Romania Adoption Program

Not accepting new clients at this time.

A statement by Alina, Adoptive mom from Romania:

Click pentru a citi în limba română

“You and I are Romanian citizens, and we have heard of the thousands of children living as orphans in our native country.

For the last decade, these children could only hope for adoption, because Romania prohibited adoption to foreign countries. But now, adoption has become a real possibility for families where at least one adoptive parent is a Romanian citizen.

Unfortunately, this rule does limit the number of prospective parents. But Romanians like us have close ties to our native country, a strong connection to these children, and a close-knit community here in the US. So we know that even if the number of parents allowed to adopt these children is small, it is enough.

Romanian adoptions were closed to people outside Romania for over 10 years due to imperfections in the adoption system. Let’s show Romania that we are still worthy of their trust and that their children could be ours as well. We are fortunate the Romanian Government has revisited this issue despite international and national controversy and it has (since April 2012) arrived to the understanding that the number of Romanian adopted children must increase for the benefit of the children, the shorter their stay in an institutionalized environment, the higher their chance of success. While adopting internationally one should always consider maintaining the child’s original culture, which is so easy for Romanians leaving outside Romania, we are still proud of our heritage and language and Romanian culture comes easy to us, we leave it daily anyway. Romanian children would not feel lost when they arrive in United States, we speak their language, we cherish their values and have embraced their culture when we were born, not only in a quick preparation for their arrival. Welcome Home our children!”

Visit our Waiting Children Page

There are children around the world waiting for a family like yours. Tell us a little about yourself and receive periodic e-mails featuring waiting children.
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Start Your Adoption Inquiry Today

Do you have questions about which adoption program is right for you? We have answers. Complete this brief inquiry form. It’s the first step in getting started with your adoption today!
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Congratulations to the Kleinhenz Family who just completed their adoption from Romania. God Bless your new family!


To learn more about adopting from Romania, you may contact us, call our office at (502) 423-5780, or directly email Lexis Kaminski, at [email protected].

ABOUT THE PROGRAM

Romania is a small Southeastern European country that borders Black Sea, Hungary, Moldova, Ukraine and Bulgaria. Romania is known for its beautiful forests in Transylvania region and Carpathian Mountain. The capital is Bucharest. Romania is party to the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (Hague Adoption Convention). Therefore, all intercountry adoptions between Romania and the United States must meet the requirements of the Convention and U.S. law implementing the Convention.
Romanian adoptions are conducted through a collaborative effort of a Hague accredited adoption agency in the US and by the Romanian Central Adoption Authority (National Authority for the Protection of the Child’s Rights).

CHILDREN AVAILABLE

  • Both boys and girls are available for adoption.
  • Children as young as 3 years and as old as fifteen are available for adoption. (wait time for a referral of a child under 5 years old can be up to 2 years.)
  • Sibling groups are available.
  • Children with Special Needs are available for adoption.

ELIGIBILITY TO ADOPT

Applicants must be at least 18 years older than the child they are adopting. Both married couples and single women may adopt from Romania. At least one applicant must be a Romanian citizen. Romania will not accept applicants with a criminal history, history of drug/alcohol abuse, or a history of pornography. Romania is reluctant to accept families with significant medical, psychological, psychiatric conditions.

PROCESS

  1. Make application to Nightlight Christian Adoptions.
  2. Begin your adoption Home Study and submit form I-800A to USCIS.
  3. Begin to assemble your dossier. We will give you detailed instructions.
  4. Once USCIS has approved your adoption petition, you will receive your I-797C provisional approval notice.
  5. Once your USCIS approval has been received and your dossier is complete, you will be registered to adopt in Romania.
  6. The Romanian Central Authority will add you to a list of waiting families and it can take 12 to 24 months to receive a referral.
  7. Upon referral acceptance, Nightlight will begin processing the family’s I-800.
  8. Once I-800 provisional approval is received, Visa application form DS-260 is filed in order to obtain Article 5 Letter.
  9. Romanian Central Authority will then invite you to travel to Romania to meet and bond with your child (a minimum of 30 days for bonding).
  10. At the end of the bonding period, your adoption court hearing will be scheduled.
  11. You must wait 15 business days to receive the final court decree.
  12. Once you have received the court decree, the local authorities will help you obtain a new birth certificate and passport for your child.
  13. The final step is to obtain the US visa for your child and returning home.
  14. The children reside in orphanages or foster families while awaiting adoption.
  15. Romanian adoptions can take on average from 18 to 36 months to complete.

TRAVEL

You receive a referral of a child from Romanian Central Authority through Nightlight Christian Adoptions. The referral will include a brief social history of the child, and the current health and development of the child. We highly recommend that you have this information reviewed by a doctor who specializes in international adoption before you make a decision. Once you decide to accept a referral, you will be considered “matched” with the child. You will then wait for an invitation to travel to Romania. Once you travel to Romania, you will remain in Romania a minimum of 60 days to process the adoption. Depending on the region, you may be able to make 2 trips to complete your adoption. After 30 days, you will attend your court hearing. You must wait for 15 business days before the final written decree will be issued. In some regions, the judge may waive this waiting period. Once you receive the court decree, you will obtain a new birth certificate and passport and begin the visa process. Both parents do not have to remain in Romania the entire time. Both parents must fulfill the initial bonding requirement and attend the court hearing.

NIGHTLIGHT COMMITMENT

Nightlight Christian Adoptions is committed to preparing families for the adoption of a child with special needs. We provide pre- and post-adoption education and information regarding medical resources.

POST ADOPTION

Within 30 days of your arrival home, you must have a home visit by your home study provider. Your home study provider will prepare post-adoption reports and submit them to Nightlight on a quarterly basis for 2 years after the adoption is finalized. These reports include your child’s developmental progress and pictures. This is a very serious commitment; Nightlight is committed to showing the Romanian Adoption Authorities that children adopted by US citizens are healthy and well cared for. Compliance with post adoption reports is also required by the Hague Convention. Therefore, Nightlight charges a fee to monitor and process these post adoption reports and also requires families to pay for the cost of the post adoption reports in advance.

Please contact Lexis Kaminski, at [email protected] or (502) 423-5780 with any questions.

 

Romania Adoption Program Details:

  • Children will be 3 years of age or older
  • At least one adoptive parent should hold a Romanian passport
  • No more than 45 years between the age of the parent and the child

More Information on Romanian Adoptions

Romania Adoption Overview and Fees
U.S. Relations with Romania
U.S Department of State Information on Romania