How long does it take to adopt a child?

The time it takes for an adoptive family to receive a child domestically or internationally depends on many factors. While it is difficult to assess the wait times of other adoption professionals, approximately 75 percent of the families working with American Adoptions adopt within our estimated wait times of 1 to 12 months. Many factors contribute to this wait, including the adoption professional’s advertising efforts and the adoptive family's flexibility of their adoption plan: race of child, contact with birth parents, medical background, substance usage and budget. The more open a family is to certain situations, the more exposure their adoption profile will receive and the less time they will typically wait. The wait times for international adoptions also vary and depend on a family’s adoption plan, as well as country-specific issues. For example, according to The Adoption Guide, adopting a child from China may take more than four years, while adopting a child from Russia may take less than a year.

In an agency adoption, depending on the workload of the agency selected, it will take anywhere from six months to a year to complete an adoption family assessment. Most adoptive placements occur one to several months after the family assessment has been approved. In an independent adoption, the process will vary based on when the prospective adoptive parents have been chosen by birth parents. However, the department or delegated county adoption agency must investigate the proposed adoption within 180 days after they receive a copy of the filed petition and 50 percent of the adoption fee. In an Intercountry adoption, the process will vary with each country. You should contact a private adoption agency licensed to provide these services in the county where you reside to inquire about the length of the process.

Typically for domestic adoption, on average, the adoption process takes one to two years although some are completed in as little as 3-6 months once a home study is completed. It depends on a number of variables, including whether pre-adoption classes are required, how long it takes to complete your home study, and how long it takes to find the right child for your family. Of course, each case is different and wait times may be shorter or longer depending on the circumstances. For international adoption, every country’s processing time varies. Some countries process an international adoption within three to six months while others can take years. The gender and age of a child may also play a significant role wait time. Additionally, adopting a special needs child may make your process faster. Examples of wait times per country based on 2011 numbers: Ethiopia – 1-2 years, Ukraine – 3-6 months, Honduras – 1-2 years, China – 12-18 months. Again, it is important to remember that each case is different and wait times may be faster or slower depending on the country, agency, and paperwork requirements.