Exploring International Adoption?
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If you (or your spouse, as applicable) are a U.S. citizen, we can assist with international adoption services. For families in Maryland, Virginia, or Washington, D.C., we offer both home study and placement services. If adopting from a country other than India or South Korea, Barker can complete your home study and post-placement supervision. Visit the “Home Study Services” tab for details.
Prospective adoptive parents considering international adoption are encouraged to attend one of Barker’s general adoption information meetings to get to know our staff and the services we provide. Click to view Barker's Event Calendar to register for an upcoming session.
We regularly offer International Information Meeting Webinars free of charge, which you can also find on Barker’s Event Calendar. You are always welcome to call Barker to discuss international adoption services, or schedule a Pre-Adoption consultation for a one-to-one conversation with an adoption specialist.
If after attending a Barker information meeting or speaking with a Barker staff member you decide that Barker is a good fit for your international adoption plans, the next step is to submit an application.
Inquire About International Adoption
Contact us to learn more about International Adoption.
Process
All prospective adoptive parents participate in an application interview, which is both clinical and administrative in nature. During that meeting, Barker staff will explore the prospective adoptive parents’ motivation and initial preparedness to adopt and will share information about our comprehensive process, the needs of the children, and the paperwork requirements for the home study and/or placement services.
For details on adoptive parent eligibility, the adoption process, considerations, fees, and more, please view the international adoption information packet on our Choosing A Program page.
Though there are many children who are waiting for families, the wait time to adopt a child can be lengthy and varies by country. Please see the detailed information about individual country programs to get a sense of how long the average wait might be when you begin the adoption process.
Because the wait can be an anxious time, Barker staff members are available to offer you support and information. Waiting Parents Meetings also are helpful and provide support, resources, and the opportunity to meet other prospective adoptive families during the waiting period. These meetings are held approximately every six weeks and focus on topics of interest to adoptive families. Waiting Parent Meetings are offered free of cost for Barker's homestudy approved families. Often there are guest speakers, including legal and medical professionals, early intervention specialists, and adoptive families who share their experience and information about their journey in adopting their children.
With guidance, advice, and assistance from Barker staff, parents adopting internationally travel abroad to meet and welcome home their child. While in country, families are assisted by Barker staff, staff from our partner agency, or Barker-arranged guides or translators.
Traveling to their child’s birth country to complete the adoption gives parents a valuable opportunity to see and experience the place that has been their child's home and to begin to further develop an appreciation for their child's heritage. The number and length of trips required varies by country program.
Barker continues to support each adoptive family after they arrive home with their child. Within 30 days of return to the US, a Barker social worker will visit with each family, providing support, assistance, and information during this critical transition and bonding period. The length of the post placement period varies by country program. During the post-placement period, each family provides Barker with medical updates and progress reports. Additional visits may occur as required by the country and the needs of the child and family. Barker’s highly attended and respected new-parent support groups and workshops also are available as a form of additional support to new adoptive families.
After post-placement reporting is complete, Barker encourages families to stay connected. Local families can join educational and social activities, fostering connections among adoptive parents and children, especially those adopted from the same country. For families outside the area, Barker can help to find local support. We also offer support groups and events such as the Fall annual family picnic. Click to learn more about our support groups.
Countries We Work With
Meet Waiting Children
Home Study Services
Home Study & POST-PLACEMENT Services Only
For Families in Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C.
The Barker Adoption Foundation has direct adoption programs in India and South Korea and provides comprehensive adoption services to families adopting children who are from those countries. Barker also offers specific local services to families living in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C., who hope to adopt from a country where Barker does NOT have a direct adoption program.
Prospective adoptive families requesting only local services from Barker will identify a licensed, Hague-accredited agency as the child-placing agency that has a direct program in the specific country. Barker does not provide local services for international adoptions that do not have a placement agency involved (for example, independent or private adoptions).
The key services Barker provides include the following:
- Adoption education and training
- Completion of the home study (and all associated paperwork)
- Post-placement supervision services that occur after a family brings their child home
- Support and guidance from Barker staff throughout the process
- A variety of educational and support services available during the adoption process and post-adoption, ranging from waiting-parent support groups to parenting workshops, to the Barker Annual Adoption and Foster Care Conference and beyond.
Barker believes in the importance of providing support and guidance to our families throughout their adoption journey, whether you are adopting through our direct programs or working with another agency for placement. As your local agency, we will ensure that you have the assistance you need with your adoption plans, provided by our knowledgeable, well-trained staff.
Learn More About Barker's Home Study Services
- Identify a Hague-accredited agency that has a direct program in the chosen country, and learn about the program and the application, referral, and placement processes. Barker can assist you with finding an appropriate agency. Please call our office at 301-664-9664 for more assistance.
- Contact the international program staff at Barker at 301-664-9664 to discuss the local services that Barker provides and how we can meet your needs.
- Attend a international adoption information meeting at Barker to learn about the agency and its services and to meet the staff.
- Submit an adoption application to Barker. Your application is reviewed, and then an application interview is scheduled with international program staff. At this meeting, you receive all the paperwork needed to complete the home study.
- Provide contact information for the adoption agency you have chosen as your placing agency so that Barker staff may coordinate with them on requirements for the country and the agency.
- Complete the pre-adoption training requirements. If your placing agency requires that additional courses or training be completed, then we can include this in your training process.
- Once your home study and training have been completed, we send your home study to you and to your placing agency.
- Barker completes home study updates as needed during the waiting period based on U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), country, and state requirements.
- Once your child is home, we complete the required post-placement supervisory visits. These visits enable us to assist you and your child as you settle into becoming a family. The number of visits required depends on the country’s requirements as well as your placing agency and Barker’s criteria.
Barker provides lifelong post-adoption services to you and your child. We are available to you for counseling or guidance. Barker also offers a wide array of workshops and events and an annual conference to help keep you connected to other adoptive families and give you the most up-to-date information on adoption.
Placement Services
Out-of-Area Family Services
For Families Adopting Through Barker International Programs Who Live Outside Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C.
Although licensed in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C., The Barker Adoption Foundation is authorized to work with prospective adoptive families living anywhere in the United States for placement services (those living in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C., also are eligible for home study and post-placement supervision services). Barker’s programs in India and South Korea offer families in any U.S. state the opportunity to adopt through Barker.
- Register for our free international adoption information meetings to learn more about our international adoption programs.
- After attending an international adoption information meeting, contact the international program staff at Barker at 301-664-9664 or info [at] barkerfoundation.org to learn more about our international programs. If you want a one-to-one meeting with one of our adoption specialists, register for our Pre-Adoption consultations here. We are happy to discuss any questions you have as you consider which adoption program is right for you.
- Submit an application to The Barker Adoption Foundation.
- Barker can help you to identify a home study agency in your area that can provide you the Hague-required local services. Barker has established relationships with many U.S. agencies and is always willing to start new networking partnerships. When identifying a local home study agency in your state, please note that Barker works only with Hague-accredited licensed agencies.
- Your local agency takes responsibility for assisting you with state requirements for home study. They are responsible for the assessment and support of your family, and the writing of the Home Study Report, and the required post-placement services for your family after you bring your child home. Barker is responsible for ensuring that the family and local home study agency are educated on country-specific requirements, and Barker’s requirements for home study preparation.
- Families working with Barker for placement services have the benefit of taking the same training (virtually) as our local families. Barker is responsible for supporting the family in completion of paperwork required by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
- Barker’s fee for placement services for out-of-area families covers coordination by Barker international program staff with your local agency, the cost of overseas representatives and the support of our international partners, guidance with dossier preparation, and ongoing support to families throughout the adoption process. Although you do not live in our local area of Maryland, Virginia, or Washington, D.C., we feel it is important to get to know you so that we can offer support throughout the process.
Parent Education & Support
At The Barker Adoption Foundation, we believe in the value of education for our families throughout the adoption process.
Our role in your adoption process is to help you prepare to become an adoptive parent. This includes the pre-adoption training, online courses, workshops, conferences, waiting parents’ meetings, and literature, all designed to increase your knowledge of adoption-related issues.
Required Training for International Families
Pre-Adoption Training is intended to educate, support, and prepare families who will be adopting a child through the US foster care system, international or private domestic process. Families will enhance core competencies and gain skills to effectively parent children from a variety of different backgrounds, who have experienced trauma, separation and loss. Through shared learning with others and with the facilitation of an experienced professional and parent team, we believe that families can provide the healing environment that children need.To find an upcoming session, please visit the Barker Events Calendar. To learn more information about Pre-Adoption Training, click here.
Recommended Workshops & Trainings (for families who are in the early stages of their adoption process)
We strongly recommend taking our free 'Parenting Children with Specialized Needs' training: join us to learn more about the needs of children, hear family stories and gain practical tools and strategies to assist parents and professionals in exploring openness and readiness for specialized parenting. Conclude with a guided self-assessment to help you understand where a child with specialized needs could fit into your family story
As part of Barker’s support to families while they are waiting, we offer bimonthly waiting-parent meetings. These meetings offer valuable opportunities for families to connect with one another, providing essential support during the often-challenging waiting phase for a match. Many families have found this event to be a supportive resource, while helping them navigate the waiting process. During these meetings, Barker also invites guest speakers to present specialized information to families on a variety of topics, including the developmental stages of toddlers, early intervention services, advocacy for your child in school, issues for a transracial/transcultural family, the legal aspects of international adoption, adoption of a child with special needs, and medical issues in international adoption.
The majority of these meetings are held virtually which provides flexibility for our families to join no matter where they are located in the United States.
In addition to the waiting-parents meetings and the monthly program updates we provide to families, we also encourage families to take advantage of the many workshops Barker has throughout the year and to attend our one-day Barker's Annual Adoption & Foster Care Conference.
Many parents find it helpful to read books about adoption, not only for greater insights into the process but also to further prepare for what’s to come. Barker offers a long list of adoption-related book recommendations, but you can also work with staff to direct you toward readings on specific topics.
To find out more, or register for upcoming training, please see the Barker Events Calendar.
FAQs
- Children who generally are in good health. The quality of health care and the availability of information vary widely depending on the particular country and/or institution. Families receive a medical report on their child that explains the child’s known health condition.
- Children with known medical conditions ranging from mild and/or correctable to more severe needs. Their reports may include information about additional testing done to provide more information about their medical needs.
- Children under 8 years old, depending on their birth country; sibling groups in some countries
- Children living in orphanages or foster-family settings
- Children for whom there is less than full knowledge about their birth parents and social and medical histories (the amount of knowledge available largely depends on the birth country)
The great majority of children adopted from abroad thrive once they are in nurturing families. Lacking the early benefit of loving parents, children often need their parents support to make progress in their development. This can include speech, and fine and gross motor skills. This is particularly true of children who have been in institutions. Even good institutions cannot provide the nurturing that young children need.
Newly adopted children may also show signs of mild depression or struggle to adjust; this is usually mild and short-lived, and parents are very well prepared through training to support their children through the big changes that come with intercountry adoption. Some children struggle more with adjustment than others and may need longer term support after placement. The child's temperament, life experience, and age, along with the adoptive parents' temperament, flexibility, adaptability, and sensitivity, all play a role in a child’s adjustment process.
Our over 75 years of experience tells us that families who thrive are ones where the parents are open and accepting, and able to take pleasure in the miracle of watching a child grow and develop, without preconceived expectations. People adopting from overseas will, in many cases, become multicultural families. A family's openness to other cultures and races and interest in honestly educating their child about culture and race are essential.
Barker tries to provide prospective parents with as much information as possible about the child they may adopt. The amount of information available varies widely depending on the country and the particular situation. After a child is referred, we help you understand the information provided and put you in touch with professionals who may be able to further assist you.
If there is an extended period between referral of a child and the time the family travels, the agency gets updated information on the child, which may include medical reports and pictures. Barker is committed to its families throughout the adoption process and for as long as families choose to participate in the wide variety of educational and support services it offers.
Wait times vary from country to country. In some countries, the major part of the wait elapses before the child is identified. In others, it comes after the child is identified. We can tell you how long waits have been in the past, and sometimes that is predictive of what they will be in the future. The Barker staff do our very best to keep the process moving and communicate with and guide families along the way.
Yes, parents will have the opportunity to travel to their child’s country to take custody of their child! Traveling gives parents a unique opportunity to see their child's birth environment and to begin to develop an appreciation for their child's heritage and culture (if not already shared). Moreover, the story of your trip is the beginning of a lifelong conversation with your child about their adoption story. A minority of families who adopt internationally are world travelers, so it’s in no way a requirement for international adoption.
In all of our programs, there is excellent support and guidance for the trip. The length of the stay in the country varies depending on the legal procedure followed there. For Barker’s India and Korea programs, a stay is typically one to three weeks. In the Global Adoption Program the stay will vary country to country, and can span a few days to a few months.
Adoption, like any major life event, comes with some risks. In international adoption, these can include incomplete or inaccurate information about a child, sudden changes in government requirements or procedures, and shifts in timelines or costs. Flexibility is essential, as many factors are beyond the control of the adoptive family or the agency.
At Barker, we work to minimize risks by partnering with trusted sources and building strong, collaborative relationships with adoptive parents. This approach helps us navigate challenges together, should they arise. Understanding these complexities upfront can make the process less overwhelming.
