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Parental Age
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· Maximum age difference of 85 or 90 years between combined age of parents and child. Some Indian states look for 90 years, but the majority prefer 85 years.
· No more than 45 years (some agencies enforce 43) between older parent and child.
· Parents must be at least 30 and no older than 55
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Length of Marriage
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5 years.
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Divorce
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Generally, no more than 2 total for the couple, although some regions in India and some agencies have stricter requirement.
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Children in Family
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While nothing is specifically written, as a general rule families with no more than 1 to 2 children are preferred; greater flexibility with special needs adoptions.
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Single Applicant
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Single females between ages of 30-45 are considered on case-by-case basis.
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Sexual Orientation
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Does not knowingly place with homosexuals.
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Children Available
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· Average age upon arrival home is usually around 12-24 months for Overseas Citizen of India (“OCI”), and a little older (age 2 to 4) for non OCI families;
· Children with special needs and older children also available.
· In some parts of India, many children are premature or low birth weight, likely due to early induction of labor
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Race/Ethnicity
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East Indian
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Gender
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Girls and boys; parents may request gender; longer wait for girls
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Adopting more than one unrelated child at same time
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Not allowed
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Travel in Country
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- There is a fair degree of discrepancy for travel requirements, depending on which Indian child welfare institution your agency working with and which Indian adoption law you are following (see discussion under Additional Information).
- Some require travel for one parent for anywhere from 3-5 days to 5 to 6 weeks.
- Some require both parents to travel.
- It is culturally preferred for single women to have a travel companion.
- Parents do not travel in groups.
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Referral Method
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Standard.
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Wait for referral (after dossier submitted)
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12-18 months for girl; wait for boy depends on availability, shorter wait for an older child or a child with special needs; shorter wait for OCI families
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Wait after referral
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4-6 months to receive Indian legal document and permission to travel to pick up child; this depends on the part of India and the length of the court process. Sometimes there are delays and the wait could stretch to 8 months to a year.
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Approximate Cost
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$13,000 to $16,000+ travel+ visa in India + cost of finalizing the adoption
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Youngest Age Upon Arrival Home
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10-14 months for Overseas Citizen of India (“OCI”) families and 2 to 4 years for non OCI families
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Orphanage/Foster Care
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Orphanage, quality is reported by parents and IA doctors as good.
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How children enter government care
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Most infants come into after relinquishment or abandonment by single mothers due to poverty and societal pressures against unwed motherhood. Toddlers and older children generally come into care after termination of parental rights due to neglect, abuse, or death or illness of parents.
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Prevalence of FAS
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Historically drinking during pregnancy is not common and IA doctors report that they are not seeing much evidence of FAS.
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Adequacy of medical reports
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Varies according to the orphanage; generally, children with special needs have more information; additional information is not always available.
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Program
Stability
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Stable, although significant delays can happen when judges change or the orphanage is being relicensed; therefore, ask your agency about these possibilities for the region and orphanage they work with.
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Number of children placed in the US 2002- 2008
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2,706
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Growing/Declinin
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Decreased from a high of 542 in 2001 to 308 in 2008.
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Post placement Reports
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A report every 6 months for the first 2 years. Report should be prepared by social worker until adoption is finalized in the US. The remaining reports can be prepared by the parents and submitted with photos.
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Hague Treaty
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Yes
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Additional Information
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- Low birth weight is very common.
- Requirements vary greatly with each region with judges following their own court rules. Agencies work in specific regions and should be your best guide to the idiosyncrasies of the judges in that region.
- Adoption agencies must be Hague accredited in the US and must be registered by the Indian Central Authority (CARA). For profit agencies are not allowed.
- There are three possible Indian laws that may be used to adopt a child for international adoption. Depending on the law used, the final adoption may take place in India or the US. Ask your agency for the details. However, the majority of adoptions are ‘guardianships’ which are finalized in the state of residence of the adoptive family. The child then comes home on an IR-4 visa and becomes an American citizen when the adoption is finalized in the state of the child’s residence.
- India gives preference to families where at least one parent is of Indian descent and some agencies only work with these couples.
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Useful Links
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US Department of State: http://adoption.state.gov/country/india.html
Joint Council on International Children's Services www.jcics.org, click on country information
IChild Indian Adoption Resources http://www.ichild.org
India’s Central Adoption Resource Agency (CARA) http://www.adoptionindia.nic.in/
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Creating a Family Sponsors
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Dillon International
Holt International Children's Services
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