RUSSIA FACT SHEET

Tell me about the children from Russia who need families.
There are infants (as young as 10 months old) through school age children of both sexes who need a family to call their own.All of the children will carry various types of diagnoses and may exhibit developmental delays caused by living in an orphanage. We encourage families to take the child's medical reports to physicians experienced in Eastern European medical reports to help separate fact from fiction. Children receive individual attention from their caregivers. All children are screened for HIV, Hepatitis B, and venereal diseases.

How long will the process take?
A lot of this depends on you. Most families can get their home study and dossier papers together in two to three months; others take much longer. Golden Cradle staff will help you create your dossier. Once your dossier is complete, a referral of a child can happen from 2 to 6 months later. There are more boys than girls available, and the waiting time for girls is longer. Once your accept your referral you can expect to travel in 4 to 16 weeks.

How am I matched with a child?
You will receive pictures, medical reports, and maybe videos. Based on your preferences a child will be referred to you. We take this task very seriously. We firmly believe that the right child is out there for you. If, for whatever reason, you determine that the referral is not appropriate, we will immediately look for another possibility. Our goal is the same as yours, to find the right child for your family and the right family for each child.

Do I need to travel to Russia to pick up my child?
Yes, both parents must travel -usually 2 trips. The average stay in Russia is 1 to 3 3 weeks.

Do I qualify to adopt from Russia?
Russia will work with both couples and singles is flexible regarding age, number of children and number of divorces.

Can I adopt more than one child at a time?
This can be more difficult, however, it is possible. Doing so is considered on a case-by-case basis. If this is something you are considering make sure you get approval from your home study agency to adopt more than one child and that you indicate this on your I-600 A form.