Infant adoption is the adoption of a child up to 18 months old. Prospective parents can adopt an infant through an agency or with the help of an adoption lawyer. Newborn adoption follows a specific adoption process that varies by state and requires approval from a court. U.S.-born infants and infants from several countries can be adopted in the U.S.
Facts about infant adoption
Many agencies restrict infant adoptions to couples who are between the ages of 25-40 and have been married for 1-3 years. Check with your agency to learn their eligibility requirements.
Caucasian, African-American, Hispanic, and mixed-race infants can be adopted through agencies or through private adoptions. The Federal Indian Child Welfare Act controls the adoption of Native American children.
Americans can adopt infants from China, Russia, Guatemala, Vietnam, and other countries in Asia, Eastern Europe, and South America. These adoptions are generally contracted through private adoption agencies. Strict immigration requirements and obligations from the child's birth country must be followed for these adoptions to be legal.
It's also important to know that wait times and fees vary greatly for both domestic and international adoptions.
If you seek an infant adoption
Once you've have retained the services of an agency or lawyer, you can start the application process. This involves filing an application, gathering vital records, and working with a social worker on a home study report. These documents are submitted to the state child-placing agency to make a recommendation regarding your suitability as parents.
In the meantime, if you work with an agency, you'll be notified once expectant parents select you. If you chose a private adoption, your attorney will locate a woman interested in putting her child up for adoption, or you may try to find someone yourself through advertising and networking. If you are adopting internationally, you'll receive a referral from the home country.
Although adoptive parents may pay a birth mother's medical expenses, it is against the law for them to pay her for the child.
Birth parent's rights in infant adoptions
A birth mother can change her mind about an adoption, but there are limits on her rights. Depending on the state, a birth mother can revoke consent for adoption two to eight days after the child's birth if she gave consent while pregnant. If she agreed to the adoption after the birth, it is difficult for her to keep the baby. If the adoption agency or lawyer lied to or threatened the birth mother in order to gain her consent, the birth mother can retain custody.
If the birth father is known, he has the opportunity to consent or object to the adoption. If he is not notified of the adoption, he can contest it within a time period determined by the state
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