For over 30 years Alliance for Children has
placed children for adoption from countries
around the world. During this time, we've seen
attitudes toward international adoption change
-- making it now the first choice of many prospective
adoptive parents.
The Alliance currently places children for adoption
from China, Colombia, Ethiopia, India, Kazakhstan,
Liberia, Russia, and Taiwan. Look through the
table below for a quick comparison of our different
international adoption programs, and then if
you wish, click on a country name to go to the
more detailed adoption program page for that
particular country.
| Country
|
Applicant
Criteria |
Children
|
Waiting Time
|
Travel
Requirement |
|
China
|
First
time married couples must have at least
2 years of marriage. If either member of
the couple has been married previously (not
more than 2 times) they must be in their
current marriage for 5 years or more.
Both members of the couple must be between
the ages of 30-50.
|
Infants (mostly
girls), toddlers to children 12 years of
age. Hepatitis B, and HIV tested.
Special needs boys and girls up to age 12
are available. |
Check with Alliance
to get an accurate current wait time for
the China adoption program. Travel is about
6 weeks from acceptance of the referral.
|
One parent, but
preferably both, must travel. Length of
stay is about 12 days in most cases. |
|
Colombia
|
Couples
under 40 and married for at least one year
are eligible. |
Mostly infants,
Hepatitis B and HIV tested. |
Referral is a minimum
of 18 months from submission of completed
dossier. Travel is about two to three weeks
from acceptance of the referral. |
Both parents must
travel. Length of stay is four to six weeks.
Only one parent is required to remain in
Colombia after the first week. |
| Ethiopia |
Couples
accepted. Applicants must be between the
ages of 25-50; over 50 considered on a case
by case basis. |
Infants 6-10
months and older at time of referral.
Siblings available occasionally.
Children are tested for Hepatitis B, C,
and HIV.
|
Referral is approx.
6-9 months from submission of dossier.
Court Date is approx. 2-3 months after acceptance
of referral.
Travel is approx. 2 months after court date.
|
Only one parent
must travel.
Length of stay is approx. 6 days. |
| Haiti |
Parents
must be between 30 and 50.
Couples must be married a minimum of
five years.
Single women may adopt.
|
Children from
infants to age 12 are waiting for their
forever families.
Individual children, twins, and sibling
groups are available.
Children are healthy by third world standards.
|
Once a family's
dossier is complete, the wait for a referral
is generally very short. |
Haitian adoptions
are currently taking 15 to 18 months after
a family's dossier reaches the orphanage.
During that time, Alliance provides support,
education, and opportunities for travel
to Haiti for our waiting parents. |
India*
*We are not accepting applications for the
Indian adoption program at this time. |
Couples
and singles accepted. Parents must be under
42 years of age, and have no more than 2
children in the family in order to adopt
an infant. Parents ages 42-45 may adopt
toddlers. Parents 45-50 may adopt children
ages 3 and older. For couples, there is
a minimum marriage length of 2 years, with
no more than 1 previous marriage. |
Infants and toddlers
are in need of families. Average age of
infants at referral is 5 months, average
age at arrival is 8-10 months. |
The time between
the dossier being sent to India until the
family receives an assignment is approximately
1-3 months. |
Children are escorted
to the United States 3-5 months after acceptance
of the referral or parents may travel for
a stay of approximately 3-4 weeks. An expedited
travel option (for an additional fee) allows
parents to stay in India for only 7 10
days. |
| Kazakhstan |
Married
couples and single women are accepted. |
Boys and girls,
healthy infants, toddlers, and school-aged
children, as well as older and special needs
children, representing a variety of ethnicities
are available. The children reside in orphanages
(baby homes). |
Currently there
are short waiting times.
Parents spend time bonding and getting
to know their child before committing
to adoption. |
Various travel options
are available. |
Liberia
* The Liberia adoption program is temporarily
on hold. |
Couples
married at least one year are eligible.
Single women are eligible for preschool
aged and older children. Flexible age requirements.
|
Infants, toddlers
and children of all ages, as well as sibling
groups are available. Children are in orphanages
and are tested for HIV and Hepatitis B. |
Referral is
approx. 4-6 months for an infant from
submission of completed documents. Referrals
for older children and sibling groups
are often immediate.
Wait to travel is approx. 7-9 months
(parents may visit during the wait). |
One parent must
travel.
Families who elect to have their adoption
completed by POA can spend less than one
week in country. |
|
Russia*
* 11/22/07 - We have been re-accredited
for adoption in Russia! |
Singles
up to age 49 and couples (married for at
least one year) - one spouse under 49 and
the other up to 54 - are accepted for infants.
There is flexibility for older children.
We are currently unable to process applications
from single males. |
We place children
of all ages from 8 months to 16 years
of age.
Short referral times for boys.
Sibling groups available.
Background information and health history
only available in certain regions.
Children are tested for HIV, TB, Hepatitis
B, and Syphilis. |
Once a completed
dossier is submitted to the Ministry of
Education in one of our 9 districts, you
could receive a referral within 4 months,
sometimes sooner if requesting a boy.
Travel is about 10 days to 3 weeks after
the referral, depending on the region. |
Both parents
must travel.
All programs in Russia require two trips. |
Taiwan
|
Couples
only.
The minimum age for adopting from Taiwan
is 30 years old.
Parents under age 50 are eligible to
adopt an infant; those 50 or older will
be evaluated on a case by case basis.
Parents should be in good health with
no criminal history; both must have college
degrees, and minimum income requirements
apply. |
Infants and young
children up to 8 years of age are available.
Children are tested for Hepatitis B,
HIV and VDRL.
Photos and medical updates of the child’s
progress are emailed to a family during
the waiting time whenever possible. |
It takes approx.
4-6 months for referral of a child and approx.
10 months after acceptance of the referral
until placement.
|
One parent must
travel.
2 trips are preferred by orphanage:
1st trip is approx. 1 week and 2nd trip
is approx. 7-10 days. The 2nd trip occurs
approx. 4-6 months after return from 1st
trip. |
The Alliance facilitates international adoptions
either through the agency's own programs
or through networking with other independent
agencies. The eligibility requirements are
determined by the child's country of origin
and may change at any time.
|
