[luvtohavekids]

Hi,
We are looking forward towards adopting a child from India. I have some questions.

1) We are not yet citizens but will be soon. Can we start the paper work etc. for adoption?
2)Do we have to go through an agency in US or can we contact directly agency in India?
3)How long does it take (approximately) for the whole process?
4)Can someone suggest good adoption agencies in bangalore/pune?

thanks for your help in advance. Your help is greatly appreciated.

[sak9645]

1. If you want to bring a child to the U.S. on an adoption visa, at least one parent must be a U.S. citizen. If a child does not qualify for an adoption visa, you would have to live overseas with him/her for two years before you could bring him/her into the U.S., which would jeopardize your current permanent resident status.

And since the citizenship process is often long, with no certain end date, no agency is likely to accept you as a candidate until at least one parent is a citizen, since it wants to be sure that you will get your citizenship and be able to bring a child to the U.S.

2. American citizens -- both NRIs and non-Indians -- must go through an American agency, according to CARA, the Indian Central Adoption Resource Authority. You can go to the CARA website at Central Adoption Resources Agency to read the Indian government rules in full, but you should also go to the website of the U.S. State Department for its rules and its "take" on how the Indian process works for U.S. citizens.

3. The variables are many. It is very difficult to predict how long an Indian adoption will take. You might want to check with people on the India adoption forum, or with a support group such as ichild, or with some of the U.S. agencies, to see what the time frame is currently.

4. I do not know which agencies work in the areas you mentioned. The individual American agencies can tell you which agencies work there. You can also check on the India adoption forum.

Sharon