We often get questions about adopting from India. Marla Summers has researched such adoptions, and offers these insights and resources...
By Marla Summers
No one ever said that
doing hard things comes naturally, much less easily. But in some way that’s why
we attempt what everyone else deems confusing and challenging. Something in us
make us fly to the other side of the globe and navigate foreign regulations and
brave a culture so different than our own. Something that makes those long
months of waiting so worth it. Something that goes beyond the physical,
stretching us farther than our highest dreams. The journey? Adoption.
Why India?
According to UNICEF,
India is home to over 55 million orphans, making up almost half of its total
child population. India stands first in the world for the number of orphaned
children, as well as those affected by HIV, both rates being expected to double
in the next five years. The unimaginable challenges these children face is
compounded by the stigma associated with the disease, marking them as a class
of untouchables according to the caste system still present today. Many
children are also abandoned by their parents due to the extreme poverty made no
easier by feeding yet another mouth.
India is a member of the
Hague Adoption Convention, requiring its children to meet the requirements of
the Convention in order to be eligible for adoption. The Government of India
requires that the child must have placement attempted with a family in India
before the child is eligible for international adoption or fostering. Around
4,000 Indian orphans found their way into stable homes in the U.S. the past
decade, a number that is expected to decline in the next few years. And that’s
bad news for the growing numbers of abandoned children who call the streets of
India their home.
Guidelines for
Prospective Adoptive Parents (PAPs)
The Government of India
allows a child to be given in adoption under the following circumstances:
- To an individual
irrespective of his or her marital status
- To a childless couple
- To a couple with at
least two years of stable marital relationship
- There may be no more
than three children already in the home
More specifically, there
is additional eligibility criteria for PAPs as outlined by the government to
ensure the well-being and stability of the child's new family. The legal age of
the PAP(s) is between 25 and 50 years, give or take five years depending on the
age of the child and the circumstances. Couples in live-in relationships are
not eligible to adopt a child, and the Indian Government does not knowingly
place children with homosexual couples. The PAP(s) should have sufficient
financial resources to raise the child, especially if he or she has special
needs. Also, neither PAP should have a physical or mental condition that would
prevent them from taking care of the child.
Beginning the Adoption
Procedure
1. Choose an adoption
service provider
2. Apply to be found
eligible to adopt
3. Be matched with a
child
4. Apply for the child
to be found eligible for adoption
5. Adopt child (or gain
legal custody) in India
6. Bring the child
to the US and acclimate to the culture and language
In total, the approximate cost
of the adoption ranges from $13,000-$16,000 + travel + Indian visa + the cost
of finalizing the adoption. PAPs must register with a single Hague-accredited
adoption agency, located nearest to their place of residence if possible. All
foreign adoptions from India go through the CARA authorized agency referred to
as the Authorized Foreign Adoption Agency (AFAA) and follow the guidelines at
the CARA website, www.adoptionindia.nic.in.
After you have submitted your dossier, the waiting time will probably run over
a year for a girl and probably longer for a boy, depending on availability.
PAPs with Indian descent or those seeking to adopt special needs children are
given priority in the adoptions.
Special Needs Children
For the purposes of
adoption, the "special needs" banner extends to children in the
following categories:
- Children having
visible or serious medical conditions, mental or physical
- Older children
- Siblings
- Extremely low birth
weight children (as certified by a Government Medical Officer)
It is the role of the
Specialized Adoption Agency to make efforts to prepare the special needs child
for adoption, especially in the category of emotional preparation. The PAP(s)
will receive detailed medical data and orientation sessions to help them to
understand the child's needs and make an educated decision. It is advised that
the older children are counseled and begin the bonding process as soon as
possible, as well as learning English early on, if applicable. Special
needs children are often a better fit for older and experienced parents and
those who have the skills, patience, and experience to be better equipped to
parent such a child.
Finalizing the Adoption
After the referral has
been received, there will be a second wait of 4-6 months before the PAP(s)
receives the legal documents required to travel to India to pick up the
child. There is a fair degree of differing on travel requirements, depending on
the Indian child welfare institution your agency is connected with. The PAP(s)
will be obligated to spend anywhere from 3-5 days to 5-6 weeks in the Indian
state visiting the child or the institution. According to the Indian
Government, the minimum adoption age for the child ranges from two to four
years, depending on the state and agency.
The process for
finalizing the adoption (or gaining legal custody) in India generally includes
the following three parties.
- Adoption Authority
The Central Adoption
Resource Agency is the official national agency that oversees international
adoptions in India.
- The Court
The court will normally
require, at a minimum the “No Objection Certificate” (NOC), a birth certificate
or affidavit of birth, and evidence of abandonment to grant the custody order.
- Role of Adoption
Agencies
In addition, all
recognized adoption agencies (or placement agencies) in India are local and
must be registered with their Indian state Voluntary Coordinating Agency (VCA).
Placement agencies do not provide national coverage, so PAPs must determine the
Indian state from which they propose to adopt. The Central Adoption Resource
Agency (CARA), established in 1990, licenses all the VCAs and all Indian
placement agencies.
Conclusion
Whether adoption has
been something long on your heart or it is an option you have only just
considered recently, there has never been a better time to give a child a
second chance. The legal process may seem daunting, but the best journeys are
never the easy ones. And you too will come to admire the struggling street
children of India and the parents that work tirelessly to call them their own.
“The needs are
great, and none of us, including me, ever do great things. But we can all do
small things, with great love, and together we can do something
wonderful.” - Mother Teresa
Resources
Contact Information
Central Adoption
Resource Agency (CARA)
Ministry of Social
Justice and Empowerment
West Block VIII, Wing II
2nd Floor, R. K. Peram
New Delhi - 110 066
Tel: 91-011 618-0194
INDIA EMBASSY AND
CONSULATES IN THE UNITED STATES:
Embassy of India,
Washington, D.C.
2107 Massachusetts Ave,
N. W.
Washington, D.C. 20008
Phone: (202) 939-7000
