Certain foreign countries allow U.S. citizens to adopt their children. While some adoptions are done by Americans contacting sources in a particular country, most are arranged through United States based adoption agencies.
Most of the countries which allow such adoptions will actually grant a Decree of Adoption in that country (i.e. China, Russia, Guatemala, Kazakhstan). The child is then re-adopted in Oregon. A few, however, will grant guardianship of the child to the adoptive parents (India) or to the placing agency (Korea, Thailand) and the adoption is completed in an Oregon court.
Even if a child has been adopted in a foreign court, re-adoption in Oregon is advised. This will provide an Oregon Decree of Adoption, in English, readily recognizable by all. This document is the one requested by the Social Security Administration prior to the issuance of a Social Security Number. Re-adoption provides an Oregon Birth Certificate, which is far more convenient than using foreign documents throughout the child’s life. In addition, adoptive parents may want to change the child’s name at this time.
As you may already know, children adopted in foreign countries by United States citizens are now automatically made United States citizens without the necessity of completing the Naturalization process. At this time, INS is working to issue some type of document to show each child’s United States citizenship status. A passport can be readily acquired if it is necessary to prove citizenship for your child because of travel plans.
Documents which I need will vary from country to country, and may include birth certificate(s) issued before and/or after the adoption, statement of abandonment or relinquishment by birthparent, approval of the adoption by the orphanage or by a government entity, and a Decree of Adoption issued in that country.
I will prepare a Petition for Adoption within a few days of my receipt of the papers needed. The adoption process may include a change of name for your child if you so choose. You will need to come into my office to sign the Petition. If you live outside of the local area, I can send the Petition for Adoption and supporting documents for you to sign in front of a local Notary Public and then return the papers to me. The Petition is then filed in Circuit Court. Copies of the papers are sent to the Oregon Department of Human Services which will issue a Waiver of Homestudy because the child has already been adopted by you in his/her native country. Let me clarify that in this case a Waiver of Homestudy means that it is not required that the adoption agency that completed your initial homestudy will need to return to your home to complete a post-placement report. If you have a guardianship, rather than a Decree of Adoption from the your child’s native country, a Report to the Court (post-placement report) will be filed by your agency.
Subsequent to the issuance of the Waiver of Homestudy, or for certain countries, the submission of the Post Placement Report, I will then submit to the judge a Decree of Adoption to be signed. At this time you can choose to have the decree sent through the mail or you can schedule a time to appear in court for a decree signing ceremony.
After the decree if signed, you will receive a new Birth Certificate for the child from Oregon Vital Records. It will show the child as being born to you in his/her native country, with the name you have chosen for your child.