Be warned, if you're not at least a teeny bit interested in the adoption process, this post is probably going to be adoption vocabulary overkill. Check out the italicized paragraph...errr...paragraphS for a mini-update written especially for you! :)
Our super awesome social worker, Jan, has been working very diligently on our home study. <3 her! The home study is basically a mini-novel about our family. It includes information about our background, education, marriage, children, number of fire extinguishers in our house, etc. While we work on collecting other paperwork required by Ch*na, the home study is the main document that we need to move on from this phase in our process.
Once our home study is approved, we can apply for approval to adopt from U.S. Immigration. So...BUM-BUM-BUM...we had our final visit with Jan today, and she was able to complete our home study this afternoon! Once it is approved by our placement agency (the agency that works directly with us and Ch*na), we can get in a F*dEx envelope and off to U.S. Immigration. We're hoping that will happen tomorrow or Wednesday. Woohoo! We are one step closer to getting through the paperwork jungle phase of our adoption process.
Okay, for those of you who are sticking around for a more detailed explanation, I thought I'd take a few minutes to explain where we are in the process of adopting from Ch*na and what is coming next. I know the idea of adopting internationally can seem intimidating and scary -- believe me, I've had my moments of paralyzing anxiety over misplaced notary stamps and re-stapled documents -- so I'm hoping that sharing thecompletely OCD details of our journey will paint a clearer and much simpler picture of the international adoption process. If you're starting the process of adopting internationally, considering adoption from Ch*na, or just trying to keep up with your crazy friend's adoption adventures, this part of the post is for you.
I need to start with a little bit of adoption vocabulary.
Placement Agency - The adoption agency that works directly with families and the country from which they will be adopting. Families in the United States can work with placement agencies anywhere in the U.S. Ours is actually in Washington State.
Home Study Agency - As I mentioned above, the home study is a thick document required for all international adoptions. It requires at least one visit to your home by a licensed social worker and then additional visits in your social worker's office. Because of this, families who do not live in close proximity to their placement agency will use a separate agency (usually located within a couple hours of their home) to complete their home study. We are in this situation.
Dossier - A gigantic stack of paperwork that goes to the country from which you hope to adopt. This mound of documents includes things like the adoptive parents' birth certificates, the home study, elementary school report cards, and criminal background checks.
Alright, vocab done.
Adoption, international or domestic, is a bit of a roller coaster. Every family's process looks different, and every country/agency/adoption is pretty much one-of-a-kind. That being said, I'm going to attempt to outline the first few steps most families take when adopting internationally.
Step One: Choose A Country
This was an easy one for us this time around. We had a very positive experience with Ch*na's process when we brought our boys home in 2012, and we are excited to be headed back for Baby #4. (Just FYI...there are quite a few other countries that currently allow U.S. citizens to adopt; Taiwan, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Ethiopia, Uganda, Haiti, India, and Columbia are a few of them.)
Step Two: Choose A Placement Agency
Once a family has chosen a country, they need to decide on a reputable and ethical agency that works in their country of choice. Each agency that does international adoptions works with specific countries. Because we had already decided to return to Ch*na and we have a placement agency that we absolutely love, this was another easy step for us.
Step Three: Placement Agency Paperwork/Application Fee
Each placement agency requires specific paperwork from a family desiring to begin the adoption process. This usually includes an application (with a fee) and several other documents indicating that the applying family understands the process, the agency's services and fees, etc. This part of the paperwork is usually pretty quick and simple. We were able to print these papers off of our agency's website and then just scan and email them back.
Step Four: Choose A Home Study Agency
As I've already mentioned, if a family does not live near their placement agency, they will need to choose another agency to complete their home study. Their placement agency will usually help them do this. For our last adoption from Ch*na we had to drive about two-and-a-half hours to meet with our social worker. Thankfully, this time around, we are able to use a much closer agency that we've worked with several times in the past. We love this agency and our social worker.
Step Five: Assemble A Dossier
Each country requires specific documents that make up a potential adoptive family's dossier. One of these is always a completed home study. When it comes to a Ch*na dossier, the home study takes much longer to complete than any of the other required paperwork. While we've been meeting with Jan for our home study, we've also been collecting birth certificates, background checks, medical forms, and several other things. This is our fourth dossier, and I'm feeling like an expert this time around. (Adoptive mom friends, read: Collecting paperwork is a cinch once you've done it a time or four. You should totally just start working on a dossier and come to Ch*na with me.)
Most or all of the documents in a dossier need to be notarized and authenticated. Notarization is easy; most banks have a notary who will notarize documents for a small fee (or for free). Authentication involves driving or sending documents to the capital of the state in which they originated where they get a special stamp and certificate. (For example, I was born in California, so my birth certificate must be notarized in Sacramento or LA. I know that LA is not the capital of California, but those West Coast people are weird like that.) This process usually involves a fee for each document.
The final piece of paper needed for our dossier is U.S. Immigration approval. This can take anywhere from two weeks to two months. Once our home study is finalized, we'll be done with everything for our dossier except this approval.
Step Six: Dossier to Ch*na (DTC)
Once we get our U.S. Immigration approval (a simple little form called an I-171h), we'll take our gigantic stack of paperwork to our state capital for authentication. (We had three documents from out of state, and we've already sent those to be authenticated.) From there, our dossier will go to Washington, D.C. for more fancy stamps. Then, it's off to our placement agency and on to Ch*na. At this point in the process, we'll officially be "DTC".
There you go. Everything you ever wanted to know about our adoption process. (Although if you have questions or want the really extra boring details, I'm happy to chat.) The most exciting part of this post is that we're getting closer to being done with paperwork, and finishing our paperwork gets us one step closer to meeting Baby #4. And that is 100% worth all the notarizing, background checking, blood testing, paperwork signing, and home inspecting that has filled our life lately.
Our super awesome social worker, Jan, has been working very diligently on our home study. <3 her! The home study is basically a mini-novel about our family. It includes information about our background, education, marriage, children, number of fire extinguishers in our house, etc. While we work on collecting other paperwork required by Ch*na, the home study is the main document that we need to move on from this phase in our process.
Once our home study is approved, we can apply for approval to adopt from U.S. Immigration. So...BUM-BUM-BUM...we had our final visit with Jan today, and she was able to complete our home study this afternoon! Once it is approved by our placement agency (the agency that works directly with us and Ch*na), we can get in a F*dEx envelope and off to U.S. Immigration. We're hoping that will happen tomorrow or Wednesday. Woohoo! We are one step closer to getting through the paperwork jungle phase of our adoption process.
Okay, for those of you who are sticking around for a more detailed explanation, I thought I'd take a few minutes to explain where we are in the process of adopting from Ch*na and what is coming next. I know the idea of adopting internationally can seem intimidating and scary -- believe me, I've had my moments of paralyzing anxiety over misplaced notary stamps and re-stapled documents -- so I'm hoping that sharing the
I need to start with a little bit of adoption vocabulary.
Placement Agency - The adoption agency that works directly with families and the country from which they will be adopting. Families in the United States can work with placement agencies anywhere in the U.S. Ours is actually in Washington State.
Home Study Agency - As I mentioned above, the home study is a thick document required for all international adoptions. It requires at least one visit to your home by a licensed social worker and then additional visits in your social worker's office. Because of this, families who do not live in close proximity to their placement agency will use a separate agency (usually located within a couple hours of their home) to complete their home study. We are in this situation.
Dossier - A gigantic stack of paperwork that goes to the country from which you hope to adopt. This mound of documents includes things like the adoptive parents' birth certificates, the home study, elementary school report cards, and criminal background checks.
Alright, vocab done.
Adoption, international or domestic, is a bit of a roller coaster. Every family's process looks different, and every country/agency/adoption is pretty much one-of-a-kind. That being said, I'm going to attempt to outline the first few steps most families take when adopting internationally.
Step One: Choose A Country
This was an easy one for us this time around. We had a very positive experience with Ch*na's process when we brought our boys home in 2012, and we are excited to be headed back for Baby #4. (Just FYI...there are quite a few other countries that currently allow U.S. citizens to adopt; Taiwan, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Ethiopia, Uganda, Haiti, India, and Columbia are a few of them.)
Step Two: Choose A Placement Agency
Once a family has chosen a country, they need to decide on a reputable and ethical agency that works in their country of choice. Each agency that does international adoptions works with specific countries. Because we had already decided to return to Ch*na and we have a placement agency that we absolutely love, this was another easy step for us.
Step Three: Placement Agency Paperwork/Application Fee
Each placement agency requires specific paperwork from a family desiring to begin the adoption process. This usually includes an application (with a fee) and several other documents indicating that the applying family understands the process, the agency's services and fees, etc. This part of the paperwork is usually pretty quick and simple. We were able to print these papers off of our agency's website and then just scan and email them back.
Step Four: Choose A Home Study Agency
As I've already mentioned, if a family does not live near their placement agency, they will need to choose another agency to complete their home study. Their placement agency will usually help them do this. For our last adoption from Ch*na we had to drive about two-and-a-half hours to meet with our social worker. Thankfully, this time around, we are able to use a much closer agency that we've worked with several times in the past. We love this agency and our social worker.
Step Five: Assemble A Dossier
Each country requires specific documents that make up a potential adoptive family's dossier. One of these is always a completed home study. When it comes to a Ch*na dossier, the home study takes much longer to complete than any of the other required paperwork. While we've been meeting with Jan for our home study, we've also been collecting birth certificates, background checks, medical forms, and several other things. This is our fourth dossier, and I'm feeling like an expert this time around. (Adoptive mom friends, read: Collecting paperwork is a cinch once you've done it a time or four. You should totally just start working on a dossier and come to Ch*na with me.)
Most or all of the documents in a dossier need to be notarized and authenticated. Notarization is easy; most banks have a notary who will notarize documents for a small fee (or for free). Authentication involves driving or sending documents to the capital of the state in which they originated where they get a special stamp and certificate. (For example, I was born in California, so my birth certificate must be notarized in Sacramento or LA. I know that LA is not the capital of California, but those West Coast people are weird like that.) This process usually involves a fee for each document.
The final piece of paper needed for our dossier is U.S. Immigration approval. This can take anywhere from two weeks to two months. Once our home study is finalized, we'll be done with everything for our dossier except this approval.
Step Six: Dossier to Ch*na (DTC)
Once we get our U.S. Immigration approval (a simple little form called an I-171h), we'll take our gigantic stack of paperwork to our state capital for authentication. (We had three documents from out of state, and we've already sent those to be authenticated.) From there, our dossier will go to Washington, D.C. for more fancy stamps. Then, it's off to our placement agency and on to Ch*na. At this point in the process, we'll officially be "DTC".
There you go. Everything you ever wanted to know about our adoption process. (Although if you have questions or want the really extra boring details, I'm happy to chat.) The most exciting part of this post is that we're getting closer to being done with paperwork, and finishing our paperwork gets us one step closer to meeting Baby #4. And that is 100% worth all the notarizing, background checking, blood testing, paperwork signing, and home inspecting that has filled our life lately.
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