India because the kids are similar looking.

(Sorry OT, but I had to laugh at this I guess you haven't seen my Italian kids...click on their names )