[gabi_mc]

Hi

My husband I have been childless for almost two years and are interested in adopting an infant girl from Jamaica. I am of Jamaican decent and thought that a Jamaican adoption would be appropriate from the research I have found thus far. We cannot afford a domestic adoption and were surprised to find out that there is only a $460 processing fee due to the Adoption Board, unless someone can correct this belief. We know that the actual adoption will have to be processed in the U.S., but I do have adoption attorney assistance through my school district. Any information that you may provide to help us in this process would be greatly appreciated. We are impatiently awaiting our adoption application, two weeks now.

Thank you in advance for your help!
Gabrielle

[wgt]

Hi Gabrielle

My husband and I are in the process of adopting from Jamaica right now. Although Jamaica does not charge fees for adoption, there are many expenses. Most of these are within the US. In order to bring a child into this country, the US government first requires that a home study is completed (ours was $1200). Then, you file an I-600 A form ($525 I think) and must include an additional $70 per adult in the household for fingerprinting fees. You will also need to aquire multiple copies of official documents that may cost around $15 each. We also had to FedEx forms to Jamaica, which costs around $70 each time. You also have fees for notaries, etc. You will also need to figure in the expense of traveling to Jamaica and staying for awhile to complete the I-600 process. I'm unsure how long that will take as we are still waiting.

This is still considerably less than the expense of adopting from most other foreign countries; however, it is more expensive than adopting through your state's public child welfare agency.

Hope this helps!
Wendy

[gabi_mc]

Hi Wendy,

Thanks so much for writing back. How long have you been in the process of the adoption? I still haven't received the application from Jamaica. I have tried to call but haven't been able to get into contact with an agency representative. I understand about the home study costing a lot. Which state are you in? I am in California and figure the cost will be high. Have you hired a lawyer to complete the adoption paperwork or are you going to do that yourselves? Thanks again for the information. Anything you might add would help our own cause greatly.

Gabrielle

[wgt]

It takes a LONG time to get the application! Things are very slow moving in Jamaica. I had someone I know go and pick it up and mail it to me, but it still took a long time! And, the application you receive is actually a "Pre-Application." Then, if you pass this initial phase, you will be sent another package. I'm still waiting on that one. We have been working on this since May 10, 2004.
I live in Indiana. The county I live in requires that adoption paperwork be filed by an attorney, but I am waiting until I actually have the child in my arms before I worry about that part. Why don't you e-mail me directly at wturner@usi.edu. Maybe we can exchange phone numbers because I have a lot of information I can share. I had to learn it the hard way because very few people adopt from Jamaica each year.

[JillGat]

My husband and I were in the Peace Corps in Jamaica in 1990 when we adopted our son (now 14!) there as a newborn baby. It was a huge advantage to be living there during the process because, as others have said, there were lots of delays, lost documents, etc. that are easier to follow up on if you are there in person. Most of the trouble we had was with the US Embassy, though. We found a saint working for the Jamaica Adoption Board who was a huge help to us. He expedited everything and the costs were minimal in Jamaica. The process took about nine months. We knew several other Peace Corps volunteers who adopted there, too. Most of the infants available for adoption were male, as Jamaicans seem to favor baby girls. I think Jamaica has a more matriarchal culture, even compared to other Caribbean countries. Our Jamaican friends chided us for adopting a boy, saying, "You should have gotten a girl... they will work harder for you. A boy will just ton tief (become a thief or criminal) (!) It took some work to convince them that this baby was our SON and we felt incredibly blessed to have him!

[wgt]

Thank you for sharing your story! It is a much needed inspiration. We are six months into the process, and I agree that the US government has been the largest obstacle so far! At this point, all documents have been submitted and we are awaiting our referral!

[cramer]

Originally posted by wgt
It takes a LONG time to get the application! Things are very slow moving in Jamaica. I had someone I know go and pick it up and mail it to me, but it still took a long time! And, the application you receive is actually a "Pre-Application." Then, if you pass this initial phase, you will be sent another package. I'm still waiting on that one. We have been working on this since May 10, 2004.
I live in Indiana. The county I live in requires that adoption paperwork be filed by an attorney, but I am waiting until I actually have the child in my arms before I worry about that part. Why don't you e-mail me directly at wturner@usi.edu. Maybe we can exchange phone numbers because I have a lot of information I can share. I had to learn it the hard way because very few people adopt from Jamaica each year.

There are several families from our church in Ohio that are attempting to adopt 11 children from an orphanage in Jamaica. We have sent several mission teams to work there and we have all fell in love with the children. We are interested in any stories good or bad as to what we should expect. We have already summitted our pre adoption paperwork to the Jamaican Adoption board for approval. Can you or anyone else share your experiences with us. We are unsure as to how to proceed. Do we need an attorney, what about home studies, etc. Any help or information as to where or who to contact would be greatly appreciated

[JillGat]

I think the most important thing you can do is to get advocates who can help you bypass some of the (passive aggressive?) barriers; one at the US Embassy and one at the Jamaican Adoption Board. We were lucky enough to find a guardian angel/saint at the Adoption Board who facilitated everything for us on that end. In fact, we took our son home (in Jamaica, at the time) a couple of months before he was officially released for adoption. (He was abandoned by his biological parents, who could not be located or identified, so there were legal things that needed to be done to be sure he was not going to be reclaimed).

The US Embassy in Kingston was the real stumbling block and I swear, they did everything they could to prevent us from getting a visa for our son. Our paperwork - passports, marriage license, birth certificates and other sensitive, important documents - bounced back and forth from Jamaica to the US and back, while the INS offices argued about which end should handle this. A friend of a friend had another friend who worked for INS, and without her, I'm not sure we would have "gotten through" (as they say in Jamaica). Oh, and one other advocate: somebody knowledgable and experienced in international adoption from an agency. You don't need a lawyer to adopt from Jamaica. Once you get your kid into the US, there may be other regulations and fees to pay, but the hard part is done.

As I said before, if there is any way you can free up five or six months to actually stay in Jamaica and deal with stuff personally, that would be the best.

Good luck to all of you! There are lots of children growing up in orphanages in Jamaica, and it's a tragedy.

[wgt]

Your situation sounds similar to ours. The child we wish to adopt was abandoned, and we have been told that it could be difficult to get the US to approve a visa for him. There is a woman at the Adoption Board who has been very kind and helpful, but it is moving very slowly. We wanted to have him here by Christmas, and when I asked if that was possible the response was a bewildered, "This Christmas?" Unfortunately, we can't stay in Jamaica for several months, so I am hoping that the process is more streamlined than it was when you adopted (that may be too much to wish for, though!).

[skiffv]

Hi, we are also adopting from Jamaica and just wanted to know how the process was moving along for everyone?

[swcg]

Hello All,

My husband and I are Canadian residents and are also hoping to adopt from Jamaica. We have been researching the process for over a year, and are just now looking to begin our homestudy. Hopefully we can proceed with JA application and visas from there!

We are looking for more info regarding the actual process in Jamaica, as there are no agencies in our area who deal with Carribean adoption. The Jamaican Ministry of Health is slow to respond to any telephone requests.

For those of you who have begun the process, does this http://law.moj.gov.jm/laws/VOLUME%20III/Volume%20iii/The%20Children%20(Adoption%20of)%20Act//C(A)A%20Schedules.pdf appear to be the initial 'pre-application' to adopt? (First Appendix, Form A, Application to Board). Does your American/Canadian homestudy need to accompany that application to Jamaica?

Did any of you have children identified before your application? I understand that the refferal/'matching' process in Jamaica can take some time.

My email address is hollyhatt@hotmail.com. Would appreciate any info you all may have to share!

All the best,

Holly

[swcg]

How long have you been waiting for your referal? Are you located in the US?

*ETA, thanks skiffv, I received your email. So nice to meet another Canadian adopting from Jamaica!

[skiffv]

Just checking in to see how everyones adoption is moving along. We have been waiting for our referral for about 2.5 months and still have awhile to wait im sure. Just wanted to see if anyone has there child home or is getting close.

Vicki

[happy789]

Hello wendy please let me know how things worked out for you.

[bluewildindigo]

I'm wondering if anyone is currently in the process of adopting from Jamaica.
I was in Jamaica 8 years ago and was struck by both the beauty and desperation of its people. I have been considering adoption for quite a while. After I came home I briefly looked for agencies that worked with Jamaica, but didn't find anything. Now I've found a couple, but it doesn't seem to be a very popular program.