According to the most recent federal data, there are currently over 400,000 children in foster care in the United States. Around 135,000 children get adopted in the U.S. annually, leaving hundreds of thousands of children waiting for their forever homes. Adoption can be a bit of a minefield, so if you’re thinking of adopting, here are a few tips from experts on the steps involved with how to adopt a child.
How to Adopt a Child from the Foster Care System
#1. Learn about adoption.
Visit adopt.org and your local government website to research all of the policies and laws around adopting a child in your city.
#2. Select an agency.
Find a reputable adoption agency licensed in the state where you live via AdoptMatch.
Although experts advise you do not yet need a lawyer at this point in the process, it may be useful to ask a lawyer’s advice if you’ve already appointed one.
#3. Complete a homestudy.
A homestudy describes the process of meetings between you and an agency social worker. Your assigned social worker will ask you to prepare all of your documentation including your birth certificate, personal references and your marriage license (if applicable).
#4. The search begins.
Once your homestudy is complete, you begin the search for a child, teenager or sibling group with the support of your social worker.
#5. Information exchange.
When you find a child (or children) that seem like the right match, your worker will exchange your information with the child’s worker who will determine whether to move forward with you.
#6. The legal process.
If the child’s worker believes you are the right match who can best meet the child’s needs, the legal process begins.
#7. Meet and visit the child.
A number of meetings and visits will be set up with the child over a few weeks or months. Paperwork such as the Interstate Compact or adoption assistance agreement is filed.
#8. Placement date.
The placement date describes the date when the child comes to live with you. Your agency will work closely with you for several months to ensure the process runs as smoothly as possible and to support both sides while you file a legal intent to adopt petition.
#9. Adoption is finalized.
Your child, teenager or sibling group become a legal family member when you attend a court session where a judge finalizes your adoption. At this stage, you receive a certificate of adoption in addition to an amended birth certificate that names you as the child’s parents.
