Help! - Common Adoption FAQ

Currently yes. Once an adoption is finalized regardless of the state the adoptive parents are viewed with the same legal rights and responsibilities of a biological parent. For example, if a male couple jointly adopts in Washington and travels to Florida for a vacation, Florida would still recognize them both as the child(ren)'s legal parent. If you moved to another state that would not permit you to adopt, but you adopted prior to moving to that state, your adoption would (currently) still be legally recognized.

Yes. Once your adoption is finalized you no longer have to check with the social workers. You have the same legal rights and responsibilities as would an biological parent. However, from personal experience we suggest that you always keep a photocopy of your certified adoption decree whenever you travel. This is especially true for male couples. Think of it this way. Better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it. For gay and lesbian families it may be the case to always travel with your adoption paperwork even when traveling within the United States.

Never travel with your original copies, keep those in a safety deposit box at your bank!

In most cases yes. Actually the Wing-Kovarik’s also encountered this situation. They started their adoption in a state which did not allow them both to jointly adopt and did not allow second parent adoption. We suggest that once you’re settled in the new state, or if you know the state you may be moving to, contact an adoption lawyer in that state. In the case of the Wing-Kovarik’s , just before starting their home study they took a job transfer to Washington, which does allow for joint adoption.

If you’re in need of an adoption or foster care professional, contact Families Like Ours by clicking here and we’ll direct you to the type of professional best suited to your needs.

That depends upon the type of adoption. If you’re seeking to become a foster or adopt-foster parent, that normally takes up to 30 - 90 days to complete. A domestic private placement adoption can take 30 - 120 days in most cases, and international typically can take 60 days to a year. The typical barriers that hold up an home study are:

• Background checks
• Families not getting their paperwork in on time
• Family not accomplishing their required education
• Poor communication between the family and professional

Yes you can, however there are some issues to be aware of. If your goal is the adoption a child out of the foster care system, or to become a foster parent you can only do this by working with a private placement agency or state agency. Remember, the private placement agency must be licensed in your state to provide home studies and placements for foster parents and adopt-foster families. It is a good idea to ask this upfront on your first call. In addition, many private placement agencies will not accept home studies written by anyone outside of their own agency. The only time you would use a private home study writer would be in the case of a private adoption with a lawyer and no agency involved; this includes a second parent or step-parent adoption.

If you’re in need of an adoption or foster care professional, contact Families Like Ours by clicking here and we’ll direct you to the type of professional best suited to your needs.

Children that have been placed in the state foster care system and have become available for adoption are only available for interstate adoptions if all state avenues have been exhausted. There are however some situations where it is in the best interest of the child(ren) to be placed outside of the state in which his/her biological family resides. Adoptions outside the resident state of the biological parents are very common in private and independent adoptions.

Just like every adoption, every transition is different. First there will be a supervised visit with the child, the child’s worker and the current foster placement may also be involved. From there you may have one or two visits with the child with the case worker present. After that you may have one or two all day visits without the caseworker, leading up to an over night or weekend visit. By the time you are at the over night or weekend visit the move is imminent. Of course this situation details a transition of a foster child to an adoptive placement. There are however situations where a transition is much faster. If you are a foster home, not adoptive the transition may simply be the worker dropping the child(ren) off and than leaving.

Note that if the child or prospective adoptive family are having difficulty with the placement or transition the plan could change as needed.

Normally, under a good situation a transition will last two - four weeks. A transition can take anywhere from, “here’s Johnny”, to a month depending on when everyone is ready to make the final move. If you feel you need more time in a transition don’t be afraid to say so. Take your signals from the child, they will let you know when they are ready for the move. Transitions that last more than a month can be harmful to the child in some cases. It is important to remember that transitions for all of us can be hard, for these kids sitting in limbo between families can be traumatic if not done correctly.

Note that a foster transition can be as quick as the knock on the front door. With international and birth-parent adoptions transitions can be less than a week. You should be working closely with your placement worker to outline an effective transitional plan that fit’s the need of the child(ren) and your family. Remember, transitions are NOT about what is convenient or comfortable for the professionals involved but what is best for the child(ren) and family.

Kids-fest is a very controversial program that allows potential adoptive parents to meet available children for adoption. Normally they are set up as a carnival of sorts, where the kids play games or have activities and the prospective adoptive parents are there to help the kids with everything; supervised of course. This gives the prospective parents a chance to meet some kids face-to-face, with the hopes of making a connection. Ask your caseworker for more information on these in your area. They are normally a few hours to all day and are far more personal than looking through a book with photos and descriptions.

Opponents of these types of fairs feel that this is putting the kids on display. That it is very demoralizing and doesn’t give the prospective family an accurate view of the child. Both sides have their points and unfortunately until someone comes up with a better idea that actually works, Kids-Fests (they are often called different things in different parts of the country) will continue.

Families Like Ours holds the option that provided the event is hosted in a respectful manner to all those involved they are often a good tool to find adoptive homes for many children. A great deal of the families we assist are able to make connections with children through these events and become adoptive families.