Mom Wants to Adopt?

Question

My mom's boyfriend has a daughter in El Salvador. Recently, he found out that his parents (the girl's grandparents) have been physically abusing her, like beating her and stuff. Anyway, the girl is fourteen years old and my mother and her boyfriend/fiancee want to remove her from that situation as soon as possible. My mother is a citizen, and she was wondering how adoption in different countries work? Like, what are the steps .. we know we need a lawyer, she just wants to know what the lawyer will be able to do and the process and the amount of time it takes. Thanks!

Answer 1

International relative adoption can be complicated.  USCIS (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services) will have to know that the child meets their definition of an orphan before they will issue a visa.  Depending on the country and their system, this can be hard and take a long time, or fairly easy.  I imagine in this case, parental rights in El Salvador would have to be proven to be terminated and it doesn't sound like that has happened.  I'm not very familiar with El Salvador.  I do know some international adoptions take place from there, so maybe they do have a system the U.S. accepts for identifying orphans.  I almost think it would be easier to contact CIS and ask what paperwork you need than a lawyer.  A lawyer is just going to do the same thing.  They have no legal power in another country and USCIS is who can tell you what they need from you and the other country.

Answer 2

Go to this website: http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/...  It should tell you the basics straight from the Department of State's "own mouth".

Answer 3

It can take anywhere from a few months, to a few years, so you need to have a lot of patience. Also, you will need to invest a good chunk of money into this, be prepared for that too. It's a great thing you are doing though, and good good luck.

Answer 4

It depends on the adoption laws of El Salvador. Since mom's bf is the bio father he should be able to get her. They should consult an international adoption attorney at once. Also do they have proof of the abuse? If they can obtain proof that would be very helpful. They are probably in for a long haul with this though.