What is it?

Independent international adoption is when a family adopts without using an adoption agency from a country other then the country where they reside. The family may hire a lawyer, social worker, adoption facilitator and/or translator to complete their adoption. Sometimes they may attempt to complete all the adoption paper work themselves or use a missionary friend.

Some complex combinations may be seen in independent international adoption. The wife may hold Australian and American citizenships. The husband may hold German citizenship. And the family lives in the UK. So the family struggles figuring out how to satisify adoption requirements and citizenship requirements for mulitple countries. It can be dificult finding an adoption agency who is willing and able to provide services. And this can led the family to independent adoption because they don't have any other choice.

Another example of not having a choice is French or Irish families adopting from Ukraine. There aren't any adoption agencies who provide services for this type of adoption. So the family must independently adopt.

Another common scenario with independent adoption is the American citizen was born in the other country. Or maybe their parents were born in the other country. They may speak Russian and feel comfortable in the other country's culture. So independent adoption seems like a natural choice.

Americans may also independently adopt to save money and/or adopt multiple children. On the average, independent adoption is less expensive then agency adoption. And it is easier to adopt multiple children. Typically any restrictions against adopting multiple chidlren, at the same time, is restricted by adoption agencies rather then a country's adoption laws.

Another scenario is that an expatriate family may actually live in the county they wish to adopt from. But they must satisfy multiple countries' adoption and immigration requirements. They may be Mormon missionaries in Iran and adopt from a local orphanage. They may be an American lawyer working in Ukraine.

This form of adoption may also be called:

• parent directed international adoption
• self directed international adoption
• indy international adoption
• private intercountry adoption

How much does it cost?

It varies dramatic from country to country and specific circumstance. It can range from $10,000 to $50,000. Many families adopt multiple children which impact costs. The 3 largest costs are typically the faciliator's fee, airline tickets and the home study.

If your state laws allow it, a home study can be completed by a private social worker. This can be significantly cheaper then a home study completed by an adoption agency. Home studies can be completed for $300 to $4,000. You can talk to state adoption employees to learn more about your state's laws.

Here is an example of costs for an Ukrainian independent adoption that was completed in 2000. These costs cannot be compared the current costs. Too many processes have changed, but it may be helpful in understanding the expenses. 

What are the requirements to adopt?

 The requirements vary wildly based on the citizenship of the adoptive parents, where they live and where they are adopting from. American families can only complete independent adoptions from countries that haven't implemented the Hague Adoption Treaty.

The U.S. State Department's country adoption information and adoption news pages are the best place to start exploring the different requirements. The second best place to look for non-biased information is an American Embassy website.

What types of children are available for adoption?

Children are adopted independently from countries around the world, including the United States. These are infants, toddlers and teenagers.

It isn't uncommon for families to adopt sibling groups or multiple children who are biologically unrelated. Sometimes families turn to independent international adoption specifically because they want to adopt multiple children. Independent adoption is typically a less expensive option.

What is the process for adopting a child?

Families need to invest time in researching and understanding local adoption laws, immigration rules as well as the other country's adoption laws and practices. Families can take up to a year in the research phrase. Sometimes this research can include a trip to the other country to verify facts personally.

Once the family is an expert on the adoption requirements, they are better positioned to search for an adoption facilitator or lawyer. An adoption facilitator behaves more like a general contractor and is generally not responsible for actually locating a specific child.

During the research phase the family is trying to answer questions like:

• What are the dossier requirements? A dossier is just a collection of documents to prove adoption readiness to the other country. It always includes a home study.
• What are the local home study laws? Some Americans can use a private social worker to complete their home study. But other states require an adoption agency to complete these home studies.
• What are the immigration and citizenship requirements?
• Have other families adopted from this country? What would they do differently if they were adopting again?
• Have other families failed in their adoption attempt? What went wrong and how can that problem be avoided?
• How long does it take to adopt a child?

The order of events for the family may be:

• research
• hire lawyer or adoption facilitator
• create dossier (do home study, medical reports, etc..)
• start immigration paperwork. For Americans this is the I-600 or I-600A.
• send dossier off to translator
• dossier file in other country
• family gets referral
• family travels to country to adopt child
• family returns home

The adopting family is 100% responsible for their own education on post-institutionalized children. There are common behaviors that may be seen such as rocking and raging. The family may need to use different parenting styles to help their child heal. During the entire adoption process the family should be reading books and participating in adoption email lists.

Do the hopeful adoptive parents meet the expecting mother or birth mother? 

It is possible but isn't the most common scenario. The Taiwan infant adoption program is similar to American adoption. The birth mother will select the family based on their profile. A family may adopt from an Ukrainian orphanage and discover that grandmother visits the children regularly and wants an open adoption.

There are more and more families who are attempting open international adoptions.

How is this form of adoption different from other forms?

 Families will need to self-educate on all aspects of the adoption process. Independent international adoption isn't for everyone and requires an analytic mindset. Families may at first find themselves confused or overloaded with information. So families need to keep an eye on the details while understanding the overall process. Finding other families who are also independently adopting can be very helpful. Search blogs for independent adoption or independent international adoption to start your networking process.

Adoption agencies exist for a reason. They do provide pre-adoption and post-adoption services that an independent family will need to provide for themselves.

Independent international adoption is typically cheaper then agency adoptions.