Road Blocks

Sleeping Constables (speed bumps for you yanks)

Ok so up until this point I have tried to keep emotion out of the blog and instead give you a sense of what hoops you will jump through to do an out of state and international adoption. This may seem disjointed as you do not have all the details of what has happened to date but my cup runneth over and this is vent time. I really like our Adoption Agency. We spent a lot of time back-grounding them, finding out where they live and even meeting a the chief big wig for a protracted breakfast meeting. Unfortunately our latest handler is just not as quick and on top of things as our other representatives.

Last month I got that yellow package from The Agency that had more forms and paperwork to gather for our trip. One of the key items is the Visa. As I stated before it is all done on-line. The only thing missing are passport photos. I sent a quick email to our handler to let them know that I was going to drop the application in the mail. Wow, I actually got a response. Don't mail it yet, it might expire before you go. Huh?? We are going in October right? – that is 3 months away and the visa is good for 6. Why are you saying we won't be going for more than 6 months from NOW? What is the hold up? According to the calculations we were on-track. Well did you see the e-mail about the timeline? Yep NOC/ Court Clearance/ICPC GO! According to what The Agency has told us, and you are a representative of said Agency, we should be getting the call to go sometime in October. Well, the NOC process hasn't started yet! WHAT?? You told us that as soon as we got the Dossier over to India that it would go tot eh NOC board. Yeah but… great here come the excuses… due to the needed updated material it was decided to not go to NOC blah, blah, blah, …we just gave it to CARA for NOC review Blah, blah, blah. All I get are excuses. You know Mr. Agency it would have been helpful if you had COMMINUCATED this to us earlier. Mr. Agency has not been forthcoming nor very helpful in keeping us in the loop. Did I mention that this is our 4^th handler? So I tried to pin them down on a new rough estimate based on their past experience of adoptions in India. Obviously when to start the clock got us hung up.

NOC clearance:

The non-objection clearance (NOC, I defined it before but who knows if you remember it) has been on the slow side. This clearance comes from CARA in Delhi for the child to be approved to be adopted by your family.

Start 01JUL08 complete 23SEP08 (assume 12 weeks could be more)

Court clearance:

After the NOC clearance the paperwork with attorneys head over to the Indian Courts. This takes anywhere from 6-9 weeks after NOC for court to clear.

Start 23SEP08 complete 25NOV08

The court papers are then translated from Hindi to English and sent to The Agency which is not in the state of California. Time: 2-3 weeks

start 25NOV08 complete 09DEC08

Crossing State Lines:

Oh no, you want to work with an agency that is not licensed in the state of California. You do know that inter-state bureaucracy just adds time? Now you have more papers that need to be filled, supposedly this is done without our involvement but do you think they will be on top of the game. Any chance of getting them prefilled? Based on past experience I doubt it. It is not that tough as all my docs for American Embassy in India are already prefilled and I passed them off to The Agency for review). I doubt The Agency will prefill the forms but will instead wait until they actually have the court papers in hand. Well that will add a day or two to the delay. Interstate trafficking involves an ICPC,

Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children:

An interstate compact, or agreement, that has been enacted into law by all 50 states in the United States, and the District of Columbia, which controls the lawful movement of children from one state to another for the purposes of adoption. Both the originating state, where the child is born, and the receiving state, where the adoptive parents live and where the adoption of the child will take place, must approve the child's movement in writing before the child can legally leave the originating state. This Compact regulates the interstate movement of both foster children and adoptive children.

Start 16DEC2008 complete 6JAN2009 (Estimated time frame)

Did you notice that they conveniently left out a week? Hey what are you guys going to be doing from the 9^th to the 16^th? Oh that's right Christmas shopping.

Once the IPC is completed and The Agency confirms that our daughter has a passport then we will be allowed to travel. It looks like I have to ask them to make sure that that gets started when the Indian court complete their business.

What Next?

I have been told that adopting is a test of patience. I think I am getting "D". You can read it in the tone of this posting. It could have been raised had our handler been a better communicator. It is not due to a lack on our part as when ever we have a question we send it up and usually get a response a 1 to 3 days later. But that is just the problem the only time we hear from our handler is when we initiate it. Based on no info we think everything was on schedule and on plan. Our previous handlers did not act this way and when they did not hear from us in a week, as we were getting our dossier together they would drop us a line to see what our progress was.

What next? – gotta pull out some of USCIS documentation. Some of it has expiration dates on it. Miss a date and you have to apply $700 or so more again. Depending on the form you may be able to get an extension. Fingerprints have a definitive drop dead date – no extension. Cha‑ching close to $200 for that. No way around that hit.

Is there a Silver Lining?

Nope. Maybe. Well she won't be here for Christmas so I don't have to buy her any Christmas gifts. She will miss all the crush of humanity and festivities that happen during that time. Then again India has some rather large festive holidays, not sure if our daughter gets to partake in any of them – I doubt it. In either case a whole bunch of strange relatives will not be trying to paw at her. And it gives us time to defend her against her relatives, one of which has taken to calling her "That girl from India". Yes this a very, very, close relative who knows that she already has a name and in fact was named before we even started the adoption process. SHIELDS UP! We remind them that that is our daughter they are talking about and she has a name to please use it. And finally, "Daddy's Little Tax Deduction", Google that one, will not be on this years taxes.

The wife says that airfares should be low because it will be after the holiday season. I hope the fares drop but I doubt they will.

Summary

• Visa – On hold until 4 months after we have received NOC
• USCIS Form I-600A once you submit this and all the paperwork the USCIS sends back form I-171H. Form I-171H is valid for 18 months from the date of completion of advanced processing (valid until Jun 2009). Form I-600 (sign it at the American Embassy with child in possession) must be accepted before June 2009.
• USCIS Finger Prints – expire November 9^th , CHA-CHING, would have been nice if The Agency told us up front to expect to pay for fingerprinting 2x.

je

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service

One of the forms that you need to complete and is not too tough to fill out but is costly is the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS or CIS) I-600A form. This year the form is changing numbers and of course you can expect a price increase.

Hague Treaty on Intercountry Adoption & Intercountry Adoption Act

On the 29th of February 2008, the U.S. Department of State announced all the US agencies which have been accredited under the Hague convention regulations.

On April 1, 2008, the U.S. will 'enter into force' with respect to the Hague convention. After that date, certain adoption agencies will not be able to work with families in the countries of China, India, Guatemala until they are accredited. THERE ARE EXECPTIONS TO THIS, however, agencies will be able to continue to work with families who have already started their adoptions (filed their I-600A with CIS).

Please carefully review this information below to insure that your case will be able to continue to move forward after April 1 2008.

Entry Into Force

The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has announced that the United States will 'enter into force' (EIF) concerning the Hague Treaty on Intercountry Adoption (or simply 'the Hague') on April 1, 2008. After this date, any person who applies for an international adoption with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (CIS) must comply with the U.S. Intercountry Adoption Act (IAA) if they want to adopt a child from a country that has also entered into force regarding the Hague Treaty.

For prospective adoptive parents (PAP), this mainly means that they will need to work with a U.S. accredited agency if they plan to adopt from a Hague Convention country. Accreditation requires an exhaustive review of agency policies and procedures to insure that they meet the requirements of the IAA. A central part of this review involves a visit to the agencies by the accrediting entity where the evaluators interview staff and families and inspect agency facilities and files.

Announcement of Accredited Agencies

On 29 February 2008 (known as the Unified Notification Date), the DOS announced the U.S. adoption agencies that have been accredited by the Council on Accreditation, the only national entity that can accredit adoption agencies under the IAA.

Adoption from Russia, Ethiopia and Ukraine are not affected by this treaty. These countries are presently not Hague Convention countries and so the IAA does not apply.

Most adoption agencies will still be able to work with families who want to adopt from China, India, and Guatemala (these are Convention countries), if they have applied to CIS (I-600A and all fees, including fingerprint fees) prior to April 1, 2008 (recommend: FedEx overnight by March 15, 2008).

This can be done because the IAA allows for a transitional period for families who have already applied to CIS prior to the entry into force date of April 1, 2008. In addition, they will be allowed to extend their I-171H approval on a one-time basis for free as long as they submit a new I-600A application (with cover letter and updated home study) prior to the expiration of their I-171H. In effect, they will have about 2 1/2 years from the date of their I-171H approval to complete their adoption as a transitional case. Families should not allow their I-171H approval to expire without renewal. Apply for renewal 30 days prior to expiration.

For example,

If a family applies to CIS by April 1, 2008 (using overnight FedEx by March 15), and plans to adopt from India or China, both Convention countries, then they will be counted as a transitional case.

*They can work with any accredited or non-accredited U.S. adoption agency that is approved by India.

*They may contract with their international agency before or after April 1, 2008.

*They and their agency will NOT be required to follow the procedures of the IAA.

*They can renew their I-171H approval one time before it expires and extend their approval an additional 18 months (if they apply for their I-171H on March 15, 2008, and receive an I-171H dated July 1, 2008, it will expire on about Jan 1, 2010; if they apply for a renewal on Dec 1, 2009, and they receive a free extension on Dec 20, 2009, for another 18 months, they will have until about June 20, 2011, to complete their adoption).

Families should not allow their I-171H approval to expire without renewal.

*But if they apply for only one child prior to April 1, 2008, and then later want to adopt that child's sibling, that second approval may well not count as a transitional case.

*Families are strongly urged to send their I-600A application to their CIS office by March 15, 2008, via an overnight package services like FedEx. Families should also be sure they are sending their package to the correct local CIS field office. Check https://egov.uscis.gov/crisgwi/go?action=offices.type&OfficeLocator.office_type=LO for the office that services your area.

*For families who wish to adopt from Guatemala (a Convention country), are recommend that they not start an adoption from there at this time, due to the unique legal and regulatory situation in that country. You may, however, continue working on Guatemalan cases that have already started.

If, however, a family applies to CIS after April 1, 2008 (or allows their I-171H approval to expire after April 1, 2008) and wants to adopt from India or China or Guatemala, they must comply with the IAA.

*They must work with an U.S. accredited agency that is approved by India, China or Guatemala.

*They must follow the requirements of the IAA. This means, primarily, that they must work with a U.S. agency that is accredited by the COA/DOS.

*The CIS approvals for families in Convention cases are for 15 months, not 18 months.

(*Families will be able to extend any approval to adopt in a Convention for an additional 15 months).

If a family applies to CIS after April 1, 2008, in order to adopt a child from Ukraine, Russia or Ethiopia,

*the case will be considered a non-Convention adoption,

*they can work with any accredited or non-accredited U.S. adoption agency that is approved by Ukraine,

*they may contract with their international agency before or after April 1, 2008,

*they and their agency will NOT be required to follow the procedures of the IAA,

*they can renew their I-171H approval one time without charge before it expires and extend their approval an additional 18 months

(for example, if they apply for their I-171H on March 15, 2008, and receive an I-171H dated July 1, 2008, it will expire on about Jan 1, 2010; if they apply for a renewal on Dec 1, 2009, and they receive a free extension on Dec 20, 2009, for another 18 months, they will have until about June 20, 2011, to complete their adoption).

*However, if Ukraine, Russia or Ethiopia enter into force concerning the Hague, the case may well be considered a Convention case and the family and agency will have to comply with the IAA. There is no announced provision for this kind of transitional case.

Below is some information on how to apply for a new I-171H:

Extension of I-600A Approval (I-171H)

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) will extend by 18 months an original I 171H approval without additional fees.

The USCIS Fee Schedule states, "If you already have an approved I-600A that is about to expire, and have not yet filed your I-600 petition, you can receive one free extension of your I-600A by filing a new I-600A without fee before the first expires."

Conditions

*The first request for extension of the I-171H will be accepted without a fee if the request is filed in advance of the expiration of the I-171H, and no I-600 has been filed with USCIS for adjudication of the approval of the child to immigrate to the U.S.

*This no charge extension is limited to only one occasion.

*A complete application and fee must be submitted for any subsequent application (after the free extension).

*No biometric (fingerprint) fee will be charged for an update of an approved I-600A.

*USCIS must receive the extension request no earlier than 90 days before the approved Form I600A expires (the I-171H), but before the Form I-600A approval notice (the I-171H) expires.

*The extension request and documents

Filing with USCIS

To request an extension, prospective adoptive parent(s) must submit

-a written request to the USCIS office that adjudicated the initial Form I-600A.

-the written request must explicitly ask for a onetime, no-charge extension to the current approved Form I-600A (IFS advises that families include a copy of their I-171H approval notice)

-an amended/updated home study and any other supporting documentation of any changes in the household,

-the home study amendment/update must address each issue under 8 CFR 204.3(e) (dealing with home study requirements) and indicate any changes.

-the home study must also address any changes to answers submitted with the initial Form I600A and must say whether approval is still recommended.

IFS recommends in most situations submitting the above to CIS 30 days before the I-171H expires via FedEx overnight delivery (note the tracking number, log onto FedEx.com and print the proof of delivery with signature).

enjoy

je