|
| Adoption Resources |
|
Advertisers |
|
| Back to Russia Home Page
| |
 | Adopting From - Russia
by Lisa Summers |
Following the break up of the Soviet Union in 1991, it became possible for international families to adopt Russian orphans. The numbers of Russian children adopted by U.S. families has grown significantly during the past 10 years. In 1992, 324 children were adopted by American families and in 2002 that number increased to 4,939.
In 2000, the Russian government began requiring adoption agencies that place children from Russia to be accredited by the Russian government. To date, 49 U.S. agencies are accredited to place Russian children for adoption. These agencies are required to adhere to very high standards of practice and are reassessed each year for re-accreditation. Families considering adopting from Russia should be sure to find out if the agency they are considering working with is accredited by the Russian government.
Children of all ages, including infants and sibling groups are available for adoption. Russia has implemented a data bank system for adoptable children. All children who are considered legally free for adoption must be listed on a local data bank for one month and a national data bank for three months. During this time, only Russian families have the opportunity to adopt these children. Once this time has lapsed, it is then possible for international families to be considered. Therefore, it is not possible to adopt a child under 4 months of age and in reality, few children are posted to the data bank immediately after birth. At any one time, there are approximately 120,000 children listed in the data bank and last year 13,187 of those children were adopted: 7,381 by Russian families and 5,700 internationally.
Most infants placed from Russia are between 8-14 months of age at the time of referral and/or placement. Many toddlers, school age children and sibling groups are available and waiting for a family now. It seems that fewer girls than boys are available, as Russian families often adopt girls. Waiting times for referrals of children can vary, but are usually anywhere from zero to four months. One way to decrease the time to receive the referral of a child is to talk with your adoption agency to see if they have any waiting children who are ready to be matched.
Requirements for a family hoping to adopt from Russia are flexible. Both married couples and singles can adopt from Russia, although, it seems that there are limited options for single men. There are no specific age regulations, however, usually there is a preference for an adoptive parent to not be more than 45 years older than the child. However, this does vary depending on the region and there is more flexibility for parents adopting older children.
A notarized and apostilled dossier is required in order to adopt from Russia. Once the dossier is submitted, the Russian Ministry of Education will match a child with the family based on the family’s application. Currently, the information available on a referred child can vary widely. Typically, little or no information on the child is available to a family until they travel to Russia to receive their referral in person. Some regions do provide varying degrees of information to parents prior to the first trip, but generally, parents should not expect to get information beforehand.
Two trips are required for both parents. The purpose of the first trip, which is usually about one week long, is to receive information on the referred child and to meet the child in the orphanage. During this time, the family meets with the orphanage director and doctors, reviews the medical record, receives social and legal information and visits with the child. At this visit, families can photograph and videotape the child. Once home, the information gathered on the first trip can be used by families as they consult with medical experts in the U.S. It is common that medical reports from Russia will list conditions or problems which may not have an equivalent diagnosis and/or meaning to U.S. doctors. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that families consult with a physician who has expertise in evaluating medical reports from Eastern Europe.
Before families can return to Russia to complete the adoption, additional documentation specific to the child the family is adopting, as well as many legal documents on the Russian end are prepared. The second trip, which is typically about two months after the first, involves more time to visit with the child and for adoptive parents to appear in court for the adoption hearing. Russian law dictates a 10-day appeal period following the adoption hearing, which may or may not be enforced. This is at the discretion of the judge hearing the case. Parents should expect the second trip to be one to three weeks in duration. Once the adoption decree is received parents will obtain a new birth certificate, adoption certificate, passport, etc. The final step prior to traveling home is to apply for and receive a visa for the child to enter the U.S.
Russia requires all children adopted from Russia to be registered with the Russian Consulate. This can be done in Russia or the U.S. The mandatory post placement period is three years following the adoption. All adopting parents commit to provide information and photos of their child on a yearly basis to their placing agency. Post placement reports are vital to reassuring those involved with adoption in Russia (government, the orphanages, the caretakers and the representatives) that children placed for adoption are doing well and their decision to place the child in a family was the best decision for the child. Knowing that adopted children are living happy, healthy lives allows doors to remain open for future children and families.
Currently, waiting times in general are short for Russia, with most families completing adoptions in well under one year. These relatively quick time frames speak to the number of children who continue to wait. There simply are not enough families for all of the children who desperately need a home and a family to love them.
Lisa Summers, MSW, LCSW, is the Russia Program Supervisor at Wide Horizons For Children. She can be reached by phone at 781-894-5330 or e-mail at lsummers@whfc.org.
|
Back to Russia Home Page |
| |
|
