adoption procedures

Platinumsweet,

Really happy to see your post and the support you get from the family! Goodluck with a speedy and happy adoption journey.

Please check the link given below. Our friend has adopted from there, and are very happy with the institution and the discipline they follow in the whole adoption procedure. This is a governement approved agency.They also do international adoptions.

http://www.bsskindia.org/contact.html

You may also choose to contact state adoption agencies especially from the state to which you or husband belong to. I see that you are from Kerala. Please contact the Child Welfare Board in Thycaud, Trivandrum. You may talk to the adoption officer or a very helpful social worker there by name Shinja. The contact number is 0471 2323949.They will guide you to the local office in Kottayam. There are also a few missionary Christian adoption homes in Central Travancore Area. Ask the social worker to help you with a list. All these are government or semi govt agencies. All legal and above board. This institution will take anything from 6 months to two years to finally give you a child.

Another option is to contact the Missionaries of Charity of Mother Theresa. They also do adoption. If you are Christian, they will give you full custody of the baby after all process and matching of child is completed. If you are Hindu, they will give you guardianship rights under a one year review and then full custody. This is also a credible place.

Goodluck! Adoption is always a rewarding process, only happiness follows, by God's Grace.

 

Best wishes for your adoption.

 

Platinumsweet,

Again, good luck with adoption.

A small word of caution. When you approach any adoption agency, please talk over the phone first and get as much info as they can give you. Please do not reveal too much about yourself at that time. You have to give all notarised documentation about yourself and husband later, in any case when time comes.

Often times, if you say that you live abroad, agencies will hurriedly put the couple under international adoption. Which is a very long and tedious process. Agencies tend not to differentiate between Gulf and other countries like Europe or US where parents may have citizenship. So, get their info vis a vis domestic (Indian) and international adoption and then meet them in person.

 

Platinumsweet,

Adoptive parents will need financial security. But I dont think you need two years to get there. In the TVM Child Welfare Board, I have seen some parents who don't seem to be very well off.

When you apply, you need to show certificates for land and house (property deeds in your of husband's name). You will also need to show a bank statement of how much money you have. As best as I know, this does not have to be a huge amount.

When the baby is matched, there will be some expenditure. About Rs 20,000 (maximum) for all legal fees, documentation etc,etc. You have to invest Rs 65,000 or so in a 20 year fixed dep favouring the child (this dep will be jointly held by you and the adoption officer). I calculated that a total expenditure of about Rs one lakh will be incurred after the baby is matched.

If you want to know exact amounts in Child Welfare Board and Missionaries of Charity, please post here. I will ask my mother to phone and find out. Don't hesitate to write.

One strong word of advise. Never say that you are planning to adopt after two years. After you put in your papers, it will easily take two years for the baby to be matched and come home with you. Always put your application TODAY,NOW.Then wait.

You need to give a lot of documents for even filing the application first.This will take from a week to a month. From the day, your application is registered, your waiting period starts. Some couples ask for boy, some for girl. Waiting time is longer for girls, since most parents want daughters.
I would suggest that if you are okay with either boy or girl, give your choice like that. It will speed up the process (but just by a couple of months).

Babies are taken from the Amma Thottil, babies left in stations etc. A baby is ward of the state and has to be approved by the District Collector. Who will release the baby for adoption, the court will hear the adoption petition and you will get custody.

If there is an election or a developmental project going on, the Collector will not release babies for three, four months. During summer, the court goes on two months vacation. Again, there will be a delay with cases pending up.

I am writing all this since I know this process first hand.

This is the system. First you file application with all documents. Then wait and pray. After a year or so, when your number comes up, you will be notified. No queue jumping is possible since all NGOS are watching child adoption keenly.

Now, .they will match the child with you. Contrary to what parents think, only one child is shown at a time. You can do all medical tests you want etc. If you like the child, fine, baby comes home. But, if you don't like the child, they will offer the child to the next couple in line. You ahve to wait again till another baby is matched to you.

I am not saying all this to discourage you. Adoption is a very lengthy process. Almost all couples I know, make the mistake of saying that they will wait two years and then apply. If yo have decided firmly to apply, the time is NOW. If you apply now, in two years you will get the baby.

 

Platinumsweet,

Adoption is not at all a difficult process. It involves a long wait, that is all.

Different agencies follow different procedures. The basic rules are all the same, but the order in which each step is executed differs. In some agencies, the Family Study Report ( adoption officers will come to your home and see how the home conditions are) is done first before the child is matched. Certain other agencies will do the FSR last, after the baby is matched.

In TVM Child Welfare Board, all documentation is to be submitted first. In certain other agencies, documentation need be submitted only after waiting period is over and baby is matched.

What I am trying to say is don't wait to submit your application. Do it now. You have to wait atleast one year before a baby is matched to your specifications. If at that time, you have changed your mind and do not want to adopt, just say that. Many,many couples change their mind. There are no commitments on you to adopt after you apply. The CWB will happily pass the child to the next couple in the line. And all are happy.

So, apply ASAP. Change your mind later if you wish to.

In the TVM CWB, the following documentation is needed. You can procure and submit in one week maximum.

1) Property deeds. (No problem if it is not in your name or husband's name. Talk to the adoption officer as to how they want it. They may ask for a will favouring your husband from your in-laws. I am not sure, talk to the adoption officer)

2) Bank statement- again verify the minimum amount needed. I am sure you will already have it.

3) Health certificate- A medical certificate saying that you and husband have no physical and mental ailments, and can raise a child in good health. Do not go about attaching ECG reports ect, unless the adoption agency specifically asks for it.

4) Another medical certificate stating that the couple (either wife or husband or both) cannot have a biological child. In many cases, this may not be the case. They will be able to have biological children, but it may not click. Get a gynaec to give you this certificate. My advise is just get the certificate and submit it regardless of any emotional qualms.

5) Affidavit/ letters of recommendation from two persons who know you well. They should certify that you and husband are law abiding citizens, no drug abuse etc, good social standing. Easy to get.

6) Employment details of husband and wife ( if only one is employed, that is okay too).

7) A photo of couple together.

NB: Give all documentation if possible in one time. Make sure the Social worker records in the register that you have submitted all documentation.

Pay Rs 500 or so, fill one page application form, get your application receipt.

Now wait till baby is matched.

If possible, get FSR done after a year or so. FSR is valid only for one year.

You have to come only once from Gulf. When baby is ready (all medicaly tested, released for adoption by Collector), the CWB will inform you. If you are in Gulf, tell them that you need some time to come. They will give you time.

Please remember that the CWB is there to help you and the baby. They have very little funds. So, the faster they can place a baby with good parents, the happier they are. So, be peaceful. Nobody will harass or trouble you.

This is the basic procedure. It may vary here and there. Talk to the agency first. If you want a list of homes in Kerala, post here. My mother will try to get a list from the TVM social worker.

I will try to find a couple of other threads in IL where adoption has been discussed.Please read that in detail.

Again, adoption is not difficult. It will take a year or two. So, apply soon.Good luck!

Any more questions, just ask.

 

Awesome Vidya .. Really commendable. Thanks for poruing a lite.