how to adopt, the least expensive way?

I know a family in Ireland who paid in the region of $15,000 for an independent Russian adoption - caucasian girl under two with mild health concerns i believe. This was very recently. I'm not sure that's realistic coming from the US though - the travel cost would be greater, and agencies will probably have quite high fees. There are ethical agencies, but they won't be very cheap. I would expect to pay over $25,000 to be honest. Also, I would expect the fee for two children to be higher than for one child.If you were open to special needs which are moderate-severe, then I suspect you could get a high fee discount and maybe grants, which would offset quite a bit of the cost

Frankly, I would look to a country other than Russia if cost is an issue. Russia is the most expensive country from which Americans adopt. The main reason is that Russia now requires anywhere from two to four trips, depending on region. Using a very conservative estimate of $1,500 per round trip ticket for one person, a married couple can spend up to $12,000 just for round-trip tickets to a major Russian city. Trips to your child's region will add to the cost of airfare. Add hotel or apartment costs, meals, guides, etc. and you can be over $15,000 -- sometimes over $20,000 -- before you even start thinking about adoption expenses. Remember that you won't have a lot of ability to schedule travel at off-peak times, or to book well in advance, so that could raise ticket costs above $15,000, as can a one-way ticket to the U.S. for your child, which is likely to be as expensive as a round-trip adult fare. As far as adoption fees and expenses, all countries require that you have a homestudy. In the U.S., the cost will depend on factors such as the cost of living in your area (social workers in high cost areas need to be paid more so they can pay their bills); how far the social worker will need to travel to get to you; the complexity of your state's requirements for what must be done for the homestudy (more complex means more social worker time) and so on. I've seen homestudy costs ranging from under $1,000 to over $3,000, and that was several years ago. USCIS fees for the I-600A/I-600 go up every year. It's currently $720, plus $85 per adult in the home for biometrics. There are also fees for your child's visa, etc. The foreign country will also have fees -- legal fees, document preparation fees for your child's Russian passport and birth certificate, etc. Dossier preparation is often costly; some states charge $25 per document -- and there could be ten or more documents -- that need to be apostilled and such. So without even considering homestudy, USCIS, and travel costs, you have gone well over the budget you mentioned. Then, you need to choose an adoption agency or decide to take the risky approach of trying to adopt independently. Russia does NOT want people to adopt independently. It keeps trying to prohibit independent adoption, but regions sometimes allow it. If you start an independent adoption and then Russia cracks down more, because of all the issues with disrupted adoptions, child abuse and neglect by American parents, etc., you will lose whatever money you have spent. In any case, if you are not very familiar with Russian culture, Russian language, Russian laws, etc., you could easy fall victim to unscrupulous facilitators Agency costs do vary, but not as much as you think. If you create a detailed spreadsheet, you are likely to find less variation among agencies than you expect. And much of the variation is related to the region with which you are working. By the time you have finished a Russian adoption, you could well pay $40,000 or more. Contrast that with an adoption from China, where you will probably spend $25,000, from homestudy to homecoming. Sharon

we are caucasian (me and my hub), and i'd like to get caucasian kids, dont matter if blond or brunette..and since I have never been a mother before I think special need kids would overwhelm me...Thank you very much for replying me, it means a lot!

Hi Carmen, thank you so much for your impute!I am scared of starting something and find out in the middle of the way I wont have means to finish paying.I am looking closely int it....If you have anyone to refer to me it would be a great help.tks

It is a shame you actually have to "purchase" a kid!It really turns my stomach!I understand having some costs, especially travel, but home study, and others fees should be more accessible, so more people would interest the idea of adopting.thank you anyway! It have been a great help, an eye opener! Best

It really is not "buying" children, it is buying services. OP, Have you looked into Ukraine? They have caucasion children also. It is one trip (less cost in airfare) There has been a recent poster on the Ukraine board that went indy and is helping others with info. I DO NOT KNOW this person but you can contact pm her for info. [url]http://forums.adoption.com/ukraine-adoption/401832-anyone-contemplating-adopting-ukraine.html[/url]

You are definitely not purchasing children. You are paying for a qualified social worker's time to do your homestudy. This person, often with a Master's degree, needs to meet with you at least three times, needs to review many documents, needs to prepare you for the challenges of parenting an adopted child (and there ARE challenges that differ from those of parenting a bio child) and, at the end of the process, needs to write a report in which she puts her professional license on the line by certifying that you are qualified to adopt. Frankly, her job is extremely important in terms of the safety of the child and the creation of a viable, healthy family. Many people today feel that homestudy requirements are too lax, and I actually believe that more requirements will be added. A USCIS clearance is needed up front to review the homestudy report and make sure that it is properly done. The USCIS review ensures that a child will not be brought into this country by a family who will not be able to afford to parent, or by one who will abuse or neglect the child or use him/she for prostitution or slavery. Again, it's a worthwhile task that protects children. Later, after you have your adoption paperwork, the USCIS will also review it, to make sure that the child was legally available for adoption and not bought or stolen, and that he/she meets the U.S. immigration requirements. The foreign government will want to know a good deal about you before placing a child with you. As a result, you will need to collect a lot of information about yourself, and some of that information has costs associated with it; as an example, you need to pay for copies of your birth certificate and marriage certificate, for a physical that shows your health status, and so on. Then, you will need to apostille the documents for Russia or certify/authenticate them for other countries, so that the country is assured that they are genuine. A good agency will help you through the paperwork process, help match you with a child (depending on the country -- some do their own matching), help you decide whether you can parent the child, and organize your travel to adopt, plus your immigration paperwork. Some of these things can be done on your own but, frankly, I wouldn't try it. Adoption is a complex legal process involving the laws of two countries (and in some adoptions, the Hague Convention). The laws attempt to protect children, their birthparents, and their adoptive families. Frankly, I am a little concerned about your attitude towards adoption. Adoption is not a right; it is a privilege. Countries want to protect their most vulnerable citizens. They want to be sure that parentless children are placed with safe families that will be able to meet their needs, previously known and previously unknown, and raise the children to have an appreciation of their birth heritage. And the U.S. wants to make sure that all adoptions are done legally and ethically. As a result, they want to be sure that the families are well qualified to adopt and prepared for the challenges that could occur if a child is found to have a previously undiagnosed special need -- as an example, many Russian children turn out to have Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders or to have attachment issues. They are not trying to match a child on appearance, but will allow a family that does not feel qualified to meet the needs of a child of another race to do a same-race adoption. All in all, adoption is not about buying a child. It's about finding the right set of parents for an individual who may have had some tough life experiences and need more than just normal parental love. And doing the necessary evaluations costs money. Moreover, there are things that have nothing to do, directly with adoption. If you make a decision to adopt internationally, you will need to go to the country one or more times to meet and evaluate your child-to-be, so that you can determine whether you can meet his/her needs, and so that you can go through the legal process of making him/her a member of your family. The country you mentioned, Russia, has become very strict about wanting families to be thoroughly comfortable with the needs of the child they adopt, because too many kids have been brought to the U.S., only to have their adoptions disrupted/dissolved, or to have parents, frustrated with unexpected behavioral and medical issues, turn to abusive practices. There are costs to traveling abroad -- airfare (always high when you can't predict your date of travel far in advance), hotels or apartments, food, a driver, a translator, etc. A few countries (mainly Korea, nowadays) allow escort, but you stilll have to pay these costs for the escort, who is often another adoptive parent or an agency employee or a caregiver from a foreign orphanage. And adoption is a legal process. Legal processes always involve paperwork. You will need to obtain your visa to travel, and your child's passport and visa to come to the U.S. You will need to get your child proof of citizenship, a Social Security card, an adoption (and possibly a readoption) decree, and so on. All in all, if you view adoption as buying a baby, I would suggest that you should not even consider adopting. You will undoubtedly convey such an attitude to your child, who will come to feel as if he/she is a commodity, and not someone for whom you literally traveled the world, looking for a child in need of parents. Sharon

Dear Sharon, I know I am not buying a baby! But certainly the profit private adoption agencies make, it makes me believe they are in this business for them $ and not for the children! While I agree with capitalism, I think there are some things that are just plain wrong! Profits on the millions? I am sorry you see me that way! I will keep on looking on finding a way of growing my family, and giving a child a good home, while not spending $50K.

ABERGER adoption agencies are businesses. Many of these people have degrees that work in this field. The agency we used had doctors , licensed social workers and family therapist on their staff. They should have a good salary. They provided me with a wonderful service. Since they had all the experience, I needed my hand-held thru this experience and I was willing to pay for that. I never hear people get upset about the amount of money their doctor is paid for taking care of them during a pregnancy, or how much the hospital is paid that provided the room and all the equipment for delivery. The only difference, people have insurance that cover alot of this cost. Should the doctor be benevolent and donate his time or the hospital donate their space afterall it is about building a family? Should the helicopter ambulance donate that trip because a child needs to be taken to another hospital that can handle the tiniest premmie, it is about building a family. I am not being snotty, I don't want this to be read that way, I am just wishing you to see where we adoptive parents are coming from, in many cases the adoption agencies bend-over backward to make things happen for us...most are true professionals. I do hope you can fulfill your dream of becoming a parent. Have you checked domestic adoption? In some cases this is low-cost or no cost to the adoptive family. You would still need a home-study but I do not know what the requirements would be where you live. Have you checked into Ukraine like I mentioned in a previous post?Blessings to you as you go on your journey.

If you don't feel a strong pull toward any particular country, why not consider an adoption from United States foster care?Those adoptions are low-cost or free. I don't know anyone who has spent more than a couple of thousand dollars for legal fees and court costs, and most people who adopt foster children are reimbursed more than they spent once tax credits are received.Many children in foster care are already legally free for adoption and are simply waiting to be matched with a family. You also aren't limited to adopting children only from your own state.I don't at all mean to discourage you from adopting from Russia if your heart is really in that, but if which country you choose is negotiable and finances are a concern, you could consider looking a little closer to home.

Also, adopting from Foster Care does allow you to choose your age range, gender and ethnicity.

We're going through a facilitator, which is far less than going through an adoption agency. Even so, we are still expecting to spend around $26,000 instead of $34,000 or more with an adoption agency. [url=http://snapshotsfromourjourney.blogspot.com/]Snapshots From Our Journey[/url]

I agree! Have any FPs out there successfully adopted a child from another state and care to share your experience?

My husband and I are in the middle of adopting our daughter from California (we are in Florida). We had to spend a bit of money for travel expenses, I think we spent a total of $3000- but each state allows a certain amount that is refundable upon finalization of the adoption. We took two trips out to California, one was for day visits, and the second was for overnight visits. But the foster agency would have allowed us to only visit once. Then the kids were placed with us in our home and we had to foster for 6 months. We ended up having to disrupt with our son due to him having severe safety issues requiring him to live in an intensive therapeutic setting and not with his sister. So now it's just us and the Firecracker. Going through foster care has it's ups and downs, but it's definitely been great being able to try things out before the adoption is final- and thank goodness, because we would not have been able to care for Trickster's needs, which no one really realized. You can be as specific as you like- and you have more control over the process. We searched the Heart Gallery websites (most states have one, and Heart Gallery of America lists them for all states), and read profiles of kids awaiting adoption. We were able to send our homestudy to any kids we were interested in. It was hard hearing back from a lot of the agencies. But we did hear back within 30 minutes of emailing our homestudy for Firecracker and her brother. I would recommend taking a look at some of the Heart Gallery sites (if interested in older kids), or try fostering-to-adopt an infant.

Hello Rue,Thank you do much for your post.It has been enlightening! 1st, I hope everything else goes smoothly with your adoption, wish you well.I will check out the heart galleries.Ana