[cburg01]

What is the process for a private adoption? A mother wants to sign away all legal rights to her child. My wife and I are ready to get moving on this adoption. Let me know, thank you

Chris

[sak9645]

You are talking about an identified international adoption. You will have to satisfy multiple sets of requirements, including those of:

1. Your state.
2. A homestudy agency.
3. The USCIS. (Can't immigrate a child without them.)
4. The foreign country.
5. For some countries, though not Jamaica, the Hague Convention authorities.

First off, you will need an international homestudy done by a provider licensed to do them your state. Homestudies are required for ALL types of adoption -- domestic, international, agency, private, relative, etc. If you want to know more about a homestudy, I will be happy to give you information.

A homestudy can take a few months, and can cost anywhere from about $1,500 to $5,000, depending on where you live, so it will be very important to determine BEFORE you start one, whether the child you seek to adopt will be adoptable under Jamaican law and eligible for immigration to the U.S. Some states and providers may also require you to take preadoption classes or meet other requirements.

Second you will need to get USCIS approval of your own qualifications to bring an orphan into the U.S. Most people file the I-600A first, to get USCIS approval of their own qualifications, and then later file the I-600 to get USCIS determination that the child meets requirements for immigration. However, you may be able to use the I-600 for both steps at one time. You should discuss this with an immigration attorney.

With regard to YOUR qualifications, you cannot get an adoption visa for a child unless you have an approved homestudy and meet other USCIS requirements. Of these requirements, the most important are that you will need to have an income that is at least 125% of the U.S. poverty level income for a family of your size, and that you will have nothing in a FBI criminal background check that is of concern, such as a record of child abuse/neglect, domestic violence, or other felonies. You can download information about the I-600A and USCIS requirements at the website of the USCIS.

You also cannot get an adoption visa for a child unless at least one of the prospective adoptive parents is a U.S. citizen. Two people with green cards or other visas CANNOT bring an orphan to the U.S. unless they go back to their home country, adopt, live there with their child for a period of time (possibly two years; I'm not 100% sure), and then apply for regular visas.

In terms of the child you plan to adopt, the USCIS will not grant an adoption visa unless he/she is eligible to immigrate as an "orphan". The U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act has a definition of "orphan" that is not quite the same as the definition in common usage. Basically, what's important will be that the child was NOT living in a two parent family before he/she was adopted. The child can:

1. Have a single parent who cannot support him/her at a level considered normal in Jamaica.
2. Have no living parent.
3. Be an abandoned child, with parents' whereabouts unknown and no contact between parent and child for a significant period of time.
4. Have been removed from the biological parents by an action of a legitimate court, for cause such as abuse or neglect, with parental rights permanently severed.
5. Have been legally relinquished and have been living apart from the birthparents without any contact, for a significant time period (usually at least a year).

To reiterate, the child cannot have been living with both bio parents or with a bio parent and a stepparent prior to your adoption, or an adoption visa cannot be issued. If an adoption visa cannot be issued, then you will have to live overseas with your child for at least two years, and then apply to bring him/her to the U.S. on a regular dependent visa.

In short, it would be a very smart idea to review USCIS requirements with an attorney BEFORE starting a homestudy and submitting an I-600A and/or I-600, to make sure that you do not adopt a child, assume legal and moral responsibility for him/her, and then find that you will be unable to bring him/her to the U.S.

You will also have to determine whether the child you propose to adopt is adoptable under Jamaican law. Many countries do NOT permit individuals to do independent adoptions directly from birthmothers, because of the potential for coercion, bribery, etc. A good U.S. immigration/adoption attorney should be able to find out for you.

There is some good information on Jamaican adoption on the website of the U.S. State Department, at Country Specific Information for jamaica.htm. Although it will not answer the above question, it does give information about the process you will need to follow IF the Jamaican government considers the child adoptable.

As you will see from the article, there are two ways to adopt from Jamaica. I'd suggest that you seek legal counsel to see which one is likely to be easier in your case. Do be aware that a person going through the Adoption License process will need to live in Jamaica for four months before you will be allowed to take the child to the U.S. and formally adopt him/her in your state. The Adoption Order process may be better for a working person who cannot spend four months overseas; however, it takes longer to complete the adoption, since the child will actually be legally adopted in Jamaica.

Once you adopt the child, you must get his/her visa. As I mentioned earlier, you shouldn't wait till after the adoption to begin looking at the immigration process. If the child is not eligible for immigration on an adoption visa, you will have legal and moral responsibility for him/her, and have to decide whether to live overseas with him/her for two years or to overturn the adoption.

Remember that USCIS rules apply whether or not the child is related to you, and whether or not you are doing a private adoption. There is really no way around them.

Sharon