The picture above is of our daughter who we adopted while living in China. Since coming back to the states we have noticed an increase in attention toward China and its adoption policy, so we desided to place some information on this page that pertains to adopting a child from China. We hope this information is helpful.

The number of international adoptions allowed by the Chinese government has increased significantly in the last ten years. On this page, I will share some information on the orphanage system, basic requirements for adoptions,how to get the adoption process started, what is involved in adopting a Chinese child (as far as I understand it), and how to do it most inexpensively. Please remember that the information below is based on personal experience and no guarantees are implied.

The Orphanage System:
1. No country is without orphans. I commend China for several things, most importantly, for realizing the problem and making an attempt to place these needy children in loving families. China's problem lies in the fact that families are only permitted to have one child. Since peasant families want boys to work and carry on the family name, they make every effort to have only a son. This results in a much higher instance of abortion, infanticide, and abandonment for girls than boys. One Chinese friend of mine told me that there are already 38 million more boys/men than girls/women in China. I visited three orphanages and saw less than 10 boys. Therefore, if you want to adopt, you can plan for a girl. I have heard a lot of horror stories about orphanages. In the three orphanages my wife and I visited, there certainly was a lot of neglect. However, the basic necessities were provided for. The living conditions were poor but reasonable, and we did not witness any cruelty.

2. Adoptive parent(s) should be 35 or older. Those under 35 may still adopt but may experience some hassles and are required to adopt children with handicaps. However, these handicaps are often mild, correctible ones such as clef palates. My wife and I adopted at the age of 25. We were the youngest couple who had adopted successfully up to that point in history, so don't get discouraged if your under 35. Single parents can adopt, but I think single men must be at least 40 years of age.
At least one parent must be employed and some families have been refused Because their income was too low (in the eyes of the Chinese of course). As far as I know, parents must travel to China to meet their children. The children cannot be escorted to the United States.
I know of a family that was refused because the father had been once charged with public drunkeness. Therefore, any criminal record might be a problem.
Finally, my personal requirement; be committed to and love these children just the same as they would biological children.

Getting started:
3. You should start by contacting an adoption agency. Bethany Christian Services and the Open Door Adoption Agency are two good ones that do China adoptions. From this beginning, you next need to consider if you want to have the agency do all your paperwork (the expensive way) or have them do only your homestudy (the cheap way).
What is involved:
4. In short, a mountain of documents and paperwork and layers of buerecratic approvals. You will need to obtain such things as origninal copies of birth certificates and your marriage license (singles are allowed to adopt as far as I know). You will also need a document that a state criminal records check was made. Bank statements and proof of employment will also be needed. A home study is also needed. Your adoption agency should have a full list of necessary documents. After you have assembled a dossier of all the necessary documents, they must be notorized (by a notary republic), certified (by your local court house), authenticated (by an office in your state captitol) and finally approved by the Chinese embassy (I went to New York). Finally, you will need to get Immigration and Naturalization service approval. This entails doing fingerprinting for an FBI check and submitting a copy of your homestudy.

Expensive or cheap?
5. The expensive way is to let the adoption agency do all this for you The cheap way is to have them only prepare the home study. You gather and certify all the documents yourself. Press the agency to find out how you can save money by doing some things yourself. Shop around for an agency that has successfully placed children from China at a reasonable rate and see how flexible they are about working with your individual needs.

For more information about adopting a child from China see my links page where I have listed some sites on the web that provide useful information.