International Adoption
Just as I talked about in an earlier post, many people do not truly understand adoption; the process of adopting, the different ways to create a family through adoption, and the different decisions an adoptive family has to make.
One area where there seems to be a lot of misinformation is in the area of international adoption. People wrongly assume that anyone can adopt from any country internationally.
With the ratification of The Hague (http://travel.state.gov/content/adoptionsabroad/en/hague-convention/understanding-the-hague-convention.html) and the rules governing the laws concerning adoption in each individual country, international adoption is not some kind of free for all.
According to the US State Department in 2013:
There were a total of 7,092 finalized adoptions
541 international adoptions were of children under the age of 1
The largest number ofchildren who were adopted internationally (2,682) were between the ages of 1 and 2 years of age
Only 658 children between the ages of 13 and 17 were adopted internationally
3, 218 internationally adopted children were male
3,874 internationally adopted children were female
The largest number of international adoptions for US families occurred in China. After China, Ethiopia, Ukraine, Haiti and Congo rounded out the top five countries from which American families adopted.
Years ago, more countries were open to US families who hoped to adopt. Due to changes in adoption laws, countries that were once mainstays in international adoption are now closed. Russia no longer allows US citizens to adopt. Ukraine, while technically open, is in the midst of civil unrest. Guatemala is closed due to the country not meeting Hague requirements. Korea has a long list of requirements for the adoptive family, including a BMI standard. The wait for a healthy infant from China is three plus years.
The face of international adoption has changed. And with the changes come a need for families to carefully consider if international adoption is the right way to form their family.
As with all adoptions, flexibility and a willingness to be adventuresome will go a long way to making an international adoption work!
