How do I place my baby for adoption?

Starting an adoption plan can be done a few different ways and does not always involve an agency:

Family/Kinship Member Adoption Supported by an Attorney

The first (and oldest way of doing an adoption plan) is with a family/kinship member. This process involves agreeing with a family/kinship member that you both want to enter into an adoption plan. It is best to have these discussions earlier in your pregnancy to afford a plan to be developed and to clarify that this is indeed an adoption plan and not a guardianship plan, unless that is what you each are wanting.

The next step is to contact an adoption attorney in your jurisdiction or the jurisdiction of your family member. It is important to meet with an attorney to know the statues in your area. The laws very from state to state and sometimes from county to county and so it is imperative that you understand the requirements for your relative….will your relative need a social study? a home study? or something else? The attorney can also explain requirements related to age, Social Service checks, Criminal Background checks, and more. This helps to ensure that everyone knows the requirements and if the placement will be possible.

The remaining adoption process will then be guided by the Adoption Attorney. The biggest pro for this kind of adoption is familiarity with the placement. The con is that you often will not have access to counseling, your own legal counsel, or living expenses if needed as those are additional cost paid for by the adoptive family traditionally.

Attorney Adoption with Non-Family/Kinship

This process is very similar to the family/kinship placement; however in this instance the prospective adoptive placement is not related to you. Often the prospective adoptive family is “self-marketing”, which means that they are attempting to do an adoption without the assistance of an agency.

In these types of adoptions the family should be home study approved/certified to do an adoption from a reputable agency. This means that they should have met the requirements for their state/jurisdiction to adopt. You often have the ability to still select what type of adoption you are wanting. Pros: you can request your own legal counsel and some living expenses may be available to you if needed. Con: You often will not have access to counseling or an adoption specialist advocating for you, but you do have the right to self-advocate or pay for your own counsel for the adoption process if the adopting family declines to do so.

Agency Adoption through Starr Adoption Services

The adoption process through Starr Adoption Services involves us meeting with you and taking the time to get to know you and your needs. We do not match you with a family until you are about midway through your pregnancy. This allows for us to get to know you well enough to help support you in locating a family that meets your request as closely as possible. All of our SAS families are home study approved/certified and so you will only receive families who have gone through the vetting process to be approved to adopt. Your specialist will meet with you regularly and provide you counseling services (if you would like to participate in therapy). Starr Adoption Services will work with the courts to get your necessary living expenses approved and will provide you your own legal counsel (an attorney that represents you, not the agency to walk you through the adoption process). We will support you through the full adoption process and can even support you at the hospital when you deliver. Starr Adoption Services is committed to building strong relationships and will continue meeting you well after your adoption services have completed. If you decide to not seek aftercare services immediately you can reach out at any point and we are happy to meet with you, set you up with therapy, review your resume, etc.

Pros to Starr Adoption Services: Dedicated specialist, counseling, your own legal counsel. hospital planning, certified families, court approved living expenses, visit with adoptive family prior to delivery (when possible), adoption subsidy could be available if the child has special needs, and ongoing counseling/adoption support services. Cons: Initial face to face visits are presently only available in Arizona (although we hope to branch out soon). Not a kin placement typically. Call or text 480.519.4393