Russia
March 5, 2007
Children Available:
Infants
Toddlers
School-age Children
Siblings Groups
Parent Qualifications:
Married
Single Men and Women
Russia does not have specified age requirements, however, single parents must be at least 16 years older than the child they wish to adopt. but an adoption agency may have their own that must be complied with.
Parents that have medical problems or disabilities that prevent them from holding a job are not permitted to adopt from Russia at this time. This includes, but is not limited to, TB (active and chronic), illness of the internal organs, nervous system, dysfunction of the limbs, infectious diseases, additions to drugs and or alcohol, and psychiatric disorders.
Travel:
To adopt a child from Russia requires that prospective parents travel to Russia on two separate occasions. The first trip is to meet the child and to officially accept the referral. On this trip, if a married couple is adopting, only one of the spouses has to be present. The second trip is mandatory for both spouses to attend. During this trip the adoptive parents go before the courts and complete the adoption. The family then may leave Russia together.
Timeline:
As with many other countries the time line varies depending on the child that is being adopted. Parents that choose to adopt a waiting child (sibling set, older child, or a child with special needs) from Russia will have a significantly shorter wait than parents that are adopting an infant. In general, after the dossier has been submitted to Russia there is a 4-6 month wait for a referral.
Russia is considered to be a country with a stable adoptive program. As it is the second largest placing country to the United States there are numerous adoption agencies that work with Russia and can serve a great resources for adoptive parents. The adoption system in Russia has undergone changes in the past years that have made the process difficult with numerous changes in paperwork requirements. Russia continues to rely on the use of a very institutional orphanage system in caring for children prior to adoption. This is not the healthiest way in which children to be cared for at any age. As a result children reared in an orphanage where they may not receive attention, affection, and stimulation may have developmental delays and problems with attachment. This is a risk that adoptive parents should inform themselves about through open discussion with their adoption agency and adoption professionals. In most cases, both developmental delays and attachment issues can be overcome. It is only rare, but possible cases, that create great difficulty for the parents and child.
It is our hope that as the Hague Convention is implemented in more countries and the standards of care for orphans are raised that more countries will find better alternatives to institutional care or will implemented a more family style approach to their orphanages.
In general, families that have adopted a child from Russia have a good adoption experience and have little difficulty as their child transitions home.
A unique feature of Russian international adoptions is that many agencies sponsor a summer long visit in which older children may stay with a family for the summer with adoption being an option at the end of the stay if there was a good fit for the child and family.
Similar to other countries, Russia requires that an adoptive family submit a report on their child at 6, 12, 24, and 36 months after the adoption has taken place. This report can be done through the adoption agency that completed a family’s home study report. It would be a good step to work out the fee for these post placement reports ahead of time. Many adoption agencies include this fee into the overall home study fee.
