- I don’t live in North Carolina or South Carolina. Can I still work with your agency?
- Who should consider international adoption?
- What kind of adoption expenses should I expect?
- When are fees due?
- How long will it take?
- Do I have to travel?
- What is a homestudy?
- What type of support services are available to adopting families?
- Are there any risks to international adoption?
- May a person request to adopt a child of a particular sex?
- When do families become eligible for referrals?
- Can more than one child be adopted at the same time?
- Carolina Adoption Services has a requirement for adopting parents to have resolved any infertility issues. What does this mean?
Q. I don’t live in North Carolina or South Carolina. Can I still work with your agency?
A.
Carolina Adoption Services (CAS) works with American families throughout the United States and overseas for child placements from CAS programs. CAS can provide local services (homestudy and education) for families in NC, NJ, SC, and VA.
Q. Who should consider international adoption?
A.
Mature persons, at least 25 years old, who can love and celebrate a child from another heritage. These individuals also must understand and accept the risks and uncertainties of international adoption, such as generally limited background about the child and possible delays in the adoption process due to international factors beyond the agency’s control. Family must be able to meet USCIS requirements.
Q. What kind of adoption expenses should I expect?
A.
Your adoption fees will cover both agency services and international fees. Agency fees cover office overhead, program development and relief efforts. International fees cover expenses overseas related to your adoption such as facilitator fees for time and services, legal costs, and orphanage donations. Families considering a program receive a written description of anticipated expenses. Your program coordinator will provide a detailed account of specific fees and expenses.
Q. When are fees due?
A.
Payments of fees are staggered throughout the adoption process. Specific fee agreements are prepared for each family as they enter the program showing the fees and when monies are due.
Q. How long will it take?
A.
Time frames vary greatly depending on variables such as the country you are adopting from, the age and gender of the child requested, etc. Please speak with either your program coordinator or the intake coordinator for more specific information.
Q. Do I have to travel?
A.
All countries require one or both spouses to travel. Travel also is a time for meeting and bonding with your new child and acquiring first-hand experience of the country and culture.
Q. What is a homestudy?
A.
The homestudy, somethimes refered to as a pre-placement assesment, is a document and a process conducted by a licensed child placement agency in your state of residence. It consists of several interviews and the compilation of certain information. An approved homestudy is required by your state of residence, CIS (Citizenship and Immigration Services) and the placing country. Homestudies are valid for 12 to 18 months, depending on your state’s regulations. When initiating the homestudy process, families need not have selected a country or program, but it is necessary to select a program by the end of the homestudy process as your homestudy will be written to meet the country’s guidelines.
Q. What type of support services are available to adopting families?
A.
Each family is assigned to a program coordinator who is a social worker and specialist in adopting from the family’s country of choice. The program coordinator assists throughout dossier preparation, referral, travel plans, travel and post placement. She/he is there for support, “hand holding” and dealing with the anxieties and uncertainties that arise. Carolina Adoption Services prides itself on having professional, experienced staff who are caring and compassionate. While in the foreign country, families will be assisted every step of the way by an in-country, English-speaking liaison. Families are met at the airport, taken to their lodgings, the orphanage and escorted throughout the legal process to finalize adoption. According to the program, there may be opportunities for sightseeing and shopping. Sightseeing is not included in the services of the facilitator and are arranged separately.
Q. Are there any risks to international adoption?
A.
There are many aspects of the international adoption process that are beyond the control of Carolina Adoption Services. Foreign governments may change requirements or procedures without notice, moratoriums may be declared to revise adoption laws, strikes and illnesses may occur. Birth mothers may change their minds, or the child may be adopted by an in-country family. While we provide as much medical information as possible about the referral, we cannot guarantee the completeness or accuracy of the information. We do all we can to minimize the risk, but we cannot offer certainty and request you enter this process with an attitude of flexibility with the process and trust in Carolina Adoption.
Q. May a person request to adopt a child of a particular sex?
A.
We request childless families be open to a referral of either sex, although a preference can be expressed. Families with children in the home may request a child of a particular sex, although this is limited by the policies of the placing country. Some programs do not allow selection of a gender at all. We prefer families who are flexible about the age of the child they hope to adopt, and who are able to accept a child who may need minor medical treatment or surgery.
Q. When do families become eligible for referrals?
A.
Families are eligible for a referral when all required adoption documents have been submitted. Generally families need about 4 to 6 months to complete their homestudy, gather their dossier and obtain CIS approval. The wait for a referral varies according to country and type of child requested. In some cases we have referrals of children who are waiting for families. We encourage families to have the medical information on the referral evaluated by a physician of their choice; we can provide them with the names of developmental pediatricians. Should you decline a referral based upon a reasonable assessment, we will accept your decision and work to identify another referral.
Q. Can more than one child be adopted at the same time?
A.
Two or more related siblings may be adopted at the same time by married couples from some countries. Only under special circumstances will the adoption committee approve placement of two unrelated children at the same time. Families seeking to adopt two or more related children must evidence adequate educational preparation, child care arrangements coupled with adequate financial, physical and emotional coping resources. In preparation for placement of two children, families must have prior meaningful contact with other families who have adopted two children, a “buddy” family in place, and resources identified for various needs that can be anticipated.
When Carolina Adoption Services places two children together, there is usually one year or more age difference between them.
Q. Carolina Adoption Services has a requirement for adopting parents to have resolved any infertility issues. What does this mean?
A.
This means that applicants should not be pursuing infertility treatments while pursuing an adoption. We believe that families need to go through a grieving period and come to terms with the fact that they were not able to conceive. We ask that our families not think of adoption as “second best.” There are many issues in international adoption where the process feels outside of the parents’ control, and this can bring up some negative feelings familiar from your infertility issues. We ask that families be in a “good place,” having resolved their infertility issues before actively pursuing an adoption.