[sak9645]

From what country are you adopting, BeautyQueen? You will have to select a country before a dossier can be sent and before you can be matched, in most cases, unless you are willing to accept an older child or a child with special needs through a "waiting child" program. You simply cannot say to an agency, "Find me a set of healthy infant twins; I'll take any country." You have to apply to a specific program. And, in many cases, it is not the agency that selects your child; it is the foreign country's authorities.

In some countries, even if there are some sets of twins in need of homes, there are country rules about making children available to domestic families before they can be placed internationally. As a result, children from those countries are often well over a year old before they come home. Examples are Russia (six months in data bank) and, most recently, Korea (which used to be known for young babies, but which now won't refer a child until he/she has been in a data bank for five months).

At this time, Ethiopia and Vietnam tend to have the youngest babies, and Ethiopia seems to be the country with the best chance of getting twins under a year old at referral. Guatemala used to be a great choice for young babies, but Americans shouldn't even consider starting an adoption there right now, because it is likely to close by the end of the year, according to the U.S. State Department. Kyrgyzstan may be a possibility, but it is a new program and a little risky for this reason. And at least one agency says that twins and other siblings are usually past infancy at referral.

Sharon