Adoption is a term that anyone, regardless of their educational background, should be able to provide a simple explanation for, but international adoption is a slightly more complex issue. What are all the factors involved in international, or intercountry, adoption that future parents should know? Intercountry adoption is a process that essentially consists of two things: permanently AND legally adopting a child from a country other than your own, and allowing for that child to come reside with you in your home country. Since this process involves two countries, the adoption must abide by the governmental standards of the country from which the child was born and the country where the future parents reside. Naturally, a substantial amount of variation can be expected depending on which two countries are the ones pertinent to a specific adoption process.

In order to gain a clearer understanding of intercountry adoption, let’s first establish laws related to the United States. The U.S. became a member of the Hague Adoption Convention in 1994, and the agreement went into effect in 2008. The Hague Convention is an international agreement created to primarily accomplish three tasks:

• Establish safety measures to ensure that the adoption between countries is carried out with the best interests of the child in mind
• Establish an international system to promote these safety measures and also to prevent the exploitation of children through trafficking
• Establish the legitimacy of the intercountry adoption

As a part of this international agreement, the U.S. is required to have a “Central Authority” to serve as a point of contact through which adoptions can take place. The Department of State was deemed by the U.S. to serve as this “Central Authority.” As a result of being included as a member of the Hague Convention, the U.S. can appreciate transparency, official documentation, new visa categories and adoption agencies that will protect the child in accordance with the values that the Hague Convention sought to establish.

Of course, not all countries are actually members of this international agreement. Although a significant amount of countries across the globe do count themselves as members, there are still quite a few that for whatever reason have not yet accepted the Hague convention legitimacy. Contrary to what one might think, the adoption process for a Hague member country and Non-Hague country are relatively similar; however, Hague member countries do indeed receive more benefits since the U.S. is a part of the Convention.

Regardless of what country the adopted child resides in before the process is complete, the U.S. takes two things into consideration: the eligibility of the child based on immigration requirements of the U.S., and the suitability of the parents.

Below please see the differences between a Hague adoption and a non-Hague orphan adoption:

Hague Convention Adoption Non-Hague Convention Adoption (Orphan Adoption) Your Adoption Service Provider Licensed in U.S. state of residence + Accredited or approved by one of the Department of State’s designated Accrediting Entities Licensed in U.S. State of residence Adoption Services Contract Adoption services contract contains information about agency’s policies, fees, history, relationships with supervised providers, etc. Though many ASPs disclose policies, fees and relationships with supervised providers, they are not required by most state laws to do so. Home Study Must meet both State and Federal requirements; Prepared by an accredited agency, supervised provider or exempted provider Must meet State level and USCIS federal requirements Adoption Fees Itemized in adoption services contract Parent Education 10 Hours of parent education Parent education only if mandated by U.S. State of residence or voluntarily provided by agency Adoptive Parent’s Eligibility Form I-800-A; Must be filed before being matched with a child (and before Form I-800) Form 1-600-A; Can be filed at the same time as the Form I-600. Provisional Petition Approval; Child’s Eligibility Country of Origin must determine the child is adoptable with Convention consents and other protections, must meet definition of Convention adoptee Form 1-800 Must meet orphan definition Form 1-600 Child’s Medical Records Prepared, and provided by Convention country’s competent authorities; Prospective adoptive parents given at least 2 weeks to review Visa Type IH-3 or IH-4 Visas IR-3 or IR-4 Visas Visa Application Submitted before foreign adoption/legal custody proceedings Submitted after foreign adoption/ legal custody proceedings (except Guatemala and Vietnam) Adoption Records Preserved for 75 years

For more information on Intercountry Adoption, please visit the following links:

• Intercountry Adoption
• Hague Convention Adoption
• Non-Hague Convention Adoption