30 articles, page 1 of 4
Adoption process
Aging out of foster care: what support actually exists
Around 18,500 young people leave US care each year without a family. The outcomes, the support available, and why extending care to 21 is not enough.
Adoption process
Health checks and records for a child entering care
A screening visit within 72 hours, a comprehensive visit within 30 days. What the standards say, and the records checklist worth asking for in writing.
Adoption process
School rights for a child in foster care in the United States
Under ESSA a child stays at their school of origin by default, transport cost is not a valid reason to move them, and every district has a contact.
Adoption process
What is a waiting child, and how does matching work?
Matching is led by the child's caseworker and decided on the needs of the child, not on who applied first. How photolistings and family profiles fit in.
Adoption process
Fostering and adopting: what is the difference?
Fostering is temporary care with parental rights elsewhere. Adoption is permanent. Why many US states require adoptive applicants to be licensed to foster too.
Adoption process
Is there an upper age limit for adopting?
In most US states adults of any age can adopt and there is typically no upper limit. What agencies consider instead when an applicant is older.
Adoption process
How long does it take to adopt from foster care?
Training four to ten weeks, home study three to six months, approval six to twelve. Realistic ranges per stage, and why the totals disagree with each other.
Adoption process
What happens in a home study
Interviews, home visits, references, medicals. What a home study actually involves, how long it takes, and why it is an assessment rather than an exam.
Adoption process
The federal adoption tax credit, and the part families miss
For 2025 the credit was $17,280 per child, up to $5,000 refundable. Families adopting a child with a special needs determination may have spent nothing.