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Congo Adoption
Adopting from the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Adopting a child from the Democratic Republic of the Congo is a great choice for families. The DRC has been at war for many years and the people living in the Congo have suffered. Children have lost parents and homes have been broken up because of the conflict over the past years in the Congo. There are now thousands of children without homes who are available for adoption. Often times these children are living in Congolese orphanages, but sometimes they may be living in private foster care. The children from the Congo have beautiful brown skin, dark brown eyes, and brown/black hair. Although their living conditions are very poor, the children in the Congo are often in good physical condition and their caretakers do whatever they can to provide care and safety for the children. The age of children available for international adoption from the Congo ranges from six months of age to 14 years of age, both girls and boys are available, and there may be sibling groups available from time to time. There are many older children available immediately, but a referral for a young child is definitely possible. Obtaining a referral for a young child from the Congo, however, will take longer than obtaining a referral for a child 3 years old and up.
Parents who want to complete an adoption from the Democratic Republic of the Congo must qualify and meet all regulations set by both the U.S. government and the government of the DRC.
- Married couples can adopt but the DRC is also open to single men and women.
- Adopting parents must be at least 25 years old.
- Families cannot have more than two children living in the home, but families with more than two children may be able to adopt as this is determined on a case by case basis.
- Prior marriages are not a deterrent to adoption from the DRC.
Congo Adoption Timeline
Much of the timeline needed to complete an adoption from the DRC will depend on how quickly the dossier documents are gathered by the adoptive parents. Some families will gather the documents needed by the DRC government very quickly and other families may take several months to obtain all documents required for an adoption from the Congo. Currently the government in the Congo only requires documents to be notarized and currently does not require apostille or authentication of documents. Once the dossier is submitted to the DRC, it usually takes 3 to 4 months for the paperwork to process and the adoption to be finalized. All adoptions are completed in the DRC and when the Congolese government issues the finalization paperwork, families can travel to the Congo to pick up their adopted child. The stay in the Congo to complete paperwork and bring your adopted child home is approximately 7 days. A reasonable timeline to complete the adoption process from the time the adoption begins until it is finished is approximately 6-12 months.
Please see our FAQ page for answers to frequently asked questions.
Current Events on behalf of the children of the Congo
http://www.startattheheart.org/newsevents.html
Fees |
| Item |
Cost |
| *Application
Fee |
$500 |
| *Program
Fee |
$2500 |
| *Referral/Placement Fee |
$2000 |
| *Post
Adoption Report Fee |
$800
(Utah clients) or $600 (out of state clients) |
| Home
Study |
(Utah) $1000 (Out of state) Each State varies. |
| *Home
Study Review (for out of state clients) |
$150 - Due with home study (not applicable for Utah clients)
|
| **Foreign Fees |
$8500 - $1000 of this fee goes to the orphanage to help children who are not adopted.
|
| Filing
of USCIS paperwork |
$750 |
| USCIS Fingerprinting |
$80/person |
| Fed
Ex fees |
$250*** |
| Airfare
to Congo |
$1500-$2500/person plus cost of a one-way ticket for the child.*** |
| Food
and Accommodations in Congo |
$50 single, $60 double per day, includes breakfast. Lunch and dinner are $25 per day for each person.*** |
| Medical exam for the adopted child. |
$100. |
| Vaccinations for the adopted child. |
$300. Children also need vaccinations for Yellow Fever. |
| U.S. Visa
for adopted child |
$400 |
| Lab Tests |
$225 |
| *
Country Fees are never to be considered a stable or set fee as it
is not determined nor in the control of Wasatch International Adoptions.
The Agency makes every effort to stay current as to fees but third
party and country fees may change without notice or reason.* |
*These
fees are required by the agency, Wasatch International Adoptions.
**These fees are required by the foreign country.
***These fees may vary from dossier to dossier depending on the number
of documents (for example a single person’s dossier will be
smaller than a married couple’s dossier). Expenses also may
vary depending on when you travel, where you travel in country, and
where you stay. |
If you are interested in more information about adopting from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, please contact Kathy Junk at kathy@wiaa.org.
Please note
that the timeline for international adoption is not completely predictable
and there could be many factors that might change our estimated timeline
for completion. Some of these factors may include political upheaval,
changes in policies and laws regarding adoption with foreign government
officials or our own government, war, terrorism, natural disasters, the
approval of the adoptive parents by either the U.S. government or the
foreign government or possible reemergence of birth families. Wasatch
does our best to help you as families to understand the realities of the
international adoption process, but things can change quickly and timelines
for adoption completion can lengthen through no fault of Wasatch International
Adoptions.
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