Basic Steps and Timeline of the Haiti Adoption Process

Timeline from Application Approval to Bringing Your Child Home:

Approximately 22-28 Months

There are benchmarks in every Haiti adoption. To give you an idea of what is involved in a Haitian adoption through CCAI , the following highlights the major steps and timeframe of the process. Because of the nature of international adoption, this timeframe can change during your adoption process, but CCAI is committed to keeping you informed of the current timeframe as you work toward your adopted child. Understanding the process and timeline now will enable you to be better prepared for this incredible journey that brings you and your child together.

1. CCAI Application for Adoption – 5 Working Days

Your application allows CCAI to screen your qualifications for a Haiti adoption. From your application, we are able to determine whether or not you meet the requirements of our agency and the requirements of the various government entities that will be involved in your adoption - U.S. government, Haitian government, etc. If a family submits a complete and truthful application and is approved by CCAI , we are committed to serving you through all the stages of a Haiti adoption.

2. Home Study - Approx. 6 to 8 weeks

Your dossier cannot be complete without your Home Study and CCAI provides home study services and is your link to the USCIS. Approval from the USCIS (United States Citizenship & Immigration Services) is not required to send your Home Study or dossier to Haiti .

3. Child Identification – Approx. 1 to 8 Weeks

4. Dossier Compilation, Review, Translation, and Mail to Haiti – Approx. 3 Months

Once your adoption application has been approved, you will begin to compile your adoption dossier. Your dossier is a collection of documents that report on various aspects of your life and represents you as adoptive parents to the Haiti government. This part of the adoption process often seems daunting to adoptive families, but it is important to remember to follow CCAI ’s copyrighted Haiti Adoption Dossier Guide, and get help from our knowledgeable dossier team. Most of your dossier documents, including the notarization and certification pages, must be translated into French before legalization.

Our Dossier Team will critically review your documents and bind your dossier. We will then send it to the Haiti processor via international express mail. The Haiti processor will review your dossier and personally walk it through all of the steps of the process.

For those families who need extra help to complete their dossier, CCAI does offer the option of a Full Dossier Compilation Service for an additional fee. Please email dossier@haitiadoption.org for more information.

5. Haitian Adoption Authority Approval – Approx. 18 to 24 Months *

Every family considering Haiti adoption must come to terms with the wait between dossier submission and travel to complete their adoption. Please remember that timelines are controlled by the Institut du Bien Etre Social et de Recherches (IBESR), the Haitian Adoption Authority, Haitian Civil Courts, other Haitian government offices and are subject to change.

* The timeframe may lengthen while you are in process. However, the wait time at the top reflects the timeline that families have experienced. This may not be your timeline.

Throughout the wait, families are encouraged to check in with CCAI regularly. We publish newsletters that help you stay informed about the current match timeline and also post frequent updates on our Website. We maintain a library of books and resources at our office and are able to recommend relevant reading materials to families as they wait.

6. Travel to Haiti – Approx. 6 to 9 days

You will travel to Haiti at least twice. Your first trip to Haiti will be to file your I-600 at the USCIS of the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince to facilitate the adoption process and visit your child. Your 1st trip will last approximately five - sixdays. The Haitian staff will arrange your local travel, accommodations and visit to the orphanage. Your second trip will be to complete your adoption and bring your child home. We will provide you with the needed travel training. Your second Haiti trip will last approximately one tothreedays (one to two days in Florida and one day in Haiti ).

7. Post Adoption Support and Adoption Validation

After you return to the United States , CCAI will provide ongoing post adoption support to assist you with your adoption transition. One post adoption report must be submitted 1 year after placement to satisfy Haitian requirements. After the first year, the orphanage asks you to send annual reports until your child turns 18 years. Photos are to be attached to all reports. CCAI will provide you information on how to validate your finalized adoption through your local court, enable your adopted Haitian child to receive a U.S. birth certificate from your state, and obtain her/his Social Security card and citizenship, if necessary.