Among the most common things you, as an adopting family, may be looking for is information on "how to
adopt a child" whether to use an adoption facilitator, whether to engage in a private
adoption or adoption agency, the limitations and requirements for adoption, what to consider in selecting
an adoption agency, where to find licensed adoption agencies in North Carolina, and the laws relating to what you
can and cannot do when adopting a child in North Carolina. |
Understanding the child adoption laws in North Carolina can greatly
increase your chances of successfully adopting a child. Important legal concerns include the giving of support or gifts to a birth mother or birth father, fees paid to an adoption agency, attorney, or other intermediary, the legality of using an adoption
facilitator, the legal rights of the birth parents and the adopting
family, and the critical issues of a disruption and the ending the biological parental rights (called a Consent, Relinquishment or Surrender). For
example, using our most recent update, in North Carolina:
*Use of Intermediaries/Facilitators: No one other than a parent, guardian, or agency may place a minor for adoption. No one other than a parent, guardian, agency, or an adoption facilitator may solicit potential adoptive parents
for children in need of adoption. No one other than an agency or an adoption facilitator, or an individual with a completed preplacement assessment that contains a finding that the individual is suitable to be an adoptive parent or that individual's immediate
family, may solicit for adoption a potential adoptee.
*Birth Parent Expenses Allowed: Medical, hospital, pharmaceutical, nursing, and travel expenses connected to the pregnancy and birth, counseling services for the parent or adopted person, ordinary living expenses, and legal and
court costs. Living expenses may not be paid beyond 6 weeks after the birth of the child.
*When Consent Can Be Executed: The mother of a minor child may execute a consent to adoption at any time after the child is born but not sooner. A man whose consent is required may execute a consent to adoption either before
or after the child is born.
*A consent is final and irrevocable except under a circumstance set forth in the law. |
You may be looking for the differences in the waiting period, effort, cost,
and success rates involved in adopting children within your state or in other states (domestic adoption) or even from other countries (international
adoption) in order to determine which type of adoption will work for you. Some specific choices you may want to consider, as the waiting lists
tend to be shorter, are special needs adoption, bi-racial and trans-racial
adoption, and older children (generally from one to 15 years of age) from the North Carolina child welfare and foster care systems. The more
open you are in the type and age of child you are looking to adopt the better your chances of success. You should also decide before contacting an adoption agency whether you want an open
adoption or closed adoption. |
American Adoption Congress is composed of individuals, families and organizations committed to adoption reform.
Families for Russian and Ukrainian Adoption (FRUA) is for families who have adopted, or are in the process of adoption, from Russia and former Soviet Union countries.
Families with Children from China is a non-denominational organization of families who have adopted children from China.
Guatemala Adoptive Families Network initiates and supports the adoption of Guatemalan children.
National Adoption Center attempts to facilitate the adoption of children in the U. S., particularly children with special needs and those from minority cultures.
North American Council on Adoptable Children is committed to meeting the needs of waiting children and the families who adopt them.
Our Chinese Daughters Foundation (OCDF) is a non-profit foundation that supports families with children adopted from China.
Resolve is dedicated to providing education, advocacy, and support to those who face infertility.
The Child Welfare Information Gateway provides information on all aspects of both domestic and international adoption. |
Adoption Connections-A Support Group for Adoptive Families
Family Services, Inc, 610 Coliseum Dr
Winston-Salem, NC 27106
Phone: 336-722-8173
Chatham County DSS/Adoption & Foster Care Unit
PO Box 489
Pittsboro, NC 27312
Phone: 919-957-0646/919-542-2759
Families with Children from Vietnam - NC (FCV-NC)
10009 Whiitestone Road
Raleigh, NC 27615
Grafted Families Adoption Support Group
113 Drawbridge Court
Mooresville, NC 28117
Phone: 704-660-3909
Haywood County Department of Social Services (HCDSS)
486 East Marshall Street
Waynesville, NC 28786
Phone: (828) 452-6620
Polk County Department of Social Services
330 Carolina Drive
Tryon, NC 28782
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