[dh2009]

We are considering International Adoption in the next year, and are also considering moving to another state during this time. We completed a home study and adoption training in the state of New York, and are curious if any of the home study we completed will be applied to the new adoption effort, or is it entirely an new effort?

[cborsa7]

Your home study would need to be current.
It will also need to be specific to the country guidelines you are adopting from. A lot of agencies for International will require you to use a SW they approve prior to the home study. Our agency would only accept a home study through a short list of local Social workers, and ONLY after that SW signed contract to complete the home study using the agency guidelines. So it will really depend upon a lot of issues. Your first step is to decide upon a country, then decide upon an agency and then you will be able to determine what they will require from there.

Good Luck on your journey!

[sak9645]

Each state tends to require a homestudy to be presented in a specific format, and to contain certain information. As a result, it is quite likely that your existing homestudy would not conform perfectly to what the new state wants. New information would be needed and a new format would be required.

In addition, a move to another state would mean that you would need a new home visit, since you would be in a new residence. There would also need to be a lot of other new information -- for example, about your new jobs and the impact of your new situation on things like commute times, access to child care, your social support system, your income and assets, and so on. You would most likely need new police and child abuse clearances, as well.

In addition, the new state and homestudy agency might or might not want to do their own counseling or send you to their own classes.

In short, you and the new homestudy agency would have to discuss whether it would be called a new homestudy or an update, but because of the amount of work that would be required, you can expect that fees might be comparable to those for a new homestudy.

Also, do remember that homestudies have a validity period. I do not know what that is for New York or your new state, but it is often a year or two. If your homestudy expires, you need a new one, even if you don't move. Therefore, it is not a good idea to have one too early, as you seem to have done. Neither your state nor the USCIS will accept an expired homestudy.

Sharon

[Mommy K]

If your HS is current & you move-you can have a change of life addendum added if your HS agency is licensed in the new state. SW in New Jersey operate under the umbrella of the HS agency, I am unsure of NY though.
For a HS that will expire soon, under the same conditions-you need a full update.

[sparkyjt]

If you are moving, I don't think you have to redo everything, but a home visit will need to be redone where they check for safety issues. At least that was our experience. We were in the midst of a military move when it was time for our home study and were advised to wait until we moved so we wouldn't have to do it twice.