[ajcastle]

I just talked to our agency and I was informed that our application has not even been processed yet because of the situation in Korea. It does look as though it is SWS specific at this point. Our agency works with SWS and is also on hold until November. Has anyone NOT with SWS been put on hold?

Luckily for us we are not in a huge hurry because my Hubby is deploying and we won't be able to even start our Homestudy until next year so a little longer wait to be processed is not such a big deal to us. Just thought some of you may like the info!

[sslgdl]

It is my understanding that Holt is still accepting applications and I think Bethany might be also but 100% sure on that one.

[ajcastle]

Hmmmm....so it looks like it MAY just be SWS? That is interesting.

[sslgdl]

Keep in mind though that SWS will probably still give you the fastest referral times even though you will not be able to turn in your application until the end of the year. Of course, all referral times will probably be a little slower since there will probably be "less" babies available for adoption. I have seen people on Holt sitting on the referral wait list for 15 to 18 mos (an that is before all the changes - I think their normal wait is atleast a year and will probably be more like 2 yrs after the change) while SWS is still saying they are going to have their referrals in a 3 to 5 mo time frame. All of this isn't 100% but just what I am getting from other info posted. You probably need to call both your agency and Holt and ask them based on when you will be able to do your homestudy what they expect their referral time to be. Hopefully that will help you make the decision that is right for you.

[ajcastle]

Oh, I don't plan on changing agencies. I researched agencies and the one I found I am happy with. I expect longer wait times and this "hold" really doesn't affect me much since I can't even get my homestudy completed yet. I was just passing on what I found out

[dwilli]

Actually, Holt is still accepting applications as of right now there is no hold. The actual wait for referral is moving extremely quickly 4-9 months. My HSTK is the end of April and I was just told by my social worker that I am next on the list. Travel time is 3-5 mos. So as of right now it appears as though SWS does have a hold, although typically they do have a much faster referral time.