The Adoption Process

Adopting a Relative/Identified Child Application

1. Contact an Adoption Specialist

Discuss your situation with an adoption specialist to determine eligibility and begin adoption planning.

2. Online Application

Complete and submit an online application along with a non-refundable fee.

Complete and submit an online application along with a non-refundable fee. – 3. Complete Pre-Adoptive Training

Training and preparation are absolutely essential for a successful adoption, and at Gladney, we’re proud to offer some of the most comprehensive and meaningful training opportunities available. As part of your adoption process, you’ll complete both pre-adoptive training, child specific training, and participate in Gladney’s exclusive Pathways training | New Window held at our Fort Worth campus.

These trainings are a true benefit—an investment in your family’s long-term success. They deepen your understanding of the adoption journey and the unique needs of children, while equipping you with the skills and confidence to provide a safe, nurturing, and stable home. Our approach is trauma-informed and child-centered, ensuring you receive the very best preparation possible. We take great pride in empowering our prospective adoptive parents with the tools they need to thrive as they welcome a child into their lives.

4. NACC’s Questionnaire for Relative Adoption Applicants (QRAA)

Provide required attachments that prove your relationship with the child (e.g., family tree, birth, death, and marriage certificates, and photos).

5. Case Submission to NACC

Your case will be submitted to the NACC, which forwards it to the RACCO for an investigation into the appropriateness of international adoption. Once the RACCO makes a decision, the NACC will inform the US agency about the next steps.

6. Adoption Contract and Paperwork

If the child is deemed eligible for international adoption, complete an adoption contract and related paperwork, along with your home study and dossier that will be submitted to the NACC for review.

7. Dossier Review

Your dossier will be reviewed to ensure all requirements are met, including USCIS approval of your family to adopt from the Philippines (I-800A). If the dossier is approved, the NACC will send a proposal inviting the family to adopt the child, at which point the family will prepare a letter of acceptance.

8. Placement Authority

The NACC will issue the official approval for the family to adopt the child, known as the ‘Placement Authority.’

9. USCIS Approval

The family submits paperwork to USCIS, including the Placement Authority and the child’s legal documents, to gain I-800 provisional approval to adopt the specific child.

10. Travel Documents

NACC will request and obtain the child’s visa and other travel documents. After the US agency receives the travel documents, the family finalizes travel arrangements to pick up their child.

11. Post-Placement Reporting

After the child arrives home, 6 months of post-placement reporting is required to monitor how the child is doing. The family meets with their social worker who submits reports to the US agency for submission to NACC.

12. Finalization in the US

About a year after arriving home, NACC sends Consent to Adopt paperwork to the US agency. The family hires a local attorney and finalizes the adoption in their home state. The family provides the US agency with the adoption decree and later the child’s certificate of citizenship and new birth certificate. The agency will then send the adoption decree and related documents to NACC, which closes the family’s case.

Note: Intercountry adoption is a last resort for relative, identified, and/or abandoned/orphaned children. If relatives or a local Filipino family cannot care for the child, intercountry adoption will be considered.

Adopting a Waiting Child

1. Complete Training

Families adopting from the Philippines complete Gladney’s pre-adoption training to understand the specific needs of children from the Philippines, ensuring they are prepared to offer the love and care these children need to thrive.

2. Home Study

Obtain a Home Study report from a licensed adoption agency. Note that home studies can take a while to complete, so it’s important to start this process as soon as possible. Check with your adoption specialist to make sure you’ve chosen a Gladney-approved home study provider.

3. Dossier Preparation

Once you have your Home Study report, prepare your dossier by gathering and notarizing the required documents.

4. Submission and Approval

Submit your completed dossier for review and approval.

Submit your completed dossier for review and approval. – 5. Travel to the Philippines

Prepare for your travel to the Philippines. Both parents are encouraged to travel to familiarize themselves with the child’s heritage. If only one parent can travel, additional paperwork will be necessary. Coordinate with NACC for travel arrangements.

Spend approximately 7 days in the Philippines to complete the necessary paperwork, including obtaining the Endorsement of Child for Inter-Country Adoption from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). This endorsement allows NACC to arrange the child’s passport and US visa before your travel.

6. Post-Placement

Finalize the adoption process in your local family court system upon returning to the US with your child. Complete all required post-placement reports and commitments as outlined in the Post-Placement Report Agreement.