[nielsere]

Does anyone have a handle on Adoption friendly Regions in Russia?

[Teri M]

Birobidjan has always been very adoption friendly. It is in the Far East part of Russia and requires an additional 8 hr flight from Moscow to Khabarovsk and then a 2 hr drive to Biro - but it is sooo worth it. They have been waiving the 10 days (even as recent as last week).

I think Samara and Stavropol have been pretty good -

Some regions I have heard of as tough - Khabarovsk, Arkangelsk (just in the last 6 months), Tomsk, Smolensk, Ekat, Vladivostok, Irkutsk.

Good luck

[Aphi86]

Vladivostok! The prosecutor there and social worker were very nice and very helpful.

[kretzklan]

Kemerovo has been known to be very pro-adoption. However I think that "fact" was found out and last year many court dates were cancelled. So, check into that and see where they are.

[LouLouBelle]

Kirov seems to be very friendly. I believe only two agencies work there.

[Annabell]

Alexandrov and Vladimir used to be quite friendly. Don't have recent info.

Good luck!

[amyfk]

Hi,

I do not have much basis for comparison as Ive only adopted once and have been to one region.
We recently came home with our baby from Tver. Tver is about a 2.5 hr NW drive from Moscow so you dont have to do any intercountry travel. The hotel which we stood at in Tver was "Americanized" and we had all the commodities there that we would have at home.
The orphanage that our daughter came from was very good. You could see that the children were well taken care of. So far the baby has been home one month, and she's adjusting beautifully to her new home. It's hard to believe she was living her first year of life in an orphange.
As of last month, the ten day waiting period was waived for all.
I dont know if you can choose a region or your dossier is just logged into a certain region. I believe certain agencies work in certain regions(Russia is so big).
I would bet that there are many adoption friendly regions still open in Russia.
Good luck,
Amy K, NJ

[Ktates]

The city of St. Petersburg (as opposed to the region it's in, Leningrad) seems to be really foreign adoption friendly still. fyi - St. Petersburg and Leningrad have 2 different court systems and MOE, like Moscow.

[kizibits]

I'll second the nomination of Tver as a very adoption friendly region!

[papedge]

St. Petersberg was in 2003 not sure about now

[SingleMama2B]

I will also agree on Tver.... The agency I used for my DD (Dec 04/Jan 05) use to only work in the Moscow Region, and in Vladakavkaz (Northern Osseitia), but this year, have moved from the Moscow Region to Tver, because it is more Adoption friendly. They continue to work in Vladakavkaz (as the 10 day wait is always waived too due to the turmoil).

Blessings...................

[chucknfw]

My two cents... Focus on the adoption agency choice rather than the region that you might adopt from. Russia is always changing and it seem like they are always changing Ministry of Education personnel. A change in director can change the whole process. Although past performance might be a good indicator, I wouldn't count on it.

[k8c]

I would look into smaller cities and regions before considering St. Petersburg. PM if you want details.

[MominPA]

We adopted twice from Moscow City and everyone was nice and it was just basic questions, no grilling. Both our court proceedings were less then 30 mintues from start to finish. Mosocw City doesn't waive the 10 day waiting period.

For us it was important to adopt from Moscow City so we didn't have to do intercountry travel.

[angelkisses0102]

In early 2004 Samara was great. From what I now understand, while still very adoption friendly...the region has slowed. This is due to the fact that it was basically a 2 agency region...one agency is no longer in business...the other lacks accreditation, so basically they are at an almost standstill. Overall, the kids are extremely healthy...and very well cared for...which is the most important aspect to me. The region supports the orphanages and has the highest per capita income in all of Russia. The 10 days is no longer waived and the time between trips has increased from the old 3 to 5 weeks timeframe...but overall it is a great region and I would go back in a heartbeat.

Tomsk on the other hand...while a beautiful place and where my precious daughter was born...it is not for the faint of heart. But it was well worth it...every day I am reminded of how great both regions were for us.