by Jennifer Macon-Steele

Created on: January 31, 2010   Last Updated: February 02, 2010

You probably know someone who adopted a little girl from China. For years, China was the most popular place to adopt a child internationally. China is still a popular country to adopt a child, but the process has gotten significantly more complicated the past few years.

 The first thing to know when adopting from China is that the experience of people you know who have adopted is not the same as the experience people are currently having or that you can expect to have. Do not expect your experience to be the same as other people you know. China adoption has changed.

 The good news about adopting from China is that it remains a streamlined, straightforward process compared to adopting from other countries.

 The bad news is that adopting from China right now is taking a very, very long time.

 People who are bringing their children home from China right now have waited about three years since their LIDs. LID stands for log-in-date and is the date your dossier, or collection of paperwork representing yourself and your family, arrives in China. Creating a dossier can take six months to a year.

 Waits for China adoption are increasing every month. The wait is expected to become longer than five years from a family’s LID or log-in date. Some people are expecting the wait to become even longer than that.

New requirements for China went into effect in May of 2007. People applying to adopt from China must now meet much stricter requirements. China is no longer accepting single women. Couples must be within a certain age limit and must be free of certain diseases. Financial requirements are also much stricter now.

 You might know a single person or someone who does not meet the new requirements who has recently adopted a baby from China. Remember that the requirements went into effect for dossiers logged into China after May of 2007. People just getting their children from China were logged in during 2006. They were not subject to the same requirements that have to be met now.

China adoption agencies can tell you what the requirements are now.

When looking for an agency remember that China adoption is done through a central governmental organization in China. This means that everyone waiting to adopt is in one huge line. It doesn’t matter which agency you used. You will be placed in line depending on when your dossier arrived in China.

 Avoid agencies that tell you the wait time is only a year or two. Those agencies are being dishonest with you. Find a reputable agency such as Great Wall.

 Adopting a child from China is a wonderful, life-changing experience. Just be prepared for a long wait.

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