The United States Citizenship and Immigration
Service (USCIS) is the federal government agency responsible for
approving immigration to the U.S. by people from other countries.
Children adopted internationally are granted immigrant visa's so that
they may legally enter the U.S. and be eligible for U.S. citizenship.
For this reason, the USCIS is involved with every international adoption
completed by U.S. adopters. The USCIS pre-approves your family's
eligibility for international adoption by ascertaining your citizenship,
reviewing your home study, and checking your criminal history. The
USCIS then ultimately approves you for adoption of a specific child once
the child has been identified. The procedure for obtaining USCIS
approval for your adoption is fairly straightforward. Adoption
from the countries of China and Colombia involves the
simultaneous submission of a
USCIS I-800A (Application
for Determination of Suitability as Adoptive Parent(s) for a Convention
Adoptee),
supporting vital records, and a home study.
Families adopting from Nepal will submit Form I-600A (Application For
Advance Processing of Orphan Petition) and supporting vital records
prior to the completion of the home study.
-
Proof
of U.S. citizenship, most often in the form of a birth certificate
(for married couples, at least one spouse must be a U.S. citizen)
-
Fingerprints for each adult household member. (after receiving your application, the USCIS will send you an
appointment to have your fingerprints taken and they are then submitted to the FBI
for clearance)
-
Proof
of marriage and previous divorces (if applicable)
-
The application fee (currently $830.00) - includes 2 adult finger
prints
-
Home
study
Once
these documents have been submitted, the USCIS will make a determination of
your eligibility to adopt internationally.
For families adopting from China or Colombia - once a child has been
identified and prior to travel and your adoption of the child, Form I-800,
(Petition to
Classify Convention Adoptee as an Immediate Relative) will be
filed with the USCIS along with various supporting documents which will be
provided by the country's central adoption authority and La Vida. In
processing Form I-800, the USCIS assesses the
eligibility of a child who habitually resides in a Hague Convention
country as a Convention adoptee. Form I-800 and supporting
evidence are required for the USCIS to determine the child's eligibility for
classification as a Convention adoptee. Upon review and approval,
a provisional approval for immigration of the child will be granted by the
USCIS.
Once at least one spouse travels to China or both travel to Colombia and
completes the adoption, there will be a final review of the
documentation by the U.S. Consulate/Embassy in country. Upon
review and approval, a visa granting the child permission to travel to
the U.S. will be issued.
For families adopting from Nepal - once a child has
been identified, at least one spouse will travel to Nepal and complete
the adoption of the child. Form I-600 (Petition to Classify Orphan
as an Immediate Relative) and supporting documentation regarding the
child and the legal completion of the adoption will then be filed at the
U.S. Embassy in Kathmandu, Nepal. Upon review and approval, a visa
granting the child permission to travel to the U.S. will be issued.
La
Vida provides assistance in completing all necessary USCIS applications, files and monitors
the applications on behalf of each of our
clients.
La Vida International
150 S. Warner Rd., Suite 144, King of Prussia, PA 19406
Phone: 610.688.8008 Fax: 610.688.8028
Birth parents may call collect
e-mail:
info@lavida.org
web: www.lavida.org
© 1998 La Vida International
This page was last updated on December 28, 2008.