How and why do prospective adoptive parents choose a specific foreign country from which they wish to adopt?

Question

How and why do prospective adoptive parents choose a specific foreign country from which they wish to adopt?

Answer 1

I find many choose by culture.  

Answer 2

Some might have ties to that country or culture themselves.

Some might feel led to that country for whatever reason-this is how my husband and I decided to adopt from China, which we have not done yet.  We watched something on television 15 or so years ago that put this in our hearts, and since then we have known that it is something we have wanted to do.  During that time, we have fallen in love with China-the people, the places, the culture, the food.  I hope that we will be able to adopt from there.

Some might choose a country based on the requirements of that country-for instance, China requires adoptive parents to be atleast 30, so if you are 25 and looking to adopt, you would look elsewhere.  

The country some adopt from might end up being based on which agency they have in their area, as each agency works with different country/countries.

I know several people that adopted from one country because others in their family had, as well-so their children, while not biologically related, share a culture/heritage with their cousins.

There is no one way that a specific country is chosen by adoptive parents, but many different-of which I have listed a few.

EDITED TO ADD:  Wow, you can really tell that the answerer below me, Independ..., has no idea what s/he is talking about.

International adoption is usually MORE costly and involves MORE red tape than a domestic adoption.  It is certainly not faster, either-China is currently taking around three years from the time you start the process to the time you bring the child home.  

Just another anti-adoption person out to act as if they know everything and that every adoption is one of a parent choosing to steal a child from the mother.  Get over it!  Some parents can not or do not want to parent their children.  It is sad, yes, but the children do not deserve to suffer because of it!

ANOTHER EDIT:  Of course I am not pro-kidnapping.  I am pro-adoption.  Can you not face the fact that there are women who CAN NOT and/or DO NOT want to raise their children?  What do you suppose we do with those children, leave them on the street?  Or are the puppies and rainbows the anti-abortion group are always talking about going to care for those babies?  NO.  It takes families.

I wish there were no need for adoption in this world, but as long as there is, people are going to-and SHOULD-adopt.  Not adopting is not the answer.  There are THOUSANDS of children remaining in orphanages and foster homes in China and the US.  More and more are put there daily-so the lack of adoption is not stopping the problem.  WHILE the problems are adressed, these children still need homes.  HOMES!  Not facilities where they are bounced back and forth and not loved.

Answer 3

We made our decision after a LOT of research. We also have a personal connection with Africa due to our multi-cultural extended family.

We looked into the adoption process itself, requirements, costs, problems, timeframes.  We looked at country-specific issues: language, health issues, emotional issues.

We spoke to other adoptive parents that had adopted from that country.  As we were not necessarily adopting infants, we talked to other families that had adopted older children from the agency and country of origin.  

Like every other step in adopting, it was a carefully reseached and informed decision.  

Answer 4

I was going to adopt from Guatemala because I work there 6 months out of the year and would be able to raise a child within their culture. I decided to foster several children so they can stay with their families.

Many paps look at the countries with the most healthy babies/toddlers are available as well as the ones with the least govt red tape so they can get a kid quick. Look at how fast it was in China and Guatemala and the thousands of kids adopted each year.

Some are limited to certain countries because they can't qualify under preferred countries qualifications nor have the extra money to  pay attorneys to look the other way.

Some chose based on where they can get the whitest child possible.

Some chose international because they can't qualify in their home country.

Edit to comments:

I guess the truth hurts you Owl. If I'm anti-adoption than I guess that makes you pro-kidnapping. Yeah, thats saving a life isn't it.    Out of sight out of mind. Who said it wasn't more costly. Reread my post but thanks for pointing out that a price put on a childs head is an issue, unfortunately your looking at it the wrong way (its about your pockets, right).  More red tape, well that depends on the country and corruption and how you view it.  Yeah China has a longer waiting period now for "healthy" toddlers, but isn't that because of mass amounts of paps trying to get one. It certaintly isn't because of improved human rights. I don't need to explain Guate, its riddled with fraud and deceit.

I have relatives of different races and cultures, kristy, does that give me "entitlement" as well brilliant one. Your poor a-child.  I find it amusing that if someone choses to do whats best for a child, people like you automatically assume they can't be for real. Maybe its because I'm not desperate and selfserving.  Hard to grasp, huh.

EDit: "Can you not face the fact that there are women who CAN NOT and/or DO NOT want to raise their children? "

Absolutely, some don't or are unable to. Its not something I can't see or face. Its reality.

Can you and your pro-adoption "at any expense" group face the fact that many women/teens do not want to place their babies/toddlers at all but are forced to because of the demand, pressure, coercions, lies, kidnappings, no gov't support, and rapes going on because of the money given to agencies and attorney's by the adopting parents. Out of sight out of mind, IA is best right. If you want to bring in US foster care than why are so many still without homes while 20,000 plus IA kids are given homes each year. I guess fostering isn't enough for those 20,000 plus Ap's they want to feel like they "own" a child.

Answer 5

Usually it is a decision that is made with a lot of research.   Many want to adopt very young babies, and that is very hard to find in North America these days.

Yes, there are many older children for adoption, but I have experienced many people that have done that but because of the sad and disruptive lives of the adoptive children, most of them have behavioural problems, that takes years of therapy and work to get the child to accept some kind of family.

Others wish to adopt a particular race, because they may be of the same race, and cannot find a suitable race in North America.

Also there is the other factor.  So many babies and children in africa for instance, are starving to death every day, and those with money who want to adopt, have the best intentions in the world, that they may be able to save at least one or two from early death.

99.3/4 of potential adoptive parents are choosing to adopt through love and caring, they are not trying to scam or harm anybody, just to receive a baby or child into their home, to become part of their family.      

Answer 6

Hi Torrejon,

Our first daughter was adopted into our family domestically.  She is half African American and half Italian.  Much to every ones surprise we went on to have three biological children.  All of our research taught us that when adopting you should adopt at least two children of the same ethnic background.

As our daughter grew that research was echoed in her strong desire to have someone who looked like her in her family.  She wanted a brother or sister who had brown skin, brown eyes, and black curly hair.  We also wanted another child so we attempted to adopt domestically again.  We were chosen 4 times.  Each time the mother decided to parent her child.  The failed attempts to adopt were affecting our children negatively, especially our oldest.  

Then we tried foster care but we were turned down for having too many children too close together.  Our youngest was 18 months and they would not allow adopting out of birth order.  So there was little to no chance that an infant alone would come through foster care.  We were discouraged and hurting for our daughter.

Our last resort was IA we chose Ethiopia.  That is a country which we have supported for years.  We did a lot of research on different agencies.  We ended up choosing one that required that you meet with any of the child's surviving family members.  That was most important to us.  We thought the children there would be parentless.  We were surprised when we were told our new daughter had a living parent.  It was also shocking to see the poor health she was in.  She actually was a starving toddler and she was one of the healthiest children there.  Sad.  

That was our journey to how and why we chose the country we did.  One month after bringing our daughter home, I stumbled across y!a.  The information here is amazing and overwhelming at times.  In the end, our oldest and youngest daughters are so close.  There is an unspoken bond between them, i'm glad they have each other.

Answer 7

Well that depends on the parents, now doesn't it!

Parents are limited by the country's requirements and may not be eligible for every country. Also, the policies, time frames, and travel requirements vary considerably between programs and parent often look at those factors.

Selecting an agency also limits your options and many parents select an agency or at least go to visit one before they select their program country. Agencies offering multiple programs will help steer families toward the country that best suits their needs and qualifications.But at the end of the day, I do think that affinity for the culture or the children plays a role.

We chose a South Korean program largely because it provided a very high level of predictability and stability. Also we knew our child would have outstanding health care and live in a home with a dedicated foster parent while we waited for him to come home.

Yet no matter how well -reasoned our decision was, I think we both just pictured ourselves with a Korean baby. When we would see a child we thought was just beautiful, often he or she was Korean. We knew we could provide plenty of opportunity for him to explore his culture and be a part of the community and it just felt right for us.

If you are trying to select an adoption program, I can point you toward some useful websites.  

Answer 8

I chose Guatemala because I did not want to foster a child first.  I also have Guatemalan relatives who supported my decision 1000%.

I agree with Brax Owl, too, about the ignorant answer.  It is much harder to adopt from a foreign country- MUCH.  I wonder what the *real* reason is that that person was turned down for an adoption... er-hum "chose to foster many children" instead.  Even developing countries have standards.