Complex Adoption
Foreign adoption leading to U.S. immigration.
Relative adoption from a foreign country
Adopting a foreign-born child currently in the United States.
Foreign Adoption leading to US Immigration
If, as a United States citizen, you adopt a child overseas in the court of his country, he may qualify to immigrate to the United States as your child and become a U.S. citizen!
There are certain rules which you must follow to gain this benefit:
- You must legally adopt the child under the law of his land prior to his 16th birthday!
- You must have had legal custody of the child for at least two years.
- As a U.S. Citizen, you must have parented the child in his country for a minimum of two years. (Generally, this means that you have lived with him in his country for a total of two years.)
- This kind of case is complex and you are unlikely to achieve success without an experienced adoption immigration attorney.
Relative Adoption from a Foreign Country
Under United States law, even if you are a new immigrant and are adopting a blood relative from your country of origin, you MUST follow all the US laws described on this website. Because new immigrants often know persons of value to an adoption in the sending country and may have more realistic expectations for how long adoption might take, some APSs choose to discount their rates for a relative adoption.
All relative adoptions must follow the U.S. law and the Hague Treaty (if applicable). If a child in a Hague Country lives with both of his biological parents, only that country’s Central Authority can decide if the child is adoptable, even if the family is supported financially by the U.S. citizen relatives.
An adoption immigration attorney may be of great assistance in gathering the proper documentation to prove that a child is adoptable if both of his parents are alive or if he lives with either or both of them. Get your adoption approved by USCIS! Call us for a consultation!
Adopting a Foreign-Born Child Currently in the United States
Sometimes it becomes necessary to adopt a foreign citizen child who is already in the US. The child may be here on a medical visa. Perhaps she’s here as a visitor and her biological parent/parents can no longer care for her. Maybe the child is applying for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS) due to the abuse, neglect, or abandonment by one or both biological parents.
In many cases, it is possible for a U.S. citizen or U.S. family to adopt the child and gain immigration benefits for her. This is a very complex process involving a state court, the home country’s Central Authority, and the Federal immigration system. Our firm is expert in these situations. You need an international adoption immigration attorney on your side. Do things the right way for your family and your child and call us first!
Adopting your child’s birth sibling – over 16 exception
U.S. Law generally prevents the adoption and immigration of any child over age 16 on the day of his adoption overseas. But an exception exists – if the child you are adopting is the biological sibling of a child you have already adopted or is being adopted with a sibling under age 16, he may still qualify for immigration as an adopted child!
Consult with your Adoption Service Provider and utilize the service of an experienced adoption immigration attorney to be sure he is granted the benefits to which he is entitled.