International Photolisting

Costs very greatly in international adoption. If you want, PM me with a link to the site and what country and I would be glad to do a little research and see what I can find for you.

Reputable agencies use photolistings for hard to place children, such as school aged children (especially boys), children with significant special needs, sibling groups of three or more healthy children (except groups in which all the children are three or under), or groups of two siblings where one child is over age six or has a special need. They know that families who might never have considered such children will sometimes realize, when they see the photos, that these kids are no different from anyone else, in many ways, and deserve a chance to have a loving family. Reputable agencies rarely use photolistings to showcase infants or young toddlers, especially girls, without special needs. They usually have long waiting lists for such children, and do not need to recruit families. In fact, they often close their programs when they have far more families applying than there are children to match with them. If you see babies, especially girls, listed as healthy on a photolisting, it should be a red flag to you. Check out the agency thoroughly, and ask a lot of questions. Why is this agency unable to place these children? Are these children really healthy, or did several families turn them down previously because they found that the agency misrepresented them as such, when they actually had major special needs? Are these children actually available for adoption, or is the agency using bait-and-switch tactics. (That is, the agency posts a picture of a gorgeous baby girl so that you will send money and an application quickly; then they tell you, "Oh, someone was just matched with that baby, but we have lots of other children available.") And so on. There "can" occasionally be a good reason for an agency to use photolistings for healthy infants, but frankly, I recommend skepticism. As an example, if a brand new program opens up, the agency MAY well be awash in baby girls and boys for a short period of time. But word gets around quickly, and the likelihood of the situation continuing is low. As to adoption costs, if a child has significant special needs, or is roughly age 10 or older, many reputable agencies will significantly discount or even eliminate their portion of the total adoption fees. This can often be quite a significant discount, like $5,000. But remember that agencies don't have control over things like what the airlines and hotels charge for travel, what the foreign government charges for court sessions or a child's paperwork processing, what the USCIS charges for the I-600A/I-800A, or what states charge to send you copies of documents such as your birth certificate and to "certify" your documents. Occasionally, for children who are the hardest to place, an agency will locate a donor who will be willing to pay some of these costs for a family, but it doesn't happen all that often. Then again, the family who adopts a child with a very significant special need may incur non-adoption costs that other families don't incur -- special schools, multiple surgeries, years of mental health services, modification of home and vehicles to accommodate certain physical disabilities, etc. Remember that travel costs constitute the greatest percentage of the cost of an adoption. Many countries require more than one trip, or an in-country stay of several weeks. And you often have to travel on very short notice, so you can't rely on frequent flyer miles or on discounts for off-peak travel. The good news is that, for the past several years, there has been an adoption tax credit of up to $10,000 or more, which you can take once the adoption is finalized. It has been a real blessing to families seeking to adopt, both domestically and internationally. Some people have found that they can borrow money from their families until the adoption is complete, and then pay off the loan with the adoption tax credit money. If you plan to go in this direction, make sure you understand what, exactly you will get reimbursed. Not all people will get the full amount, so get an accountant involved. Sharon While there is no guarantee that the credit will remain in effect until a person applying today brings home his/her child, many Senators and members of Congress are pro-adoption or, at least, want to appear family-friendly. My guess is that some form of tax credit WILL be in effect in the future, even if it isn't quite as generous as the current one, which gives some people $10,000 or more. And while you don't get the credit, for international adoptions, until your child comes home, it can really be beneficial in the long run.