[CashCrew]

If basically all of the photolisting agencies require 100% paper ready families only, how do they expect people to have their dossier prepared without already signing with an agency? I would like to get our dossier finished before signing with an agency "just in case", but I am finding it's darn near impossible without the guidance of an agency. Of course this means there is no way we'll ever be able to go with a photolisting unless it happens to be one of an agency we have signed with. I'm not even sure we would go with one anyway, but I want that as an option. I would hate to sign with an agency only to find when we're paper ready that they have a long wait for a referral when there are plenty on photolistings just waiting.

[ez4me2remember]

Not all photolisting agencies require you to be paper-ready. We signed with an agency that has photo-listings. We planned on waiting until we were paper ready to accept a referral, but when we were almost paper ready we could not hold out any longer. We had been watching our little guy for months and we knew at that point if someone else chose him we would be sad. I am not sure how people get dossier ready without having an agency. It seems each agency has different requirements. Just remember to ask for feedback before choosing an agency.

[Mariais5]

I would say when an agency says 'paper ready' , they mean you need to have your home study completed and your I171-H issued. You can do that much without an agency.

[maxattack]

Some agencies have a list of their needed papers on their web site. However, it is true that each agency requires a different format or wording for documents, so contact them for specifics. DO NOT sign anything without doing very detailed research!
If you think you have one or two in mind, ask here or other sites for opinions and experiences.
I went with a waiting child, thinking the process would be much faster....nearly a year later, I am still waiting to bring my daughter home. What appears to be a "quick fix" isn't always what it appears to be. RESEARCH, RESEARCH and RESEARCH...that little extra time in the beginning, can have a huge impact in the end!

[Mandy4President]

I agree, I think the homestudy and the I171H are the biggies. If there is one you're leaning toward, I bet they would give you a list of things that you would need for their agency. I could give you the list that ours needed, if you would like. Pm me.

[carrie2adopt]

I am not fully paper ready...I have my 171-h (for Russia to boot) and my homestudy is completed. I fell in love with a little girl on the photolisting and put an inquiry in on her and explained I have paperwork ready for Russia, not Guat. and was told that I could still accept this referral...I just need to switch the info over to Guatemala asap and to start working on a new dossier. I will (hopefully) officially accept my referral tomorrow, after an ia doc eval.

[CashCrew]

Carrie that is SO exciting!!!! Make sure you show us pictures when you do!

[ManyTimesBlessed]

I have noticed that there are only some agencies that require you to be paper-ready and sometimes it is only for certian children. Our kids were all waiting chidlren and we were not paper-ready with Erick or with Lillian and were able to accept their referrals.

Note: If you are trying to avoid signing with an agency, the people above were correct that you can get your homestudy and your INS approval without an agency. That gives you more time to decide on the agency that is right for you.

[gdbe]

There is a lot you CAN do ahead of time. THe biggies/ are your homestudy and 171H which are not agency specific.

For any adoption you can start getting your birth certificate, marriage certificates, divorce decree if applicable and FBI prints done and local police clearance done. You can get your physical done, and have the dr fill out the forms later. You can take the needed pictures of your family and home.

The main items that are agency specific are the physical form, witness statements, and child rights letter, name affadavit and employment letter. THese can be gathered relatively quickly.

Gail

[cbpwife]

I agree that paper ready probably means hs and 171. I THINK the purpose of that rule is so that they do not remove the child from availability only to find out that the family doesn't pass the homestudy or CIS clearance. It puts the child at a disadvantage to be older and returned to the list.

The core documents should be the same for every agency: Birth certicates, divorce decree, marriage certificates, law enforcement clearance. You could do all those before signing with an agency and then get the affidavites they want later.

[saranbr]

From my look into this, "paper ready" is often considered a I171 and approved HS-- perhaps not always, but many agencies will accept that level of "paper-readiness".

One other thing-- this is our second adoption through a different agency and the requirements are NOT the same so I agree, I don't know how you'd get completely paper ready without some guidelines from whatever agency you use.

[CashCrew]

Thanks! This all helps a lot! We have our part of the homestudy completed and we have sent in our I-600A. I've ordered all of our documents and we have a bit of the dossier collected (athough I'm really worried about our wording being correct and having to redo it all). We're almost there I just feel like I can't get any further without an agency.