Can only US citizens adopt?

I have heard that you can not adopt internationally if you are not a U.S. citizen. I agree it is not fair but, I think it is because the child becomes a U.S. citizen if the parents are U.S. citizens. There may be an agency out there that can help you here in the U.S. I would try the search engine on adoption.com. Check with serveral agencies to see if they can help you. When an agency was unable to help me they referred me to another agency. It was really helpful. Hopefully someone else will have other suggestions. Try to hang in there I know it is really rough in the beginning.

Hi, Please take a look at the petition available at [url]http://www.petitiononline.com/nradopt/petition.html[/url] There are lots of other people who are facing the similar issue. Please post this on any related listserv or groups you are registered on. Let me know if you have any more questions. Thanks Amod

My husband is a British citizen who immigrated to the States as achild and has never become a US citizen. He has resident alien status (a Green Card). I am a US citizen. We adopted a newborn here in the state we live in with no red tape connected to his citizenship whatsoever. (We live in Michigan).

I don't know the answer to you question my husband and I (he is British) are in the process of adopting Internationally without a citizenship issue but that is because I am a US citizen. That may be why Lisa (thewatsonelf) was able to adopt domestically too. She is a US citizen though her husband is not. I see you are in the process of getting your green cards. If the agencies say you cannot adopt domestically in the US because you are not a US citizen maybe you could look into becoming a naturalized citizen.

I wish I could say for sure wether the info you've been given is accurate or not, so for the meantime, I'll just try to give you some encouragement. Our situation is somewhat different in that my wife is a US born Citizen, and I'm Canadian with permanent residency in the US. Also, we are adopting domestically, not internationally. I brought up the fact that I am not yet a US citizen early on and our agency didn't have any problems with that whatsoever. All they were concerned about was that I was here legally, past that, they just did the normal investigating that goes with a home study. Having nearly choked to death on the red tape that goes along with going through the immigration system, one thing I can tell you for sure is that different people employed by the INS will tell you conflicting stories all day long. My best recommendation to you is to continue to learn as much as you can about the specific laws regarding resident aliens adopting internationally. Like I say, don't take the word of one person as the be-all-end-all. I've found that more often than not, those of us who are going through immigration know more than the folks standing behind the counter of the immigration office. It sounds like this adoption is very important to you and it may even be worth the money to visit with an immigration lawyer about this. Good luck to you on both of the adoption and immigration fronts!

Hello, I am presently an International Director for Adoption Services Worldwide. I am completing a homestudy for a couple who is wanting to adopt a relative from Colombia. They are in the US through a working VISA and I believe in the process of establishing permanent residency. They retained an attorney who will be petitioning that the child be allowed to enter the US as a dependent under the same VISA status. Of course, until they become citizens then the child can also become a citizen. Is there a reason why you are not seeking citizenship? If I can be of any assistance you may contact me at (210) 342-0444. Donna

Donna, I am in the same satuation. I am a canadian and live and work in US. I am in the process to get Green Card--I-485 pending. We would like to adopt my reletive's child who is 16 years old from China. Do you think this is possible? If so, how long it is going to take? Thanks george

Hello George, I am sure there is a way to adopt your relative, but you must first find an attorney who is familiar with China laws. You need someone to guide you through the process. I understand that China regulates foreign adoptions very closely and their process can be very tedious, but again you need to get someone who can guide you through the legal process. Good luck to you! Donna

Any recomandations for lawyers? I know the procedures from China. Only thing I need in this point is that I need to provide the and could be difficut is "Certificate of child adoption approval by the competent authorities of the United States (I171H)." from [url]http://www.china-embassy.org/visapassport/english/ly.htm[/url] That need a I-600 which indicate US citizenship ? I think some lawyer will know this. Thanks George

Hi, I came across this post, because we are seeking to adopt a baby form my home country of Ukraine. We are currently in the last stage of I-485, adjustment to Permanent Resident status, and are wondering, if we adopt, will we be able to bring the child home with us, to US? Has there been any change to the laws? I was also told by 3 different agencies that we can't adopt internationally through them, however, as a Ukrainian citizen, I can do it directly in Ukraine, without any middle men. My worry is, that we won't be able to bring the baby here. Any advice? Thanks, Tania

I am brazilian and green card holder, my husband is US citizen...the agency has never requested anything about it nor pointed out any restrictions.. I believe that if you are not citizen but are legal in US it should be ok, although I am not sure if one of the parents must be US citizen...our process is for domestic adoption. :cheer:

US Immigration law requires that one parent be a US Citizen for the internationally adopted child to qualify for an adoption visa. Citizenship is not an issue with domestic adoption as it does not involve Immigration.Definetly make sure that you understand all Immigration rules before proceeding so you don't end up completing an adoption and then be unable to secure a visa for the child to enter the US.You might start at the State Department site regarding visa types and qualifications [url=http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_1306.html]Family-based Immigrant Visas[/url] but I would alsorecommend consulting a highly qualified immigration attorney to determine what options you have.Good luck!