[mclenning]

Hello to all! This really seems like a wonderful group of people in this forum. My name is Meredith and my husband Chad and I are currently in the China program. The wait is continually growing painstakingly long, with possibilities of up to 5 years for a NSN referral! We originally considered adopting from Korea, but we went with China because it is substantially less expensive. Is there anyone out there who has switched from China to Korea? How involoved was this process to switch? How strict are they exactly with their qualifications to adopt? Neither my husband nor I are considerably overweight at all, but not on the skinny side either. Also, is there a financial range you have to be in to adopt from Korea? We are just getting so impatient, and can't imagine waiting another 3-5 years for a referral. I also would just love to hear about the Korea program in general. Is it a pretty solid program? Any threats of slowing down? Thanks in advance for any information!

Meredith

[sak9645]

I would be cautious about switching.

For one thing, although Korea has been placing children with Americans for over 50 years, Korea's adoption program is changing. Over the years, the number of Korean babies available for international adoption has declined with the increasing prosperity of the country. And now, the number of babies available for adoption by foreigners is expected to decrease still further, because Korea is giving its citizens monetary incentives, like tax credits, to adopt domestically. It is also saying that no child can be placed internationally until he/she has been made available to Korean families for five months. With fewer babies available for adoption, wait times are bound to increase, though no one knows exactly how long they will get.

China modeled some of its restrictions on Korea's requirements for adoptive families. With Korea, you must be married and under 45 when your child comes home, which means that most agencies won't accept a client who is over 43 or so. China has recently lowered its upper age limit to 50, from 55, except in the case of people applying for certain children with serious special needs.

With Korea, you must be married at least three years. You must be in very good health. And there are income requirements; check with agencies on the exact amount.

With Korea, families work with adoption agencies linked to one of four social welfare organizations in Korea. It is my understanding that two of these four entities have weight requirements, and you should check with them about the specifics I think, however, that they concern only people with a BMI (body mass index) of 30 or above. Check with an agency serving your area.

Sharon

[mommy2B2Nina]

We switched from China to Korea back in May for a lot of the same reasons as you. The Korea program is more expensive, but from a paperwork point of view, much easier. All you really need for Korea is a physical/homestudy. I would be more than happy to email you further, so PM me if you want.
BTW, we are #1 on our agencies list and are next to receive a girl referral!
Good luck with whatever you decide.
Faith

[teachamy]

EASY paperwork. A little more expensive, but it is a stable, well-established program. Babies are in loving foster homes before they come home-- nurturing care from a single caregiver is an outstanding part of the Korea program. Although Korea is offering incentives for domestic adoption, the culture is still reluctant to fully to accept adoption or single-motherhood. So, for the time being, babies are still available. In our agency, no one has waited more than 10 months for referral. They are quoting 10-13 mos. wait times at present.
Best of luck with your decision!
Amy

[mclenning]

Sounds good to me! Thanks for all the feedback! It is nice to know that the paperwork isn't as hard as China's. That truly was a stressful process. I have a call into our agency to see about switching programs. Hopefully we wouldn't lose all the money we already invested into the China program. There are still a lot of variables to think about, but it sure seems a lot more promising than waiting 5 years! Thanks again and I will be following along with all of your referrals!

Meredith

[koreawish]

Hi Meredith,


I'm a little late to this discussion but wanted to put in my two cents. We originally looked at the China program but didn't qualify after they changed their rules. My husband and I weren't married long enough.

We started the Korea adoption process in April and just received our referral for a baby boy! They anticipate it will take another three months before we can travel. So, even with the new rules we still received our referral in six months and will have our baby in about 9 months. Ironic, I know

I agree with the previous post about domestic adoption in Korea. It's starting to pick up but I think Korea still has a long way to go to completely end international adoption. It will most likely take years. I'm not commenting on whether this is good or bad - just the reality of the situation.

I hope whatever you choose that you are united with your new baby very soon!

R