Oregon Adoption Guide

Humongous Fungus, a single specimen of 'Armillaria solidipes' in Malheur National Forest in Oregon, has been growing for about 2,400 years, covering 3.4 square miles (8.4 km²) It is one of the largest living organisms on earth.
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Kids in foster care available for adoption in 2012: 2556     
Foster adoptions completed in 2012: 683      
International adoptions completed in 2012: 126      
Sources here and here  

Adoption requirements in the state of Oregon are as follows:

Age:  21 years or older   
Marital Status: Can be married, single or in a domestic partnership      
Finances: You must have sufficient income to support your family
Housing: You must have a room for the child  
Work:  You can work inside or outside the home    
Personality: Must be ready to make a commitment to a child      
Experience:  None needed    
Other Requirements in State: Must pass a child abuse and criminal history background check   
DISQUALIFYING CRIMES:  In this state, you may not adopt if you have been convicted of any of the following: homicide, sexual assault, child abuse, child neglect, battery, crimes of violence, or drug-related offenses.      
SOURCE      

It’s essential to have a good network of family, friends, and neighbors to support you through your adoption process.

It’s also important to connect with other adoptive parents. You can begin making these connections in our forums. You may also want to consider joining a support group for adoptive parents.

Before you get started, click here to learn more about the overall process of adopting an infant in the United States. Then, because laws and processes vary from state to state, come back to get the details about adoption in Oregon.  

You can either adopt through the state, an agency, or through an attorney.  

Some people pursuing a private adoption find it beneficial to work with a professional adoption facilitator, an individual or organization that matches birth parents with adoptive parents in exchange for a fee. Paid adoption facilitators are illegal in Oregon.

However, advertising is legal for hopeful adoptive parents who have completed a home study and received a favorable recommendation and for adoption attorneys on behalf of adoptive parents.

You can browse and read reviews about adoption service providers in Oregon here.    

For more information about picking an adoption agency, learn about the Top Fifteen Things to Look for In An Adoption Agency.

Regardless of whether you complete your adoption, you will need to complete an adoption home study.

Your home study social worker will help educate you about adoption and ensure that you (and your partner, if applicable) meet the requirements outlined on slide four.

Click here to learn more about the Home Study process.

Advertising is allowed only after the successful completion of a home study.     

One of the most important things you can do while waiting for an adoption match is to let everyone know about your hope to adopt. Many adoption connections are made through word-of-mouth referrals.

Since advertising is allowed in Oregon after a home study, creating a profile on Adoption.com Parent Profiles allows you to easily share your story with those considering placing their child for adoption. Features like videos and photos, posts, Pinterest-like favorites, and recommendations and endorsements make it easy to create a profile as unique as you are, increasing the likelihood that you will stand out and connect with that right person.

Rich communication options like video chat and instant messaging make connecting easy. A mobile-responsive design means that you will never be out of reach.
What’s more, Adoption.com receives over 650,000 monthly visits, which means your profile will receive unparalleled exposure. You can even view and monitor your progress through a detailed statistics page.

Ready to get started? Click here

Adoption Navigators provides you with quality expertise in sharing your dream of adopting. We provide unparalleled adoption marketing and one-on-one coaching to beautifully show expectant parents who you are and tell your story. With Adoption Navigators you receive premier advertising exposure on Adoption.com, assistance building your profile and creating a video, and expanded reach through social media and search engines such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo!. Adoption.com has more than 16 years of experience helping families connect with potential birth parents.

Let us help you increase your exposure to potential birth parents and decrease your adoption wait time.

Click here to get started.

Creating a listing on Adoption.com Parent Profiles is an excellent way to connect with potential birth parents across the country. If you want to maximize your exposure to potential birth parents and receive personalized coaching and support, consider using Adoption Navigators. Coordinate these services with your adoption professional.

The birth mother can consent to adoption any time after the birth of her child. The birth father can consent at anytime. Parental rights must be completely relinquished before the child can officially be adopted.

In an agency adoption birth parents may revoke consent at any time before signing certificate of irreconcilability and placement.

In a private adoption 6 things must occur before the adoption becomes final. Birth parents can revoke at any time before the completion of these 6 things:

-The child is placed with the person to whom consent is given
-The person to whom consent is given files a petition to adopt with the courts
-The court enters an order appointing petitioner as child's guardian
-A homes study is filed with the courts approving petitioners as potential adoptive parents
-Information about the child's medical, social, and genetic history has been given by person consenting to adoption
-The person signing the certificate of irreconcilability has been given an explanation of the consequences of signing the certificate

SOURCE: § 109.321

Oregon does not keep a putative father registry. This means that only those fathers who take action to establish paternity are required to receive notice of adoption proceedings.

A man is presumed to be the father if he and the mother are married at the time of the child's birth.

If a man signs a voluntary acknowledgement of paternity he has 60 days from the date it is filed or from the date of a proceeding concerning the child to rescind acknowledgement.

For more information on alternate means to establish paternity visit oregonlaws.org.

SOURCE: § 109.070

Hopeful adoptive parents and/or an adoption agency may provide legal and living expenses for an expectant mother. There are, however, requirements governing such support.

In Oregon, the only allowable birth parent expenses are the legal, medical, living, and travel expenses that are included in the written disclosure statement filed with the Department of Human Services. Expenses for a brief time post postpartum are acceptable.

Any expenses not filed in the written disclosure statement are not allowed.

SOURCE: § 109.311

Post-adoption contracts outline how much contact the child will have with his/her birth parents after he/she is adopted. These agreements must include the child's consent if he/she is fourteen or older. Birth parents also extends to birth relatives, including grandparents, who may wish to continue contact with the child. Keep in mind that the child's welfare and best interest is the highest priority. These contracts are legally enforceable in Oregon.

Oregon does not have a post placement time requirement for finalization. Many factors contribute to the time until finalization of adoption including adoption type and voluntary/involuntary termination of parental rights.

The birth mother must be a resident of Oregon for adoptions to be finalized out-of-state. (Adoptive parents do not need to be residents.)

With private (usually domestic infant) adoptions, it is always possible to adopt a child within Oregon, even if you live in a different state.

The Interstate Compact for the Placement of Children (ICPC) was adopted in the 1960s to provide for oversight and protection of children placed for foster care or adoption between states.

If you are adopting a child from another state, you will need to receive permission from the ICPC office in the state where the child is from. Your agency or attorney will send the office copies of your home study and some other paperwork. They will need to approve your packet before you can bring your child home.

Read more about the ICPC here.

Before you get started, click here to familiarize yourself with the overall process of adopting children through foster care. Then, because laws and processes vary from state to state, come back here to get the details about foster adoption in Oregon.    

There are over 8000 Oregon kids living in foster care today. Approximately 200 are also waiting to be adopted. You can help.

The state of Oregon does not currently feature children on our Adoption Photolisting. We would love to help find homes for Oregons waiting children. You can help too! Please contact your local officials listed below to let them know you would like to see children from your state at Adoption.com, the Internet's most popular adoption website. Make sure to include in your message this service is FREE to all states and includes a team of technical support and customer service staff to maintain the Photolisting. Thanks for making a difference!

You can complete a foster adoption either through a private agency that is licensed to provide foster care services or directly through the Department of Human Services.       

To find adoption agencies in Oregon and to read reviews, check out Adoption.com’s Reviews page for Oregon.    
 
You will still need to complete a home study as part of this process.

"Legal risk" placements happen in Oregon. This is what happens during the time when a child is placed with a family but the parental rights have not been relinquished entirely.   

Oregon does not have a post placement time requirement for finalization. Many factors contribute to the time until finalization of adoption including adoption type and voluntary/involuntary termination of parental rights.

The birth mother must be a resident of Oregon for adoptions to be finalized out-of-state. (Adoptive parents do not need to be residents.)

A post-adoption contact agreement is a voluntary agreement that can be entered into by adoptive and birth families. The agreement outlines details about how much contact the birth and adoptive families will have after the adoption is finalized.

These agreements are recognized and are legally enforceable in the state of Oregon.

In instances in which the child’s biological parents’ rights have been involuntarily terminated, the well-being of the child needs to be first and foremost in everyone’s minds if a post-adoption contact agreement is created. Caseworkers and therapists should be consulted in making decisions about contact after adoption.

Adoption assistance programs are available for those families who are adopting children with special needs as defined by the state. You can also receive up to $1,500 per child in non-recurring adoption fees.

Before you get started, click here to familiarize yourself with the overall process of international adoption. Then, because laws and processes vary from state to state, come back here to get the details about international adoption in Oregon.

There are millions of beautiful children across the world who are hoping to find a forever family.

Click here to meet some of them through our Photolisting.

With international adoptions, your only choice is to complete your adoption through an agency. Because of the Universal Accreditation Act, all adoption agencies completing international adoptions are required to be credentialed according to federal standards. Make sure to check with any agency before working with them to ensure they have this accreditation in place!

In selecting an international adoption agency, there are Four Essential Criteria you should probably consider. Click here to browse through reviews of adoption agencies in Oregon.

In order to be approved to adopt internationally, you will need to complete an international adoption-specific home study.

You can finalize an international adoption out of country and have it be recognized by the state of Oregon.

You will also need to request a U.S. birth certificate for your child.

Read more about post-adoption requirements here

Before you get started, click here to familiarize yourself with the overall process of stepparent adoption. Then, because laws and processes vary from state to state, come back here to get the details about stepparent adoption in Oregon.

In order for you to adopt the child of your spouse, the corresponding biological parent’s rights will first need to be terminated, either voluntarily or involuntarily.

You will need to consult with an adoption attorney about your desire to adopt. He/she can help you decide if it’s likely that the biological parent would be willing to relinquish rights OR if it would be feasible to pursue involuntary termination of his/her parental rights.

Once parental rights have been terminated, you can file a petition to adopt with the courts. You and your spouse will both testify in court regarding the stability of your marital relationship, the bond you’ve developed with your stepchild, and your desire to become the legal parent of your stepchild.

You will generally not be required to complete a background check or home study as part of the stepparent adoption process.

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Wiki Laws  

Parent Profiles 

Adoption Stories

Fun Facts

Intercountry Statistics

Foster Statistics  

Oregon Department of Human Services

Child Welfare Information Gateway