Know anything about private adoption?

Question

I'm interested in adopting a child from a family member who wants to give up her baby, but do we have to pay outrageous fees to legally adopt? Also, she is a Canadian citizen and we are American, so how would that work?

The baby is not even born yet.

Answer 1

have you had any luck with this???  We are looking to adopt privately (we live in Canada).  I know that the wait for a child can be very very long....good luck!  You are very fortunate to have this opportunity.

Answer 2

You will have to contact either an agency who can take care of all the legals, or an attorney.  Either way, it will cost money.  Depending on where you live, yo will likely have to get a homestudy ($500-$900) and then have her rights, and the birthfathers rights terminated ($1000-$2000).  If he cannot be found or won't sign voluntarily, then the fees go up from there.  It is so important to get the correct information about the birthfather, as this is the way most adoptions that fail do so.  You don't want him coming into the picture a year from now saying he did not know about the adoption.  That would not go well.

After the birthparents rights are terminated, then you can go forward with the adoption (about $1000).  Of course, these fees are going to vary state to state and attorney to attorney.  And then there is the Canadian-U.S. documentation which requires special legal work as well.

An agency can take care of all this for you, and it is called an "identified adoption" and is not near as expensive as a full adoption.  It would be best if the agency were located near her, where the baby will be born.  You can simply look up some agencies where she lives and ask for their fees for an identified adoption.  

I hope that helps!  Good luck!

Answer 3

I'm not sure, but you should contact an adoption attorney.  You'll need one anyway whether or not it's a complicated or costly process.

Answer 4

Contact an adoption attorney. Yes there will be legal fees. Other costs will depend on the birth mothers needs.

Answer 5

One of our attorneys charged a low flat fee for adoptions, as it was something she enjoyed much more than her normal divorce and nasty custody fights. You may be able to find one similar. Another charged her normal hourly rate for drawing up papers and filing fees and court appearance etc.

We ended up with three attorneys, one in the child's state of birth for us, one in our state, and we paid the birthmother's attorney.

Since it is an intercountry adoption, you will still need immigration's involvement, so make sure your attorney is comfortable with that aspect.

Answer 6

the fee is outrageous what you have to pay to adopt. its in the thousands maybe even ten thousands