[karla-k]

What visa does the child come home on?

Do we have to "readopt" in the US to finalize the adoption? if we travel and see the child beforehand, it will all be final at home coming, correct?

When is that done? 6 months?

thanks,

[Rapids]

At least with my agency (Illien Adoptions), you are only required to travel once, and that is after the adoption has been finalized in the Ethiopian courts and you are traveling to pick up your child and bring him/her home.

The child then has to be re-adopted in the States.

We will be making 2 trips, by choice. The first will be shortly after our referral, to meet her, and the second will be to pick her up and bring her home. This will allow her to come home on the visa which guarantees citizenship upon entry to the US.

It ends up being up to you and how many times you want to travel. But you only HAVE to travel once.

[renee-albright]

Our agency actually only allows one trip and that is your pick up trip. If you are wanting to travel before you pick up you might want to check with your agency to see if it is allowed.

[ocracoke]

Karla,

Almost all of the Ethiopian adoptions the children come home on the IR4 visa. There are some people who make 2 trips (one before court) or take a very long trip to meet the children prior to court and therefore qualify for the IR3 visa. If you do not meet the children prior to the court date then your child enters the US on an IR4 visa. Your adoption in full and final in Ethiopia but you are required to readopt in the US for the purpose of citizenship. If you enter on the IR4 visa then you are given a green card for the child and then citizenship is granted upon readoption. The timing of your readoption is dependent on your state requirements. In my stated I was not allowed to readopt my daughter until after my second post placement report. Post placement reports are due at 3, 6, and 12 months.

Hope that helps,
Samantha

[Chrysanthemum]

I recieved a translated copy ( and original) of a letter saying I am the adoptive parent of XXXX and the adoption was finalized on xx/xx/xxxx . The date was our passing court date.

Hope this helps

[DPline]

Oakracoke explained it perfectly. If both parents (assuming married) see the child prior to the adoption being final in the sending country, the child enters the US on an IR3 visa and is a citizen upon entering the US. USCIS will then send a COC automatically in 4-6 weeks.

If both parents do not see the child prior to finalization in the sending country, the child enters on an IR4 visa and receives a Permanent Resident card. It is then necessary to readopt (or whatever the process is in your state) to establish the child as a US citizen and then file for a COC as proof of the citizenship established by the readoption process.

So it isn't so much a matter of the adoption being finalized in the foreign country as it is the type of visa the child enters the US on and whether they are a US citizen when they arrive here or if you need to readopt to establish citizenship.

[karla-k]

does the IRS consider the adoption final at the Ethiopian court date, even on the one trip option?

[ocracoke]

Karla,

Yes the IRS accepts the Ethiopian court date. My adoption was finalized in Ethiopia July 26, 2006 but my readoption was done in May 2007. I was able to claim the adoption tax credit for 2006 based on the Ethiopian court date.

Samantha

[sak9645]

Ethiopia is not a Hague country.

Technically, therefore, the IRS rule is that you go by USCIS rules. If the child comes home on an IR-3 visa, the adoption is full and final from the U.S. perspective in the date on the foreign adoption decree, and that is the year when you can apply for the tax credit. If the child comes home on an IR-4 visa, the adoption is NOT full and final from the U.S. perspective until the parents readopt or do a recognition in their home state, and you cannot take the tax credit until that year.

HOWEVER, there is a "safe harbor" rule in IRS law that protects parents from prosecution if they file in the wrong year because of confusion about the correct year in which to file. The safe harbor is in effect as long as it is clear that the parents did not take the credit in the wrong year for financial benefit.

[DPline]

I believe that that changed a few years back and you can take the tax credit regardless of visa type. Of course I can't find anything to back that up at the moment! Do check into that though.