Adopted Child Question?

Question

This girl in my class said that her sister was adopted when she was 20 years old. I don't belive her, usaully you get adopted when your much younger than that (like under 16 or something). Is it true?

Answer 1

Probably is true.  Some therapists use a re-parenting technique called Transactional Analysis.  They sometimes adopt adult children and make them part of their family.  Often the person chooses a new first name and takes the adoptive parents last name.

Answer 2

You can be adopted at any time.  For example, if you were raised by someone who you loved as a parent (an aunt, a step parent, whatever), you could reach the age of adulthood and decide for yourself that you wanted that person to adopt you legally.  Maybe your natural parents would not consent before.  In that case, someone could easily be adopted at 20 years old.

Answer 3

Any one can be adopted, it's the benefits of being a minor that will not be recieved.

Answer 4

Dear Sweet Blossom,

I am absolutely amazed at all the ignorant answers you have recieved!

There are many types of adoption, INCLUDING adult adoption.

http://adoption.about.com/od/typesofadop...

Infant, fostercare, domestic, international, trans-ethnic, adult, step-parent, special needs, kinship, etc are all legitimate "types" of adoption. Adoption simply means "to take as one's own".

Is the person who told you this adopted by a step-parent? My guess would be that is the case.

Answer 5

yout leave ur foster home when u legally turn an ADULt .

Answer 6

that person that told u that is a joke and h**l yeah she is lying

Answer 7

Maybe she wasnt legally adopted, maybe they just accepted her as part of the family. Or maybe they did make it offical because she was very special to them. I dont know if this link will help answer your question but it relates to your question

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Can_you_adopt_...

Answer 8

You can be adopted at any age! They would not be a legal guardian however because the person is considered an adult and over the age of 18. But they can still be adopted and change last name, yes.

Answer 9

Anything is possible

Answer 10

It is super unusual to be adotped at such an older age, like 20.  Plus, a 20 year old is considered an adult, so it might actually be a joke or something, because I don't know if you can legally adopt someone who is already a legal adult over 18.  I bet that girl in your class is messing with you!

Answer 11

um when your 20 you don't NEED parents! but hey i would say don't believe it

Answer 12

I really think that it varies

Answer 13

Yes adults can be adopted. I know of a couple of people who were adopted by their step father, but had to wait until they turned 18 because their biological father would not consent to the adoption when they were still a minor.

I've also noticed young people with severe special needs on "waiting child" websites who were 18 and 19 . Even though they are legally adults, they still need to be cared for and could benefit from a family as much as a child under 18.

Answer 14

i would assume you have to be a minor to be adopted, but i could be wrong, it might be possible to be adopted at an older age so that the step father can become the legal father as an emotional thing? i dunno though xD

Answer 15

You dont get adopted at 20 shes lying to u

Answer 16

it has to be under 18, otherwise the person is a leagal adult. unless someone was raised by foster parents and it took til the kid was 20 to get all the paperwork finalized.

Answer 17

She is lying! There is no way! Once your 18 your a legal adult! I never heard of it and think she is a liar!

Answer 18

you could get adopted at that age..but it's not very likely.

Like, you could be adopted by just having you parent change, it doesn't necessarily mean she was in an adoption center or whatever since she's an adult.

Answer 19

It can happen, though it is unusual to happen after teenage years.  It may have been a situation where the first parents died and your friend's parents adopted their child, or she may have been a foster child who wasn't legally free to be adopted until she aged out of foster care.

Answer 20

h**l yea she is lying cuz children are adopted when 7 or younger.

Answer 21

If I'm correct, most children are adopted reasonably close to birth.  

I don't know what the rules are, but a 20-year-old is an adult, and there wouldn't be much point in adopting an adult, right?

Answer 22

Yes, it's possible that she was adopted at 20 years old.  It's not a huge process to go through like if she were a minor.  Her and her adoptive parents went to court and both sides agreed that it was what they wanted.  You can be adopted even if you are an adult.  These parties wanted it legal that she was their child.  If anything happens to the parents, the sister is now a legal child and would become an heir to their benefits.  It happens a lot more than people think and I think it's a great thing.

Answer 23

you can get 'adpoted' at any age. it doesnt mean she was legally adopted at 20. it can just mean that her parents just took this 20 year old in realizing she needed help and just 'adopted' her made her part of a family. the ex president of france  chirac adopted a grown asian woman into her family, it is still considered an adoption just not the typical one you are thinking of with the paper work social workers when adopting children. adults are adopted totally differently.

Answer 24

Adult adoptions are not all that uncommon. Sometimes they are done for inheritance or legal next of kin reasons, other times for personal/emotional reasons.

Answer 25

Yes it's possible. Just because you're over 18 doesn't mean that the need for parents has come to an end. Children who age out of the foster care system still want somewhere to go on Christmas and Thanksgiving. Those kids still want a daddy to walk them down the isle. No matter how old I get I still sometimes, want my mommy. Yes, it is possible and i've also been party to a name change of a 25 year old man. He wanted his children to have the last name of a man that he considered to be his "dad".