Too old to adopt?

Okay...I tipptoed through a few adoption agencies age criteria and what I found was pretty consistant. You must be at least 30 and not over 50. I did see one agency who said they would take older couples on a family by family basis (depends upon your situation) but I "think" they also said the mother couldn't have a gap of more than 48 years between her age and the child's age. (Meaning you'd have to adopt a toddler or older.) I don't recall though if that was the same agency or not. I'd start searching agencies on the internet and begin looking at their criteria and calling the ones who say they will take exceptions on a case by case basis.

What you could try to do is petition for an older child on a waiting children's list and get the agency to ask the CCAA before you do anything or pay anything if they would approve you. There are a few older boys on my agency's list right now and I know there are older boys and girls on other lists, including a 13 year old girl who is about to age out of the program and desperately wants a family before its too late. I have seen the CCAA make exceptions for waiting children so it would not hurt to ask.

Hi,Not to sway you away from China but Vietnam just opened up its doors again and they let older couples adopt older childrenRight now there are 10 agencies that take care of VietnamGood LuckPaul

Really? I though Vietnam only took people up to 45. I guess I was wrong, or possibly these are the old rules prior to their closing and ultimate reopening?

OK according to an online adoption mag.the requirements arecouples under 50 can adopt an infant50 to 55 can adopt a child from 1 to 3 years old50 to 60 can adopt a child from 3 to 5 years oldover 60 must be open to a child over 5 years old single women can adoptdevorced peolpe are ok people with 5 children in the house are a case by casehope this helps someone out therePaul

I thought I read somewhere where the combined ages of the parents couldn't be over 109 (very arbitrary number I know!) Hopefully this is not the case

I heard 55 for couples and 50 for singles - but I believe someone who was older than that posted here that they were able to adopt, so I don't really know.

We received an email from CCAI, no luck from them. Yeah, will try other country for better luck. Thank you all for your support and information. Christy

For SINGLES, China is now saying that they cannot be 50 or older, except possibly for waiting children. For married couples, China is saying that if a person is 55 or older, it will generally not refer a child. HOWEVER, in practice, it HAS referred children to some couples where one spouse is 55 or older and one spouse is considerably younger. Sharon

Paul and Dee, I don't know where the magazine got its information, but it is wrong. In Chinese LAW, the only age restrictions are that both parents must be at least 30 to adopt any child, and that a single man must be at least 40 years older than the child if he wishes to adopt a girl. As a matter of POLICY, the CCAA has said that it will not place healthy children with singles who have reached their 50th birthday. China also has some GUIDELINES, but all dossiers are reviewed on a case by case basis, and these guidelines may or may not be adhered to. With regard to the guidelines, China has said: 1. People 30-44 are more likely to get infants under or around 12 months of age. HOWEVER, in practice, while many people in this age range have been referred infants, some have also been referred toddlers up to age two. A lot depends on the ages of the children in the next group of orphanage dossiers, when a group of parent dossiers comes up for matching. 2. People 45-49 are more likely to get young toddlers 13-24 months of age. In fact, while some people in this age range have gotten young toddlers, plenty have also been referred infants. Again, a lot depends on the age range of the children in the next orphanage group, when a group of parent dossiers comes up for matching. 3. Married couples 50-54 should be "open" to a child over age three. In fact, although some couples in this age range have received children over three, many couples have received children under age three -- often young toddlers under age two. Many orphanages simply do not submit dossiers of children over age three to the CCAA for international adoption, figuring that foreigners won't want them, so the CCAA may have only younger children to match at any given time. 4. Married couples 55 and over are unlikely to receive a referral. In fact, quite a few couples with one spouse 55+ and one spouse much younger (40s) have received children. It does appear that the CCAA will look more favorably on such couples if there are substantial assets that will allow the younger spouse to parent if the older one passes away. It is not clear how China will rule on a couple with one spouse over 55 and another in her 50s. There is nothing in Chinese law, policy, or guidelines that suggest what China will do if one spouse is in one age group and one is in another. Any mathematical formulas you see are NOT China's. They pertain to a specific agency's requirements. For example, there are agencies that say, "The sum of the parents' ages must be 90 or less for an infant" or "the combined ages of the parents must be under 110." China does NOT do things this way, and these formulations are based on agency policy. China definitely does NOT say that a person over 60 can adopt a school age child. In fact, it is likely not to accept a person over 60, unless he/she has a much younger spouse. China's current policy allows people with four or fewer children living in the home to adopt. China allows people with five or more children to adopt only if at least some of the children are no longer living at home -- for example, if they are living at college, are on their own, or are living with a divorced ex-spouse. Some people have said that there may be an exemption from the rule for people adopting waiting children, but I haven't seen evidence of this. Sharon

Sharon, I think Paul was actually referring to Vietnam's age requirements. He suggested it earlier in the thread as an alternative to China due to this couple's age. Christina

Sharon The MAGAZINE was stating VIETNAM'S requirementsThere are 10 agencies that take care of VIETNAM right nowI stated this so the ORIGINAL POSTER would have a CHOICE Thank YouPaul

Just a FYI thing - My dh is 71 - I am 57. We have fostered over 70 children in the last 15 years - NOT looking for adoption. Actually, we have be specific about not being adoptive resources for any child. We have transitioned many children back to parents, several to relative caregivers, and several on to adoptive forever placements.A little over a year ago DHS called with a shelter care, temp placement for a newborn, drug exposed, underweight, boy. They were pretty sure (as sure as DHS can be about anything) that there was some family out there that would be stepping up - or Mom would get her head out of the dark and it would be a short placement. Well, to make a long story short - they are filing for tpr - and we still have this amazing, awesome little guy. And we are going to keep him. According to the worker - they do NOT discriminate due to our ages. They only require that we have a real back up plan in case we (he) needs it. As she said, (and I quote) "there are no guarantees even with young folks, that everyone will live to see a child into adulthood". and a very real tragedy brought that home the very next morning when I got news that my 38 year old cousin had been fatally injured in a traffic accident leaving a wife and 2 children. He wasn't old, and he didn't make it. I don't know about any laws in any other countries - but I do know that the US needs foster homes badly - caring, loving, foster homes. And who knows - you mind find that you are content and happy with that.Good luck on your search.

I believe that the OP most likely would have had their question answered several years ago as this thread is from early 2006. Amah - I'm so sorry about your cousin. My condolences to your family.

It's still unclear to me if the age requirements are before or after the dossier is reviewed and accepted. When we started the adoption process for the second time, I was 46 yrs old. Our Dossier was logged in when I was 48 years old. Now I'm 51 years old. We're still looking at another 2-3 years possibly. Sadly, it might not make a difference, because I am (at least for now) resigned to the fact that we will most likely only have one child from China. At this point in time, the age gap between the two of them would be too great, IMO. Of course, I could change my mind, but for now, we're leaning toward no siblings.