There are so many country programs to consider, whether you opt to adopt domestically (cheaper through the foster care system if you are very flexible about the age, race and medical needs of the child you hope to adopt and are open to trying to reunite the child with their birthfamily in some cases) or internationally (considerably more expensive and sometimes more restrictive to family requirements such as age, income, family size, health condition, and/or marital status). Here is an overview. Be sure to double check current program status with an agency working in that country, as guidelines change frequently.
When we first considered country programs, we looked into the United States and England (since that is where we are from). We decided against those countries because we wanted to adopt children aged 0-2 who would not have an opportunity for a family otherwise. All children in that age range in US and UK have an opportunity for a family (thankfully!) with the occasional exception of a severely medically fragile child or one who will require life-long care in our home which we did not feel we could handle at this time. After much research, we decided on R*ssia because there are many thousands of young children with manageable medical needs waiting in institutions who, very sadly, will never have the opportunity to know the love of a family. There are many other such countries where this is true as well. We chose R*ssia due to the relatively easy processing times (about 9 months to adopt a waiting child) whereas India, Haiti or Thailand could easily take 2+ years. Another great country program for ‘waiting children’ aged 0-2 is Ch*na.
Reece’s Rainbow – International Programs
