Adopting a child is a interest of many and this post is targeted to address the  procedures involved in the process. This page provides you with certain basic details required for adopting a child.  There are links of Licensed Agencies who are authorised to do Adoption at the end of the post.

How to Adopt?

Adoption could be broadly divided into two categories.

• Indian parents / Non Resident Indian (NRI) desiring to adopt an Indian child is referred to as In-Country adoption.
• Foreign parents desiring to adopt a child is referred to as Inter-Country adoption.

INTER-COUNTRY ADOPTION

1. Your application should be made to the Child Welfare Agency recognised by the Government of India in your Country.

2.  Once you apply to the Social Welfare Agency of your Country, they will require certain important details of your family.  The Agency will appoint a Social Worker to visit your home and meet the family members.  This will be done to ensure that the family adopting a child will be able to provide all the emotional and financial support to the adopted child.  The Social Worker will prepare a report after visiting your family which will be called as Home Study Report. The Home Study Report would have details like family background, relationship between the family members , employment status of the couple, health details of the family, economic status, reasons for wanting to adopt an Indian child etc.,

3. Once the Home Study report is prepared, the Home Study Report along with the original application, will be sent to a recognised Indian Placement Agency from the Social Welfare Agency of your country directly.  After receiving your application, the recognised Indian Agency will examine the Home Study Report and match the Home Study Report with the child study report (Child Study Report is nothing but the details about the child like age, sex, name, how the child was brought etc.,)

4. Once the Indian Agency is able to match the home study report and child study report, they will send the details of the child with the photograph and the medical report to the agency of your country.  The photograph and other details will be shown to you and once you give your approval to adopt the child, the Indian Placement Agency after getting clearance from Government of India, will process the case with the competent court for awarding the guardianship of the child to you.  The competent court within the stipulated time will award the guardianship of the child to you.

5. After getting the court order, the Indian Agency will obtain the Indian passport and Visa for the child and the child will leave the country either with the prospective adoptive parent or with an escort to his or her new home.

6. No money will be charged by the adoption agency for giving the baby to you in adoption except the maintenance charges which the agency might have incurred in keeping the child in the agency.  These charges also will be fixed by the court, on the basis of the representations made by the recognised agency.

7. Once the child reaches the family of the adoptive parents, the child will be adopted by the parents under the prevailing laws of that country.

IN-COUNTRY ADOPTION

1.  You should apply to either Voluntary Co-ordinating Agency whose address is given below or to any one of the recognised Placement Agencies whose addresses have also been mentioned above:

Address of the Voluntary Co-ordinating Agency:
No. 5, 3rd Main Road,
West Shenoy Nagar,
Chennai-600 040.

2. Once the Agency receives your application, they will ask a Social Worker of their Institute to visit your home to meet you and your family members.  The Social Worker will ask you questions about your family, about your married life, about your family members, economic status of the family etc.,  This is essential to ensure that the future of the adopted child is in safe hands.  The social Worker will also ask you to mention your preferences for the child you are going to adopt-like age of the child etc.,

3.  Once the Social Worker has visited your home, she will prepare a Home Study Report about your family.  According to your preferences the concerned agency will then match a child to you.  You will be sent a Photograph of the child along with other details.  Once you express your willingness to adopt the child you will be asked to visit the agency and see the child.  Once the child is liked by you, the agency will process your case in the concerned court of law to make the adoption legal.  After the court clears the child for adoption, you can take the child home.

4. All Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, or Sikhs can legally adopt under the ‘Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act 1956’ whereas the Muslims, Christians and others can take a child in guardianship under the ‘Guardians and Wards Act of 1890’.

Source: Directorate of Social Welfare