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GETTING STARTED
5. Do's and Don'ts of Adopting from Pakistan
Choosing adoption is a path that many families follow for various reasons. Every situation is unique, and whether adoption is the right option for you, is an entirely personal decision. So, the question is, how do you get to the decision to adopt? Most families are led to adoption due to infertility, problems conceiving children naturally, and a desire to have a family in spite of it. Some couples are able to have biological children but they want to provide a home to a child who is already in the world, rather than bring another one into this world. Some have had their lives touched by adoption, and want to give back by adopting a child and providing him or her with a loving home and future. The best thing to do when you start to explore the possibility if adoption is right for you, is to read and research every aspect of this subject. Taking the time to understand what adoption is, how the process works, what is involved in terms of time, finances and potential impacts to your life, will help you make an educated and informed decision, and you will be more comfortable with your choice once you have selected the path that is right for you. In arriving at the decision to adopt, it is important for the couple to talk extensively to explore their feelings regarding taking on a child with whom they would have no biological connection. They have to explore their own feelings, and also take into account how their support network, their family and friends, would receive an adopted child. It is important to address any concerns and issues in your research leading up to the decision. Research, collect your facts, investigate all your options, explore your feelings, even those of loss at your inability to conceive (in case infertility is what led you to consider adoption), mourn the loss of the biological child you will never have, find out how you feel about adoption, reach out and learn from the experience of other adoptive parents, discuss, talk, listen, share! Understand what it means to have a child who does not share the same genetic make-up as you, does not look like you, and about whom you may not have much more information. Especially in the case of adoption from Pakistan, most children available for adoption are abandoned at birth, and there is no information on the birth parents, no medical or family history, or evidence of adequate nutrition and pre-natal care. It is a journey of faith! Even after you have decided that adoption is the right choice for
your family, there are a lot more questions that need answers. We
hope this website will take you through the process step-by-step
and you will get a clear idea of what to expect from your adoption
process in Pakistan. International Adoption can be a costly affair. Adoption from Pakistan is typically much less expensive than adoption from countries such as Russia, China and Guatemala, but the extended in-country process can indirectly add to the cost of your adoption. The average expenses involved in an adoption from Pakistan is of the order of $10-12k, which includes home study, I-600A application, attorney fees in Pakistan and US, travel expenses, post placement reports and re-adoption processing. However, this also involves an in-country stay of 3-6 months for at least one parent, unless you designate a local contact to take care of the child and represent you in Pakistani court through a Power of Attorney. That translates into lost income for the 3-6 month period, which may bring the actual cost of adoption close to $30-40k. Before you take a loan out from someone else, consider borrowing from yourself. Many company 401k plans allow employees to borrow up to 50 percent of their current 401k balance. The big advantage of this is that you are paying yourself interest. The downside is that if you change companies, you will be expected to pay off the loan or take the 10 percent tax penalty on the loan amount as an early withdrawal. Another alternative to consider is a home equity loan. These are typically low interest loans that come with a check book you can use to write checks to pay your bills. The biggest advantage here is that interest from a home equity loan may be tax deductible. However, some financial advisors recommend using credit cards instead of home equity loans since credit cards are unsecured debt. If you get in trouble paying off a home equity loan, you could lose your house. Some companies offer Adoption Expense Reimbursement as part of employee benefits, paid after your adoption is finalized. Do check your benefits to make sure you are not overlooking any benefits available to you. Talk to your company about introducing adoption benefits if they don't already provide them. You can request a step-by-step guide for employers to establish adoption benefits at Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption http://www.davethomasfoundationforadoption.org/afw/afw_index.asp Adoptive parents may be able to claim a tax credit on their federal income tax return for qualified adoption expenses. International adoptions must be finalized before you can apply for the adoption tax credit on your annual tax return. In case of adoption from Pakistan, the child must be readopted in US in the state of residence before you can qualify for this tax credit. The credit in 2005 was $10,630. For most adoptions, you may take as a tax credit the amount you actually spent on qualified adoption expenses, up to that limit. The same $10,630 is available for international adoptions (subject to the amount actually spent) after finalization. The tax credit limit is for expenses associated with each adopted child, rather than an annual limit. Check the following link for more details and current information: http://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc607.html There are some organization that offer adoption grants. Please see this link www.adoptiongrants.com The first thing that families wishing to adopt from Pakistan must consider when selecting an orphanage is the credibility of the organization. Unfortunately, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of child abduction and child trafficking cases every year and many of these children end up on the "black market". An orphanage should NEVER ask you for money in exchange for a child or ask you to do anything "under the radar". No exceptions. In fact, it is a good idea to avoid making any sort of donation to an orphanage, no matter how innocuous, before and during the adoption process to avoid the appearance of any conflict of interest. Once the adoption is complete, you can give to your heart's content, and we certainly hope you will! US immigration authorities are well aware of the child trafficking issues in Pakistan and the issue of the orphanages reputations is an especially imperative one as it could potentially pose problems with immigration proceedings. It is recommended that families try to limit the orphanages to ones that families living abroad, especially in the US, have successfully adopted from in the past. This will serve as a good indication that the organization has been deemed reputable by US immigration authorities, although authorities do not formally "approve of" or "disapprove of" of any NGOs in Pakistan. Please note that all the orphanages/organizations listed on this website have been used by families living abroad (for a list of orphanages, please click here). If you do decide to work with an orphanage not listed on this website, please research the organization as thoroughly as possible and keep in mind that the child must meet the USCIS definition of an orphan (see CFR 204.3). Another consideration when selecting an orphanage is the time you will have to wait to get a referral for a child as referral times vary from agency to agency. If you want to adopt a child as quickly as possible, as many families do, it is a good idea to apply to as many orphanages as possible (for a list of reputable orphanages, please click here). Applying at several orphanages will increase the likelihood that you will get your child sooner than you if you had just applied at just one or two. The Bilquis Edhi Adoption Centre typically gets the largest number of infants due to their "Jhoola" program (see article on "Adoption from Pakistan" for more details) and, therefore, tends to have a shorter referral time (about 4 months) than most other agencies. It is important to note, however, that the Edhi Foundation has, in the past, required a three-month waiting period between the time of the placement of the child and when they relinquish release forms that allow parents to proceed with gaining guardianship, but more recent adoptions have involved shorter waiting periods. This is something to consider if there is a strong time constraint on staying in Pakistan for an extended period of time. If, on the other hand, you have sometime before you would like to adopt, you can apply at any of the other organizations listed on this website, but you should realize that it can take up to two years to get a referral from some agencies such as SOS Children's Village and Kashana-e-Itfal-o-Naunihal which typically receive fewer infants. The age of the child you wish to adopt may also play a role in which orphanages you decide to work with. As previously mentioned, the Bilquis Edhi Adoption Centre tends to get the largest number of infants due to their "Jhoola" program so it would be a very good choice for families seeking to adopt an infant. SOS Children's Village and Kashana-e-Itfal-o-Naunihal also place newborn infants for adoption. Edhi Foundation and SOS Childrens Village typically do not place older children in their system up for adoption, so you may wish to contact the other agencies listed on this website directly if you wish to adopt an older child. Edhi Foundation has many children with special needs. These children may be available for adoption to families wishing to provide a loving and caring home to these kids. It is highly recommended that families living abroad and wishing to adopt from Pakistan, work with a reputable orphanage or NGO and not attempt to adopt privately through a doctor, hospital or relative as this has proven to be increasingly difficult in conjunction with US immigration policies (see "Why Not to Adopt Privately").
4. Why not to Adopt PrivatelyAdoption is a beautiful thing. For many couples like us, it is the only way to parenthood. The joy you get from holding your child in your arms is indescribable. The reward is worth all the hardships and the headaches. The journey to adopt is not an easy one, especially from Pakistan and especially if you adopt privately, through a relative or hospital rather than through a recognized orphanage or social welfare organization/NGO. I will talk about the issues a bit later. The fastest and the easiest way to adopt from Pakistan, is from a reputable orphanage. You can find the list of these orphanages on this website. There are several reasons why US consulate gives you a hard time if you adopt privately from Pakistan. The main reason, is the suspicion of rule of law in Pakistan. It is a sad truth that today in Pakistan any legal document can be easily obtained if you know the right people or thru rishwaat (bribe). US consulate knows this. For them a legal document from Pakistan is simply a rubber stamp, a formality at best. To verify that a child is truly an orphan (please see CFR 204.3), they look to orphanages. They trust that once a child is handed over from an orphanage, his/her status as an orphan is verifiable. The consulate wants to make sure that CFR 204.3 is satisfied. A child coming from a reputable orphanage is considered an orphan and that satisfies CFR 204.3. Another reason for denial is that most Hospitals or private parties are not associated with social services organizations, orphanages, or NGO's (non-governmental organizations). Most private parties do not have the means to ensure the credibility of prospective adoptive parents before handing over a child to them. It is the job of social services or orphanages. The proper process is to notify the local police and to get the guardianship thru Pakistani court. A private party simply does not have the legal right to hand over a child to someone they think can take good care of the child. This is the position of the US consulate. Another reason for denial is the fact that there are hundreds if not thousands of cases of child abduction and child trafficking from our part of the world. As deplorable and inhumane as the practice is, it happens more often than we think. US consulate wants to make sure that is not the case. You will have to prove your case that your child is truly an orphan. US consulate has seen cases where a relative's kid is shown as an orphan. A child adopted from any other source raises a red flag. According
to the consulate, almost all the cases where a child is obtained
privately are rejected. As US citizens they are bound by law to
help other US citizens. So they will investigate thoroughly. If
they find any holes, your case will be rejected. In some cases charges
can be filed against you if they see any wrong doing on your part.
So be very careful. They will give you options. Most of them are
not very practical. One was to stay in Pakistan with child. Another
was to go to another country and get adoptive rights and then bring
the child to US. And the last is to challenge their denial by hiring
a lawyer in US. I was quoted $3000 from one lawyer in Atlanta. A
challenge can take up to six months.
DO's
DON'T s
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