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Kazakhstan Adoption

There are many children living in orphanages in Kazakhstan. The orphanages in Kazakhstan are clean, but are very poor. Kazakhstan children are very beautiful and because there is both an Asian presence and a Russian presence in this country you can ask for a child that has either an Asian or Caucasian ethnic background. This country is a viable option for couples who are not able to adopt from China.

The ages of the waiting children range from 12 months to teenage years with a sliding fee depending on the age of the child adopted. It is possible to adopt a young child from Kazakhstan, but obtaining a referral for a very young child may take some time after the submission of the dossier. Older children are normally available and assigned to families very quickly. Adopting younger children from Kazsakhstan is also more expensive than adopting older children. All children are tested for Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, and HIV.

The Kazakhstan adoption program is open to married couples and single women. Parents adopting from Kazakhstan must be no more than 43 years older than the child they adopt. The age limit for parents completing a Kazakhstan adoption is 45 years old, although there is some flexibility with Kazakhstan officials. If you would like more information about adoptions from Kazakhstan, please contact Kathy Junk at kathy@wiaa.org.

Kazakhstan Adoption Timeline

As with all adoptions, much depends on how quickly you can complete your dossier. Once the dossier is submitted to Wasatch, it is sent off for translation and then on to the Kazakhstan Consulate in Washington D.C. It goes through a review and approval process here before being sent on to the foreign country. This takes approximately 4-6 weeks. After the dossier is accepted in the foreign country and registered with Foreign Ministry there is a 2-4 month wait before the family will receive their Letter of Invitation. When they do, the family can apply for their visas to travel.

Both parents are required to travel and the option of it being one or two trips is at the discretion of the in-country facilitator and the judge in the region you are adopting from. If the judge does not waive the waiting period, the facilitator may wish for the family to return home for a few weeks and return for the child after the waiting period. Most often this waiting period is waived and the procedure is completed in approximately 30 days. In this instance the facilitator may wish for the family, or at least one parent, to remain and finish up the procedure. This will take about 10-14 days following the court date.

Either way, both parents must travel and remain through the court date which is 14 to 19 days following the acceptance of the referral. One parent may leave the country if need be after this date. If two trips are required, only one parent has to return on the second trip. This trip is approximately 5-7 days long.

A very realistic time frame for a Kazakhstan adoption is 6-9 months following dossier submission.

Please see our Kazakhstan Adoption FAQ page for more information.

Fees

Item

Cost

*Application Fee

$300

*Program Fee

$2500

*Home Study Review (for out of state clients)

$150

*Referral Fee

$2000

*Post Placement Fee

$900 (Utah clients) or $800 (out of state clients)

**First Child Foreign Fee

$17,500

**Second Child Foreign Fee

$17,500

Home Study

$1000 (Utah) $1000-$2500 (depending on social worker found out of state)

Filing of USCIS paperwork

$750

Fingerprinting

$80/person

Authentication of documents

$200-300***

Translation of dossier

$850.00***

Processing fee, Embassy Reg. Fee, Foreign Affairs Fee, Embassy Notary and Postage

$1185

Flight #1 to Almaty

$1450(winter/adult),$1680(summer/adult)
$890(winter/child), $1050(summer/child)

Flight # 2 in country

$200-300 one way/person

Food/Lodging in Kazakhstan

$80-100/day***

Ground Transportation

$150***

Passport for child

$50

Embassy Medical Exam

$75-100***

Visa for child

$400

Consular Registration

$100

Dual Entry Visa

$150***

ESTIMATED TOTAL

$33,100 - $37,225 (for one child)

*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 where you stay in Kazakhstan, the size of your family, and the length of your stay.

If you are interested in more information about adopting from Kazakhstan, please email Kathy at kathy@wiaa.org.