One of the decisions that a family can make when they decide to adopt a child is the decision to adopt a child from another country. International adoption appeals to many families for many different reasons, and some adoptive parents feel a strong desire to adopt a child from a particular country from the very beginning of their adoption journey while others simply know that they wish to adopt internationally and are unsure of which country to explore.
There are children in need of loving homes in every country, but sometimes the process of adopting children is much more difficult for American families than you may realize. If you are wondering what types of challenges you might face while pursuing international adoption, this article is for you.
According to the National Council for Adoption, internationally adoptions were at their peak in 2004. Since then, they have steadily declined. Since international adoption is a complex topic, involving many different children, families, and nations, trends associated with adoption data are indicative of shifting cultural views on adoptions and worldwide social and political changes. In a constantly changing world, it is only natural to expect that the picture of international adoption is always in flux.
The types of challenges that American families face when pursuing international adoptions are varied. Some countries do not permit Americans to adopt their children. For example, Russia has banned adoptions by American parents. The ban was purported to be a safety measure that was designed to prevent abuse of the children once they were in the United States and to prevent adopted children from being returned to Russia by adoptive parents who found themselves unable to care for them. Unfortunately, this rationale does not reflect reality