Taiwan adoption

February 19, 2010

Taiwan is a very small country, and the number of children abandoned or relinquished for adoption is small.

Taiwan also does not have a centralized referral system, like China does. A U.S. agency works directly with a Taiwanese child welfare organization, and gets referrals based only on how many children become available to that particular organization.

There was a time when few people in the U.S., other English speaking countries, and Western Europe knew about adoption from Taiwan, and when there were many other adoption options. At that time, it was fairly easy to get a quick referral of even a very young baby girl (as requested by most Americans).

But times have changed. Today, the number of people seeking to adopt from Taiwan has grown dramatically. In part, it is because they have come to know families who have completed adoptions of young babies and had a positive experience. And in part, it is because many agencies started Taiwan programs and promoted them heavily.

More important, however, is the fact that China, until recently one of the most popular countries for adoption up, made its requirements for parents much more strict and also began to have a shortage of young, healthy infants coming into care. As some families became ineligible and others found themselves looking at a time horizon that could approach five years, they began turning elsewhere. Taiwan was a logical choice for them, as they were already drawn to children of Chinese heritage.

Today, the number of families seeking to adopt from Taiwan is greater than the number of children available at any given time, when it comes to healthy infants and toddlers. Not wanting to see long wait times, since they put prospective parents' lives "on hold", many agencies have tightened their requirements -- for example, by not permitting families to choose gender -- or closed their programs to new applicants. You have probably encountered agencies that have closed their programs temporarily, to avoid long waiting lists.

You should also understand that adoption agencies in the U.S. are regulated by state law. This was not a big deal when most adoptions were domestic. An agency got licensed by the state in which it was based, placed children born in that state, and worked with parents in that state. Something called the Interstate Compact was developed, to regulate adoptions where a child born in one state was going to be adopted by parents in another state, to ensure compliance with the laws of both states.

International adoption posed some new challenges to regulating bodies. Not only were the children coming from outside the U.S., but families were beginning to seek out agencies outside their home state, which had programs in countries of interest to them. Ultimately, some states licensed agencies to place children only with families in their state, while others let agencies work with anyone, inside or outside the state.

Also, the very first formal international adoption program in the U.S. involved Korea. Korea's program soon became very strict. One thing that Korea wanted was for agencies to keep in close touch with adoptive families, to be sure that the children's adoptions were actually finalized in the U.S., that the children acquired U.S. citizenship (before the Child Citizenship Act of 2000), and especially that the children did well in their adoptive families.

For this reason, Korea began to accredit American agencies ONLY to place chlldren in the states where they were licensed. If an agency was licensed in Ohio, and met Korea's other requirements, it could place children only with families living in Ohio. Some large agencies, which were licensed in multiple states, got permission to place children in all of the states where they were licensed.

Today, Korea is the ONLY country that requires families to work with an agency that is specifically accredited by the Korean government to work in their state of residence, for "healthy infant" adoptions. (There is some greater choice available for families wishing to adopt a child with special needs.)

While most agencies soon realized that other countries do not have this requirement, and that it might make financial sense to recruit families nationwide, others decided to maintain the Korea model and continue working only with agencies in the state(s) where they had offices.

As a result, you will find occasional agencies that work only with families in the states where they are based. In most cases, this will be because of state licensure, and historical custom. However, it is possible that an agency may also decide to limit the number of applicants by deciding to place Taiwanese children only with local families.

All in all, prospective parents today may have difficulty finding an agency with which to work. People considering Taiwan will need to look long and hard to find a program for which they qualfy, which is accepting new applicants, and which feels like a good fit.

Remember that, with Taiwan, each Taiwanese social welfare organization will have different requirements for prospective parents, with regard to criteria like parental age, number of children already at home, and so on. Moreover, the programs may differ in terms of how the children come into care and are matched with families.

There are Taiwanese social welfare organizations, for example, that run maternity homes for pregnant women who cannot parent, and allow those women to choose a family for their children. Some Americans like these programs, because of the possibility of continuing contact with the birthmothers. Other Americans, however, prefer to work only with programs in which the birthmothers are not involved in the placement decisions.

As a result, you will need to choose an agency based on whether it is open to new applicants, whether you meet the requirements of the agency and its Taiwanese social welfare organization partner, and on whether you are comfortable with the way the children are matched, as well as on the availability of children of the gender, age, and health status that you feel you can parent. You may, in some cases, be limited by whether there is an agency placing Taiwanese children in your home state.

If you cannot find a program that is a good fit, then you will have to consider another country. Unfortunately, there simply aren't many Asian programs nowadays.

Korea, like Taiwan, has few healthy infants these days. Its criteria for prospective parents are strict, and your state may or may not have any agencies accredited to place Korean children. Many parents find, however,

that they can have greater flexibility if they are willing to accept a child with a relatively minor special need.

Thailand has a very small program that tends to have a long time frame. Japan rarely has children available to non-Japanese people, and few agencies work there. Vietnam is closed, and so is Cambodia. And families wanting healthy infants should probably avoid China, where the waiting lists are very long, even if a family meets China's requirements. China has a very strong program for families willing to consider special needs or older children, however, and in some cases, you can actually choose a child from a list provided to agencies by the Chinese government.

There are still options elsewhere in the world, of course. Some of the Latin American countries that stopped working with the U.S. before our country ratified the Hague Convention on international adoption are now beginning to reopen, though the programs can't be considered stable yet.

Ethiopia has become stable and very popular, and other African countries are beginning to open, though it's important to work with a very reputable and experienced agency, since there are many risks.

Some Eastern European countries are still open. Russia has had a very stable program and is very popular, though it is extremely expensive, mainly because at least two trips are required to complete an adoption, and some regions are beginning to require three or four. Look at other forums on this board to identify other Eastern European countries that might work for you.

The Philippines has a good program, though time frames may be long. And there are occasional adoptions from other island nations, such as the Marshall Islands; be on the lookout for unethical/illegal practices, however. As an example, some agencies used to bring Marshallese women to the U.S. to deliver and relinquish babies, which is illegal under both Marshallese and U.S. laws.

In short, you will have to continue "doing your homework". If Taiwan remains of interest, you will have to be sure that you will qualify for it and will be comfortable with a specific program, and you should also be aware of an agency's current and projected time frames. Otherwise, you may have to revise your plans and choose another country. I have spoken here only of international adoptions, but you may also want to look into domestic agency, private, or foster care system adoptions.

Remember that ANY ethical adoption is a good choice, if it offers a child a permanent, loving family. And any adoption of a child considered "hard to place" because of age or disability is truly a wonderful choice for families who search their hearts and find that they can meet the needs of such a child.

Good luck to you in your quest to become parents via adoption.

Sharon