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Homestudies
• What is a homestudy?
• What information is needed for a homestudy?
• What's involved in a homestudy?
• Must you own your own house or have a large income to adopt?
• Is there anything to do to prepare for the home visit?
Domestic (US) Adoption
Please see our Domestic
Adoption FAQs page
What are the basic requirements for most International
Adoptions? There are a few guidelines for most International adoptions: Age: Married couples must be at least 21 years old
and there cannot be a difference of more than 45 years between
their age and that of their adopted child; some programs make
exceptions. For singles the Citizenship and Immigration Services
(CIS, formerly the INS) requires that you be at least 25 years
old. Marital Status: Married couples or single people or
can adopt internationally. U.S. Citizenship: At least one parent must be a U.S.
citizen (Citizenship and Immigration Services Requirement). U.S. Residence: Both parent(s) must officially reside
in the U.S. throughout the adoption process. Clearances: Parent(s) must pass the state and federal
fingerprint clearances, and the state child abuse index check.
It can be very difficult to adopt with a felony record. « Back to Top
How long is the homestudy process?
The homestudy process takes about three months.
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How long do I have to wait before I can take a child
home?
This depends on the age of the child you wish to adopt and the foreign program
and country involved. Generally, adoptions are finalized within six to twelve
months of a completed dossier for most programs. Please confirm with your facilitating
agency to verify.
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How much information will I have about the child's
health before I adopt?
Adopting parents will learn the medical histories for children once their facilitator
receives this information. Due to the many variables surrounding a child's
arrival at the orphanage, medical history may be very sketchy and sometimes
unknown. A child's medical condition is usually based upon a local physician's
examination and is made known to the adopting parents, but it may contain some
inaccurate information. We can refer you to local doctors who specialize in
this area.
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Is there any restriction on the age of the parents
who wish to adopt?
Many people who are 40 to 50 years old ask if their age restricts their ability
to adopt. In Asian countries age is viewed as an indicator of stability. In
other countries the age of the parent(s) might effect the age of the child
you can adopt.
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Do you help with adopting relatives from foreign
countries?
Yes, but you need to call our office and speak with the international program
about what specific information is needed and what the process will be. Please
DO NOT APPLY with the CIS until you have spoken to someone in our office.
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Are there healthy babies to adopt?
Yes, but many children available for adoption internationally have lived in
institutions. Almost all of these children are there because their biological
parents could not take care of them. Living in an orphanage has some effect
upon the mental, physical and emotional well being of children. The orphanages
do the best they can but sometimes children are undernourished and often under-loved.
Expect that most children will have some degree of physical, emotional, or
behavioral problems that will take time and work to resolve.
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Do foreign country's courts and agencies work like
ours in the U.S.?
Differences in cultural mores and political systems lead
to different expectations of what is considered ‘expedient' processing of paperwork and granting
of approvals. Americans cannot demand that their expectations of service be
met. A foreign agent may say, "I'll get right on it" but this may
mean tomorrow, next week, or next month. Sometimes we are told by foreign governments
after-the-fact that conditions have not been met concerning various features
of the homestudy documents (the type of seal has been changed, a specific person
must be named, a particular phrase must be included or avoided, etc.). Other
times additional documents are unexpectedly required. Demands for paperwork
by the foreign government may continue until the child is in your home.
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Do all adoptions from the same country take the same
amount of time?
No. Sometimes two families from the same town are seeking a child through Adoption
Connection from the same country. One will get their child 4 months after completing
their dossier. The other family compares notes and concludes that their child
should arrive within the next 2 weeks. They become very disappointed when it
takes 10 more weeks. Due to the differences between each family (the state
of their dossier), their expectations of what kind of child they want (age,
gender, medical condition, etc.) and the conditions of the child (family, legal
status, personal history) each adoption is unique. No one adoption can be directly
compared to another.
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Do I need to use an accredited agency/ facilitator
to complete my adoption?
Adoption Connection highly recommends this for the international legal work
and placement of your child. There are a number of countries that require adoptive
families to work with an accredited agency or facilitator and will not allow
a family to adopt a child independently. Although Adoption Connection is an
agency licensed to complete an International Homestudy we are not accredited
within any specific country.
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Can I convert my Domestic Homestudy to an International
one?
We will be happy to provide you with this service if you are a current client.
We do not allow adoptive families to complete a domestic and international
homestudy simultaneously.
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*Please Note: International adoption laws and regulations
are always changing depending on country laws, practices,
and unforeseen situations. For complete information about
a specific country contact us.
What is a homestudy?
A homestudy is a written report required by California state law for individuals
and couples who wish to adopt both domestically and internationally. Adoption
Connection is licensed by the state of California to do the homestudy, which
is a way to gather information to ensure that a child is placed in a qualified
home. At Adoption Connection, we do not wish the homestudy to be intrusive
or exclusive, but rather to serve as an educational and consulting tool.
It provides Adoption Connection the opportunity to become familiar with clients'
readiness to adopt and helps clients think through the adoption-related issues
and the responsibilities of parenting. We perform both domestic and international homestudies as
part of our services. Although we are not licensed to contract
with foreign governments, we can complete the homestudy and
work with the international adoption agency or foreign government
of your choice to compete the adoption. Click here to learn
more about our International Program. « Back to Top
What information is needed for a homestudy?
Medical, employment and financial information is required as part of the homestudy,
plus personal references and autobiographical statements. The homestudy also
consists of a series of prearranged visits, culminating in a report that gets
completed prior to a child being placed in a home.
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What's involved in a homestudy?
After the application for adoption is complete a social worker
interviews the prospective adoptive parent(s) individually
and together, with at least one
visit taking place in the home. The meetings can be held over a couple of weeks,
and the entire homestudy process usually takes from one to three months to
complete. If an adoptive family is expecting their birthmother to give birth
very soon an "expedited" homestudy can be arranged on a case-by-case
basis.
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Must you own your own house or have a large income
to adopt?
No. Obviously, there needs to be some source of income and adequate living
space to accommodate a child. But factors such as a true desire to parent and
an understanding of adoption issues are far more important than the size of
one's home or income.
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Is there anything to do to prepare for the home visit?
No, there's nothing to do except try to relax. The purpose of the home visit
is not to scrutinize, but to informally visit with you in surroundings in which
you are most comfortable.
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