Adopt an Asian Baby - Learn about U.S. and international laws regarding adoption when the parents come from a country different from that of the child. Read about the Hague Adoption Convention, which imposes different standards for intercountry adoptions depending on whether the country has signed the convention. Search for country-specific information regarding adoption procedures on the U.S. Department of State's website; some Asian countries have signed the convention, while others have not. (See Resources.) Learn about each Asian country's adoption procedures to determine whether it allows adoptions of babies or very young children.
Identify at least one Asian country from which you would like to adopt a child, based on your research and whether you believe that you could qualify under the country's adoption laws. Begin your adoption journey by starting your U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) application to sponsor an adopted baby for a visa if your chosen country is a signatory to the Hague Adoption Convention. Alternatively, start by contacting adoption agencies if you would like to adopt from a non-Hague signatory.
Adopt an Asian Baby
Follow instructions for USCIS Form I-800A if you plan to adopt a baby from an Asian country that has signed the Hague Adoption Convention. Participate in a home study, which is a detailed evaluation of your household by a provider licensed under your state's adoption laws and accredited under U.S. immigration laws. Complete the form and gather documents to support your application as instructed by USCIS.
Search for agencies facilitating adoptions in Asian countries where you would like to find a baby available for adoption. Identify agencies with accreditation under the U.S. Department of State's standards if you plan to adopt from a Hague signatory. Review each agency's procedures for adoptive parents, find out how the agency will work with you to fulfill the foreign country's legal requirements for intercountry adoptions and discuss fees up front. Decide which agency you would like to have represent you during the adoption and sign an adoption services contract.
Communicate with your adoption agency about Asian babies waiting for adoption through the agency's contacts with foreign adoption agencies or Asian orphanages. Identify a child whom you would like to adopt. Using your agency as a guide, follow the required procedures to start adoption proceedings in Asia.
If you are an American interested in an Asian adoption, your decision may have come from many reasons. You may want to adopt a baby from Asia because you would like to welcome a child with an Asian ethnicity or cultural background. You might also focus on specific countries due to the availability of infants or younger children, or because of a particular country's adoption requirements for prospective parents. To adopt from Asia, you should learn about U.S. immigration visa requirements for the baby as well as the adoption laws in your state and the foreign country. - by eHow
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