[adoptivemomtoone]

We're thinking about adopting our second child internationally (we adopted domestically with our son). We're 25 & 26, and just have one child in our home, married 5 years..... So China and a few others are out.

Looking for recommendations on agencies & countries whom you've had good experiences with. Please PM me info if you can't post here..... Just beginning to look into this & I'm already overwhelmed!

Thank you!

[mommy_2b_NC]

I would also LOVE to have some agency recommendations if someone could PM me.

[BrandyHagz]

Just a friendly reminder: All agency discussion must be done via PM!

Thanks!

[ocracoke]

Look at Ethiopia. Your age shouldn't be an issue.

Samantha

[cthy757]

Depending on the state you live in, you may qualify for South Korea. PM me if you would like more specifics on our country and agency experience.

Cathy

[lwjtwo]

Cathy,

We are also looking on info for Korean adoption. I am going to pm you now!

[gbutterfly]

Hello, My husband and I are older and looking for recommendations from other older couples who have had successful adoptions of infants/children under 2.

I'm 38 (soon to be 39) and husband is 41 (soon to be 42) so some countries are not options for us if we want an infant (I have multiple reasons for wanting a child under 2, first being I married after 30 & infertile so this is my first child and I want all of the bonding & to experience all ages and stages)

Anyhow...Please PM me if you can recommend an agency / country with whom you've had a good experience. Our considerations include age/health of child, length of wait, and to some degree cost as we are not wealthy.

thank you

[Sohmakun]

Russia may be a good country for you. Kazakhstan may also be an option too. If you have documented infertility then Nepal may be an option too.

[Sohmakun]

Originally Posted by gbutterfly

Hello, My husband and I are older and looking for recommendations from other older couples who have had successful adoptions of infants/children under 2.

I'm 38 (soon to be 39) and husband is 41 (soon to be 42) so some countries are not options for us if we want an infant (I have multiple reasons for wanting a child under 2, first being I married after 30 & infertile so this is my first child and I want all of the bonding & to experience all ages and stages)

Anyhow...Please PM me if you can recommend an agency / country with whom you've had a good experience. Our considerations include age/health of child, length of wait, and to some degree cost as we are not wealthy.

thank you

I'm adopting domestically but I did consider international adoption for a very long time and therefore, I know of a couple of countries you may qualify for
I have these countries in mind
1. Kazakhstan
2. Russia
3. Kyrgyzstan
4. Taiwan (If a long wait doesn't bother you)
5. China (If a long wait doesn't bother you)
6. Ethiopia
7. Korea (however, I think both parents must be under 42 year old-you may want to check)
8. Nepal

[cac_li]

I know this may seem silly, but I am wondering if anyone has been able to complete an adoption from Russia in less than a year. I already have an approved homestudy, am waiting on fingerprints from Immigration. If anyone has had an experience with an agency that they felt really were able to expedite the adoption, could you pm me. Or if anyone has any general suggestions of things they have found helpful, I would love to hear from you. Thank you , Cindy

oh--I am looking to adopt a child under the age of 18 months--either gender.

[onehappymom]

Can you pls PM to me?? I will respond quickly with the information.

[onehappymom]

Hi, my hubby and me were 58 then. LOL 39 is a "child's" age. LOL
Pls PM me and I will respond quickly with the info, OK???

[sak9645]

Not sure I'd agree completely with the list above for you. As an example:

Russia is the most expensive of the countries from which Americans adopt, and may not be right for you for this reason. You could easily spend $35-40K or more, mainly because it's gotten impossible to do one trip. At the very least, it's two trips, and for some people, it's three; those airplane flights add up. Moreover, it's not that common to bring home an infant. The length of the process means that most kids will be over one year old at homecoming. Of course, that's getting to be the norm in most countries, with many countries having even older children. For a very young baby, domestic adoption should be considered.

China is, right now, the least attractive country from a wait standpoint. While no one can say with any certainty how long the wait will be, estimates range from three years on up to five or more years, AFTER one's dossier is submitted, unless you are willing to go with the Waiting Child program (special needs and/or older children). The Waiting Child program is much faster, but the only infants who are available tend to have moderate or more severe special needs. Most children with minor known special needs are over three; most children without known special needs are over six.

My thoughts:

Check on Korea, but be prepared for rejection on husband's age. Parents must not have reached 45 by child's homecoming, which means some agencies won't take people over 42 or 43, given possibility of delays.

It's a nice, ethical program, long established. While it's still possible to adopt an infant, Korea is pushing domestic adoption and keeping children out of international program for longer periods, to ensure that domestic families have priority. Also time frames, though still reasonable, are getting longer.

You may not be able to choose gender, as first-time parents. While it's not a Korea rule, many agencies have this rule since Americans tend to request girls, meaning waiting lists for girls and boys languishing in care. With Korea, your child comes home under a decree of guardianship, and you actually finalize in your home state.

Taiwan has a very small program, and it's run by individual social welfare agencies. As a result, rules vary depending on the social welfare agency with which an American adoption agency works. Some agencies actually have programs where the birthmother chooses the adoptive family and a degree of openness is possible.

It's a nice program, but since it is small and getting very popular as families leave the queue for China, wait times are increasing and some American agencies aren't taking new applications until they are sure that they can make placements in a reasonable period of time.

Ethiopia has a nice program, with good care for the children in many orphanages. Young babies are being referred. However, wait times have increased with the increasing popularity of the program, and some agencies may be limiting new applicants. Rules tend to be fairly liberal, with regard to age, though there are always rumors about rules changing. Escort is allowed, though travel is preferable. Child will usually come home on an IR-4 visa, meaning that you must readopt in the U.S.

Kazakhstan is a possibility, but you should be aware that you will either stay for 6+ weeks in the country or make two trips. This raises the cost. Hard to say if you can bring home a baby under one year of age; talk with agencies.

Nepal has just reopened to adoption, so it could be a bit risky. In the past, there were problems with corruption and with travel warnings because of civil disturbances. Be sure to choose an experienced, cautious agency.

Kyrgyzstan's adoption program is somewhat in flux at this time, and it's not clear what is going to happen. My guess is that regulation will increase. Getting started right now should be done with caution, using only agencies that are highly experienced, ethical, and conservative. Do a lot of research before committing.

African countries other than Ethiopia are beginning to open up to Americans, but most are VERY risky. If you want to look at an African country such as Rwanda or Uganda or Madagascar, be sure that you use a highly experienced, licensed, nonprofit American agency that is very cautious in its outlook. Do NOT listen to people on the Internet who claim to run orphanages and offer young babies; they are usually scammers.

You might check into Colombia. In general, you have to be pretty young to adopt an infant, but since there are both government and private facilities placing children, you might find a reliable American agency that will work with you.

In addition, since the U.S. has now ratified the Hague Convention on intercountry adoption, some other Latin American countries, such as Ecuador, are becoming more willing to work with Americans. Relatively few high quality agencies have programs in place, but there definitely are a few.

Mexico used to be a country from which I would say, "Run away!" because the process was difficult and there was a lot of corruption. However, there are now a few very good agencies working there and having some success in placing children, though time frames can be a bit "iffy".

If you are Roman Catholic, be aware that one of the agencies is a branch of Catholic Charities in one U.S. state; it has a long relationhsip with the Archdiocese of Mexico City and is Hague-accredited. But there are some other excellent agencies as well, although their programs are newer. Be sure to choose a highly cautious, ethical, experienced agency.

Go to the website of the U.S. State Department, at Country Information, where you can plug in names of countries and see the rules. You might find some other countries you want to learn about.

[jubileedawning]

I am 25, and my husband is 28. I would also love a PM with agency info! Thanks so much!

[benandkatieh]

can i jump on the bandwagon to get agency referrals? i'm 29, dh is 30. we are most interested in india, which i haven't heard recommended here...?