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Who
is Considered an Orphan?
Under U.S. immigration law, a foreign-born child is an orphan if he or she
does not have any parents because of the death or disappearance of,
abandonment or desertion by, or separation or loss from, both parents. A
foreign-born child is also an orphan if his or her sole or surviving
parent is not able to take proper care of the child and has, in writing,
irrevocably released the child for emigration and adoption. For such a
child to gain immigration benefits, an orphan petition must be filed
before his or her 16th birthday. An orphan petition may be filed before
the child's 18th birthday, if the child is a natural sibling of an orphan
or adopted child, and is adopted with or after that child, by the same
adoptive parents.
Who
is eligible to file an orphan petition?
A married U.S. citizen and spouse (no special age)
or an unmarried U.S. citizen at least 25 years of age may file an orphan
petition. The spouse does not need to be a U.S. citizen; however, the
spouse must be here legally if living in the United States. To make the
adoption process faster, you may apply for advanced processing before
you actually find an orphan to adopt. An application for advance
processing may be filed by anyone eligible to file an orphan petition. An
unmarried U.S. citizen may file an application for advance processing if
the U.S. citizen is at least 24 years of age and will be at least 25 when
an orphan petition is filed in behalf of an actual child and when the
child is adopted.
How
Do I Apply?
What
is the quickest way to bring a foreign-born orphan that I adopt to the
U.S.? The
fastest way is to file I-600A before
you identify a foreign-born child to adopt. This allows the CIS to first
process the application that relates to your ability to provide a proper
home environment and your suitability as a parent. Then, once a child who
meets the INA's definition of orphan is identified, you must file Form
I-600 in behalf of the child.
Should
I do "advance processing" if I've already identified the child? It
is generally advisable for all prospective adoptive parents to do advance
processing. You should do advance processing even if you are traveling to
the country where the child is located and will file an orphan petition at
an overseas Immigration office (or at an American consulate or embassy if
there is no Immigration office in the country). By completing advance
processing, you will ensure that CIS has already processed the application
that relates to your ability to provide a proper home environment and your
suitability as a parent before
you adopt a child in a foreign country. This is important, because you
will not be allowed to bring a child that you have adopted to the United
States if you are found to be unable to provide that child with a proper
home environment or you are found unsuitable as a parent.
What
kind of information about myself and my spouse will I, as the petitioner,
need to provide to the CIS? You must provide proof
of U.S. citizenship. If you are married and living in the United States,
you must provide evidence of your spouse's U.S. citizenship or lawful
immigration status as well as proof that you are married and that any
previous marriages ended legally. You must submit a complete and current
home study within prescribed time limits. You may also have to prove that
you comply with the preadoption requirements of the state in which you
will live with your adopted child. You must submit the required filing fee
for your application, and be aware that each adult member of the household
must be fingerprinted by the CIS.
Questions
and answers about Fingerprinting Procedures in the Adoption Application
Process
Q: I have adopted my child and brought him/her
into the country. Is there any reason for me to be fingerprinted again?
A:
No, there is no need for you to be fingerprinted again. Your application
for a specific child was approved. If you file another I-600A application
to adopt another child, you will need to be fingerprinted at that time.
Q:
I filed an I-600A and an I-600 application in your office. The I-600A was
approved in December of 2002, and the I-600 was approved in February of
2003. My child will be brought into the U.S. in April of 2003. My
fingerprints, taken when I filed my I-600A, expire in March of 2003.
Should I be reprinted?
A.
No, you do not need to be printed again. You were able to file your I-600A
and your I-600, and get approvals on both within the 15 months that your
prints were valid.
Q.
My I-600A was approved in December of 2002, but I had my fingerprints
taken in January of 2002 when I filed my application. That would mean that
my prints will expire in April of 2003. I plan to bring my child home in
late March of 2003. Should I be printed again, just in case?
A:
Yes, if you will be filing an I-600 application within 30 days of your
fingerprint expiration, it is recommended that you be printed again.
Q:
I brought in my I-600A application in October of 2002, and it was approved
in March of 2003. If I don¨t know when I will be filing my I-600, should
I be re-fingerprinted this summer so that I can be assured that my prints
will remain valid for the duration of my approval.
A:
No, it is best if you wait until you are certain that your prints will
expire before having them taken again. Thirty (30) days before expiration
is plenty of time to have prints taken again.
Q:
If I do need to be re-fingerprinted, will I need to pay the fee?
A:
Yes, if you need to be re-fingerprinted you will need to pay the $50
fingerprinting fee for each adult member of your household being
re-fingerprinted. Please note, the fingerprint fee cannot be paid at the
Application Support Center (ASC) where your fingerprints are taken. The
fingerprint fee must be paid at your local Bureau of Citizenship and
Immigration Services (CIS) office. When you go to the CIS office to be
scheduled for fingerprints, bring your I-171H approval notice with you.
You will then be provided with a referral letter/appointment notice to
appear at the ASC for fingerprinting.
Q:
How will I know that my fingerprint files are about to expire?
A:
Your fingerprint clearances files expire 15 months after that the date
that the CIS received a response from the FBI. This is approximately 15
months from the date that you were fingerprinted
Q:
I am planning to travel overseas to file my I-600. Can I wait and be
fingerprinted at the Embassy or Consulate?
A:
Yes, you can. You should be aware that the fingerprint clearance process
for persons fingerprinted overseas takes much more time than it does for
those who are fingerprinted in the United States. If your fingerprints
have expired, or will expire before your date of travel, you should
contact your local office to be fingerprinted again so that your
fingerprints can be processed sooner.
What
kind of information about the child will I need to provide to the CIS?
You must provide:
，
The child's birth certificate
or, if the certificate is unavailable, evidence of the child's age and
identity;
，
Proof that the child is an
orphan as defined by the INA;
，
A final decree of adoption, if
applicable;
，
Proof of legal custody of the
child for emigration and adoption, if applicable; and
，
Proof of compliance with
preadoption requirements, if applicable.
(Please
refer to The
Immigration of Adopted and Prospective Adoptive Children (document
M-249N, revised September, 2000) for more specific information on this
question).
Can I
adopt a foreign-born orphan and bring him/her to the U.S. without
involving the CIS?
There is no
way an orphan can legally immigrate to the U.S. without CIS processing.
Can I
adopt a child from any country in the world?
Countries
experiencing social or political upheaval.
The Bureau
of Citizenship and Immigration Services shares your concern for the
children of countries experiencing social or political upheaval. However,
adopting children from a country in crisis is usually not a feasible way
to assist them. There are a number of reasons for this.
During times
of crisis, it can be exceptionally difficult to fulfill the legal
requirements for adoption of the child's country of origin. This is
especially true when civil authority breaks down. Correspondingly, it can
be very difficult to gather documents necessary to fulfill the legal
requirements of the immigration law of the United States. Also, in a
crisis situation, it can be extremely difficult to determine if children
whose parents are missing are truly orphans. It is not uncommon in a
hostile situation for parents to send their children out of the area, or
to become separated during an evacuation. Even when children have been
truly orphaned or abandoned by their parents, they are often taken in by
other relatives. International conventions place a strong preference on
keeping children within extended family units and within their culture as
opposed to uprooting the child completely. Finally, corruption and
lawlessness are more likely in such countries. This increases the risk
that you may be provided with false documents or otherwise taken advantage
of as you attempt to adopt a child. For these reasons, individuals
considering adoption from a country in crisis should proceed with extreme
caution. They should review the Department
of State's website and contact their local CIS office early in the
process to avoid disappointment at not being able to complete the adoption
and emigration of a child.
Countries
that do not permit adoption
Some
countries do not permit adoption and will grant legal custody only so long
as the applicant for custody resides in that country. This is often true
in countries that apply Islamic law. Children from such countries do not
qualify for immigrant status in the U.S.
If
I am a U.S. citizen, will the child I adopt automatically become a citizen
too?
A new law which went into effect February 27, 2001,
provides for automatic citizenship for some adopted children. Presently, adoption of a foreign-born child does
not guarantee the child's eligibility to immigrate to the United States.
If the orphan petition is approved, the child is considered to be an
immediate relative of a U.S. citizen and the child can get an immigrant
visa right away without being put on a visa waiting list. The child still
must qualify for an immigrant visa just like any other foreign-born
person. For example, the child may be inadmissible if he or she has a
contagious disease of public health significance.
When an orphan enters the United States with an
immigrant visa, the child is considered to be a lawful permanent resident
of the United States, not a U.S. citizen. However, in some situations, a
child will automatically become a United States citizen immediately upon
admission into the United States as a lawful permanent resident.
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