[SteveP]

Is anyone aware of the success rate of single men adopting from India? Is this even an option?

[Ann Fleming]

Steve, while I do not know the answer to your question, I'd just like to acknowledge that the journey to adoption is generally harder for single men than for single women -- and for the children's sake, this is really unfortunate. Cambodia, when it is open, is typically an exception in that single men are allowed to adopt. I am also aware of single men adopting from the former Soviet Union. I would encourage you to visit the website of India's Central Adoption Resource Agency -- CARA for short -- to see if they address the issue of single men adopting. www.cara.nic.in/
Or you can talk to your local homestudy agency (if you've selected one).

Good luck!

[Beth PK]

Hi Steve,

I attended a meeting with CARA in October and at that time, they told us that they would not approve single fathers to adopt Indian children. I am sorry...

Beth PK (ichild)

[bil]

Steve,

In my months of researching many dozens of agencies, I didn't see any indicating that single men could adopt from India, and based on Beth's reply it sounds like that's a policy of the Indian government rather than individual agencies/orphanages. That's really unfortunate. Besides Cambodia and Russia, Vietnam also will allow single men to adopt, though I think they're also temporarily closed for new adoptions due to some regulation reshuffling. China also permits single men to adopt. The wait for single people of either gender to adopt in China is pretty long due to the fact that China's government requires agencies working there to limit their single applicants to 8% of the total pool (I suppose that could go up, since last year it was 5%). I think there are some Latin American countries which permit single men to adopt, though I think most of them place extra restrictions (may not adopt girls, age restrictions on the child, etc.). It does seem as though it's quite a bit more difficult for single men to adopt than single women (and more difficult for single women than for married couples). But I think that if you're committed and flexible, it can be done. Good luck!

[TerryS]

Steve,
Try One Light Adoptions in Boulder, CO. I know of some single men who are adopting through them.