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INTERSTATE ADOPTION: ADOPTING A CHILD BORN IN ANOTHER STATE |
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Is it more complicated, and more expensive, to adopt a child born outside of Illinois ? |
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Does the Compact apply to the adoption of a child who is related to me or my spouse? |
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What are the mechanics of obtaining approval under the Compact? |
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Is it necessary to have both an Illinois adoption attorney and an attorney in the state of birth of the child? |
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Can I bring a child to Illinois before there is an approval from the Compact Administrators so I can finish the approval process in Illinois , with the child being in Illinois ? |
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When should the home study be started? |
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Is there a way to avoid the Compact when the adoption is of an unrelated child, and it is a non-agency placement? |
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What happens if I do not comply with the Compact and bring the child to Illinois ? |
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Are all attorneys knowledgeable and experienced in handling an interstate adoption and complying with the Compact? |
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| Q: |
Is it more complicated, and more expensive, to adopt a child born outside of Illinois ? |
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Yes. The reason is a law known as the Interstate Compact on Placement of Children (referred to as the Compact ). The Compact is the law in all 50 states, and requires the approval of the state welfare agency (DCFS in Illinois ) in the receiving state (state which receives the child to be adopted) and the "sending" state (state where the child was born). Each state must approve of the child leaving the state of birth and going to Illinois , before the child is removed from the state of birth. |
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| Q: |
Does the Compact apply to the adoption of a child who is related to me or my spouse? |
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No. The Compact does not apply to most related or agency adoptions. |
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| Q: |
What are the mechanics of obtaining approval under the Compact? |
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The sending and receiving states have "Compact Administrators" whom the adoptive parents' attorney must contact before any interstate adoption placement can begin. The current Illinois Compact Administrator is Tom Brinton of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services. Adoptive parents must complete and submit to the Compact Administrator several documents, including applications, affidavits about all persons involved, consents, and a home study. The Compact Administrators from both the sending and receiving states must approve the interstate adoption placement, which will not occur until the adoptive parents and their counsel submit all required information and documents. |
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| Q: |
Is it necessary to have both an Illinois adoption attorney and an attorney in the state of birth of the child? |
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Your Illinois lawyer should make a preliminary investigation of the adoption laws of the state where the child was born because the state of birth may have some special laws relating to a child leaving the state for the sake of adoption, and thus a lawyer in the other state may be desirable. For example, Iowa law requires a "release of custody" (similar to an Illinois "consent to adoption") to terminate parental rights and allow an interstate placement. Under Iowa law a birth parent has 96 hours after signing a release to revoke it for any reason. Illinois law has no such revocation period. Illinois adoptive parents should realize, therefore, that Iowa law and not Illinois law would control the birth parent's revocation to the adoption. It may be determined that the adoption will go much more smoothly, both in reference to compliance with the laws of the state of birth of the child, and for obtaining approval from the sending state's Compact Administrator, to have a local counsel in the child's birth state. |
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| Q: |
Can I bring a child to Illinois before there is an approval from the Compact Administrators so I can finish the approval process in Illinois , with the child being in Illinois ? |
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No. You cannot leave the state of birth with the child until there is Compact approval. For this reason it is well to start the approval process, in the case of an infant, as soon as the child is born. It is always well to take the child from the birth mother as soon as possible after the birth of the child so the bonding of the birth mother to the child is kept to a minimum. This usually means the adoptive parents, or one of them, receive the child from the birth mother as soon as possible after the birth, and remain in the state of birth of the child until Compact approval is received. The experience of Gitlin, Busche & Stetler is that the approval can take from several days to eight weeks (or more) after the child's birth. Sometimes the bureaucratic process is frustrating. |
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| Q: |
When should the home study be started? |
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As soon as possible after you know the child is available, because the home study is not a short process. |
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| Q: |
Is there a way to avoid the Compact when the adoption is of an unrelated child, and it is a non-agency placement? |
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Yes. The Compact only applies to children not born in Illinois . If the birth mother agrees to come to Illinois within a reasonable time before she is due to deliver, and delivers in Illinois , then the Compact should not apply. |
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| Q: |
What happens if I do not comply with the Compact and bring the child to Illinois ? |
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Failure to comply with the Compact is a crime punishable by imprisonment. Also the Illinois court may deny the adoption if there has not been compliance with the Compact. |
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| Q: |
Are all attorneys knowledgeable and experienced in handling an interstate adoption and complying with the Compact? |
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No. While lawyers engaged in a general practice usually have experience with handling ordinary adoptions, many of them have never handled an interstate adoption and complied with the Compact. Before retaining a lawyer to handle an interstate adoption, you should inquire about the lawyer's experience with the Compact. |
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