[mary594]

We adopted a little girl from Guatemala last year, she is 19 months old now and I am really getting that feeling of wanting another child. Can someone tell me how the Korean process works? Is there age restrictions? I just remember how daunting the paperwork was for Guatemala. What do you need for Korea? How old are the children at referral and at age of them coming home? I know they have escorts do most people do that. Any info anyone can give me will be helpful.

Mary

[Max'smom]

Here are some quick answers about the basic requirements the Korean government has regarding international adoption and some answers to your question:

Marital Status: Prospective adoptive parents must be married couples, they have to be married at least 3 years. One divorce for each member of the couple is acceptable. Singles are not accepted.

Age: No more than 45 years old at the time of the baby's arrival in your home. Since the time from application to baby's arrival can be longer than 1 1/2 years in some cases, this means that agencies will discourage PAPs who are 44 at the time of the application.

For non-special needs children, no more than 4 children already at home.

Family Income: $25,000 minimum.

Weight: Some Korean adoption agencies (Eastern Social Welfare, SWS and their affiliated agencies) require that parents not weigh more than 30% of what is considered normal body weight for their respective heights according to standard charts (check with local agencies to see if this applies to you).

Time: Varies a great deal according to which agency you work with. It can be as little as 6-7 months with some agencies but probably the norm right now is well over 12 months for the biggest agencies with the largest number of Korean adoptions.

Paper work: no dossier. Simple relative to most other int'l adoptions.

Age of most children at referral: less than one year; special needs children are available who are older.

I recommend that you browse this website and also the Holt website, http://www.holtintl.org/forums/.
I also found the following website informative:
http://www.adoptkorea.com

Good luck!

[sak9645]

Korea has been placing children with American families longer than any other country -- for over 50 years. It has an adoption system that is extremely organized, ethical, and stable. As a result, it is a wonderful choice for people who qualify and are open to parenting a child of Asian heritage.

As to qualifications, Korea is arguably the strictest of the countries open to adoption. It wants only young, healthy, married couples as parents for its beautiful children. Singles are not accepted. People married under three years are not accepted. Both spouses must be under 43-45 years old. Both spouses must be in good health. Some programs consider a person more than 30% over his/her ideal weight to have too high a medical risk. A couple must have no more than four children already in the home.

Some programs may have restrictions concerning the difference in age between husband and wife, and the number of divorces the parents have experienced. Two or more unrelated children may NOT be adopted at the same time; twins may be adopted, but they the availability of adoptable twins is extremely low.

Childless couples cannot usually request a specific gender. People with children may or may not be able to do so, depending on the program. In general, if you don't specify gender, the odds are that you will get a boy. If you are allowed to request gender, and you request a girl, you may wait longer for a referral than people requesting boys.

Some children are referred at 2-4 months of age. However, you may request an older infant or a toddler. The time from referral to travel is variable, but some children may come home before they are 9 months old. Ask any agency you are considering what its typical wait times are.

The children are generally placed in well-supervised foster homes until they are adopted. They generally receive medical care that is of Western quality and well-documented. Most international adoption doctors regard Korean children's immunization records and such to be accurate.

Children come into care for a wide variety of reasons -- unmarried motherhood, poverty, an unsuitable lifestyle, etc. Many, though not all, of the children are born to women who spend their pregnancy in a maternity home and deliver in a hospital. So at times, detailed information on the birthmother, other birth family members, pregnancy, delivery, etc. will be available.

The process is very straightforward. With Korea, unlike with any other country, you must use an agency IN YOUR STATE that has a contract with the Korean government, unless you are adopting a child considered to have special needs. Each agency is affiliated with one of four social welfare organizations in Korea, each of which has its own requirements.

You have a homestudy and comply with the preadoption requirements of your state. You also obtain your USCIS I-600A approval. This is what you would do for any international adoption.

You collect the documents from your homestudy, plus some additional documents, and your agency sends them to Korea. There is no certification/authentication process as with most other countries.

At some point, you will receive a referral. The time from application to referral will vary greatly. Some referrals have taken one month, though this is uncommon. Others take six to twelve months. As mentioned above, people requesting girls may wait longer. The referral will include a photo, a medical form, social history (if available), and some information on the child's development while in care.

Once you formally accept the referral, you will complete some paperwork for Korea and the U.S. government, such as information needed to issue the child's foreign passport and U.S. visa, an affidavit promising that you will finalize the adoption and comply with other post-placement requirements, and so on.

Remember that your child will not actually be adopted in Korea, even if you travel to receive him/her. Unlike Guatemala and most other countries, Korea sends children to the U.S. under a decree of guardianship, and parents complete the adoption under the laws of their state.

At some point -- often 2-4 months after referral, but possibly more -- you will be able to receive your child. Historically, most people had their children escorted, usually by a member of the staff of their adoption agency.

However, it is now becoming common for families to travel to experience their child's culture. The trip can be very brief -- just a few days, not counting air travel time -- but will probably include visiting the social welfare organization, meeting your child's foster parents, etc. Your agency will help you arrange things.

Once you bring your child home, you will have to comply with Korean post-placement requirements, as well as with requirements needed in order for you to adopt your child in your state. You will also need to get a Social Security number for your child.

Your child will come home on an IR-4 visa, whether or not you travel, since he/she is not actually adopted overseas. This means that he/she will not be a U.S. citizen until you complete his/her adoption in your state. Once you complete the adoption, he/she becomes an automatic citizen, and you may file the N-600 to get a certificate of citizenship for him/her. You may also apply for a U.S. passport for him/her at that time.

A good site, prepared by an adoptive Mom, for people contemplating adoptiong from Korea is adoptkorea.com. It lists the agencies that can work with families in each state, and the Korean social welfare organization with which each is affiliated.

I hope this helps.

Sharon

[Red Dragonfly]

I would like to add that there are agencies that work in every state. However, you will need to contact a local adoption agency that works with these agencies. The local agency will hold classes, visit with you, write your homestudy, submit paperwork the main agency, notify you of your referral and when you/your child will travel, perform the post-placement visits and go to court at finalization.
The www.adoptkorea.com website is an excellent source of information and the various agencies that handle Korean adoption.

[mary594]

Thank you everyone this was quite helpful.

Mary