La Vida is a private non-profit organization that is among the first agencies to receive Hague Convention Accreditation and we are approved by the China Center For Adoption affairs (Both a necessity to assist families with an adoption from China).   We have been working with The People's Republic of China since early 1992 and have been successful uniting children with married couples residing throughout the United States.  The success of this program lies with the cooperation of the Chinese government, the relative stability and consistency of the program, and the comparatively good health of the children. Agency representatives frequently travel to China to meet with government officials and regularly host Chinese visitors here in the United States.

The procedures for completing an adoption from China are fairly straightforward and are generally easy to understand. The Chinese government has been very consistent and cooperative throughout the adoption process. China has instituted a centralized and well-structured adoption process regulated by the central government. The result of this process is a defined program that is easily understood, predictable, and generally manageable. The people of China are excited and happy to see children being adopted by parents in the United States.

Program History: Adoptions of children from China have increased exponentially since 1992 when China first opened its doors to international adoption. Adoption programs from China have been the fastest growing and most successful international programs available today. There are many reasons for this. First, the Chinese government views adoption as a humanitarian aid effort and has been very supportive and cooperative. Second, the China adoption program has been more stable than most other international adoption programs and regulations have been consistently applied. This stability has resulted in a program that families can count on. Third, adoptions from China are one of the most inexpensive international adoption programs available. Fourth, there is a need for loving families for waiting children and there are waiting children available. Finally, the health of the children from China has been exceptionally good relative to other areas of the world where adoptions take place, including the United States.

The Children Who Need Families: All have been orphaned, abandoned, or have been placed in social welfare institutes due to poor economic conditions in their families of origin. The youngest ages of children available range from 7 months to 12 months old at the time of child assignment and both boys and girls are available. The average age of children at the time of child assignment has been approximately 9 to 10 months of age. Families over age 45 may be asked to accept a slightly older child, generally under age 18 months.  With the exception of the rare occurrence of twins or identified siblings, at this time, China is placing only one child at a time with adoptive families. When a child is assigned, photographs, a general health report, results of certain blood tests (including a test for Hepatitis B and HIV), and brief written descriptions of the children are provided.

Health of The Children: Overall, children from China continue to be among some of the healthiest children available through international adoption. Most child assignments have involved healthy children. To date, HIV/AIDS has not been an issue nor have the typical sexually transmitted diseases been present. Women in China have had a history of taking care of themselves during pregnancy, receiving pre-natal care, and being careful about their health. While children often have or develop minor medical conditions such as colds, respiratory or ear infections, and rashes, their overall health as compared with children being adopted from other countries has been superior. As with any developing country, however, conditions in the orphanages are not as we have in the United States, and many times, the child may be slightly malnourished and may have mild developmental delays. Hepatitis B is common in Asia however national statistics show that only approximately 3% to 5% of Chinese children adopted by U.S. citizens have later tested positive as carriers of Hepatitis B. Once the children receive the attention of a loving family and appropriate nutritional, medical, and developmental care, most children catch up quickly and thrive. La Vida provides comprehensive health and developmental resources to all families, both before, during and after the adoption.

La Vida's Representative in China: La Vida has its own experienced representative in China. He has been helping families to adopt children from China for over 15 years and during this time he has guided over 2,500 families during their trip to China. Our representative and those who assist him have established working relationships with Chinese authorities and a significant expertise in the adoption process.

Family Eligibility:  China has been the country placing more children internationally for adoption than any other  and the number of adoption applications has been rising dramatically over the past years.  As a result, the waiting times for the adoptive placement of a child have risen steadily.  In an effort to reduce the number of adoptive parent applications, effective May 1, 2007, the Chinese government implemented new parent eligibility guidelines.  "Preference" or "priority" will be given to prospective adoptive parents who meet China's adoption regulations and who also fall within published additional evaluative criteria and qualifications. 

Regarding adoption applications for families that do not meet the additional evaluative criteria, CCAA, the central authority responsible for adoptions in China has stated that such applications will be considered after all the cases of the qualified families have been "dealt with".  As a result, the timing of adoption for non-preferred families and whether or not adoption will ultimately be possible is not clear at this time.  If you believe that your family circumstances may not fall within the stated "preferences" or "priorities" announced by the Chinese government, please call La Vida offices for further discussion and an individualized case analysis.

 Adoptive parent evaluative criteria and family qualificationsi

The Chinese government through the China Center for Adoption Affairs (CCAA) has indicated that families with dossiers (aka: country applications) logged in by CCAA May 1, 2007 and later will be reviewed under more strict standards.  The standards have been designed to identify what CCAA believes are the most qualified adoptive families available.  "Preference" or "priority" will be given to prospective adoptive parents who meet China's adoption regulations and who also fall within CCAA additional evaluative criteria and qualifications.   

The additional evaluative criteria and qualifications that CCAA has implemented include the following seven categories:

General qualifications:  Adoptive parents are preferred who meet the following general qualifications:

Important note:  CCAA has not currently indicated that a "non-preferred" or "non-priority" family will not be eligible to adopt; rather they have indicated that "such applications will be considered after all the cases of the qualified families have been dealt with".  For this reason, and because of the flexibility that CCAA has shown in the past, it may be possible for a family to still adopt even though they may fall slightly outside of the above evaluative criteria and qualifications.  We will be very happy to consult with you for a personal evaluation based upon your specific circumstances.

If you have recently given birth or adopted a child domestically or internationally, CCAA will be looking for a period of at least one-year from the birth or adoption until you may submit a dossier to China. We believe that this is China's way of insuring that each child receives appropriate attention. Families with these circumstances may apply to La Vida and begin to work on a dossier approximately 4 to 5 months after the previous birth or adoption.

End Notes

i The new evaluative criteria and family qualifications that will take effect in May, 2007 have only recently been announced and agencies do not have experience seeing how the regulations and criteria are followed.  It is anticipated that some of the criteria and qualifications may allow room for subjectivity and minor deviations.  However, until some time passes and experience with family approvals can be gained, exactly how much room for deviation from the criteria and regulations may be allowed remains to be seen.

ii For the calculation of income, earnings derived from disability, insurance settlement, or retirement income are not recognized.  Additionally, at least one parent must have a stable job.

iii For determination of family size: children not living in the home are generally not included; adult children are not included; and occasionally, older children who are approaching the age of majority may allow for flexibility.

iv Free from major criminal history is currently believed to include: no history of domestic violence, sexual abuse or child abuse; no history of criminal activity; no history of felony or violent criminal activity.  Certain minor non-criminal charges, including DUI convictions may not disqualify from a preferred or priority classification, depending on the circumstances of the event.

v.  General good health is considered to include: no drug history; no use of psychotropic medicines for at least 2 years; no medication for depression or anxiety for at least 2 years; no infectious diseases; no mental health issues; no current mental health issues; no blindness, no hearing loss; no "defects" (no deformity of limbs or missing limbs or paralysis); no significant facial deformity; no disease or illness that requires permanent medical treatment; no disease or illness that will shorten a normal life span; and no organ transplants within the past 10 years.  For any other past major health issue, ten years should have passed.