Process and Timeline

I have had a few questions regarding the adoption process and what the timeline looks like, so I thought this would be a good place to note it all, where we're at, how long each step might take, and what it costs. I'll update it as we go. Maybe this can be a resource for someone else down the road who is looking into international adoption. 

1) Home Study & Psychological testing- Home study DONE & Psych testing DONE.
Timeframe: We started our home study July 16 and received the final copy October 29. We started the Psychological testing August 12 & got the written report September 25.
Cost: $1500 for the home study & $1300 for the Psychological testing. 

2) File the I-800a- Application for Determination of Suitability to Adopt a Child from a Convention Country (I-600a if it is a non-Hague adoption). We send a copy of our complete home study with this application and then wait to be given an appointment to get fingerprints done IF the home study is accepted right away. Oftentimes families will get RFE's (Request for Further Evidence)-- which we did with Flor. I can't remember what it was for, but that of course delays the time frame.
Time Frame: 45-90 days for approval
Cost: $890
Sent: 11/1/2014
RFE: 12/27/2014
Approval: 1/8/2015

3) Compile dossier (A dossier is a collection of papers or other sources, containing detailed information about a particular person or subject- Wikipedia): 

 *Application for Ecuador/Solicitud

       Be sure to put Passport photo of each applicant.

 * Applicants Photos

      Nice photo of applicants. Two poses please.

 *Post Adoption Follow-up Authorization/Servicios

 *Certificate proving the 10 Hours of Hague Training

 * Home Photos

     Front of house, back of house, main living areas, child’s bedroom. Print on photo paper or attach to card stock.

 * Birth Certificates of all in household.

 *  Color Copy of current, signed passports for applicants.

 *  State Criminal History Clearance-for all adults in household.

 * Employment letters with last year’s tax return front page.

 * Medicals with doctor’s name printed and license number.

 *Marriage License, if applicable.

 * Power of Attorney/Poder

        This is for our attorney to act on your behalf until you arrive in Ecuador.

 *Home Study.

 *Psychological Assessment.

 *Letters of Personal Reference. (2)                                              

 * I-797 approval notice from USCIS-this comes after we've have been fingerprinted.

* A stack of photos of our family for the child to have

Each form must be notarized and apostilled (An "apostille" is a form of authentication issued to documents for use in countries that participate in the Hague Convention of 1961) Basically, a verification of the notary's stamp and an additional stamp. This is done at the state capitol.

The dossier is sent to our agency first, verified for all documents, and then sent to Ecuador to be translated.

Time Frame: compiled while we were waiting for the other approval. Apostille/notary process=1 week

Cost: $15 per document for the apostille x 28 documents =$420

$7500 adoption fee due to the agency at this time. 
Dossier sent 1/22/15, expected to arrive at our agency 1/23/15. Agency fees paid at the same time. UPDATE: Dossier sent back to be re-notarized and apostilled due to date error (UGH!) Re-sent end of February, agency sent to Ecuador on 2/27/2015. 

Ecuador Rejected Dossier: 3/24/2015
Resent with updates (Package 1): 4/18/2015
Resent (Package 2): 5/27/2015

4) Wait to be officially assigned, or matched, with our child. The assignment committee in Ecuador meets weekly. Some families seem to be matched quickly and others it takes some time. I remember with Flor it took 3 weeks. 

 Time Frame: It took about 6 weeks this time.

Cost: Nothing
ASSIGNMENT DATE: 7/16/2015 (though we were notified 7/24/2015)

5) Submit I-800 document. This must include assignment document, medical/social/psychological reports on the child, the child's birth certificate, and the child's abandonment decree. These must all be translated into English first. Our agency does a lot to help on this step.The I-800 is used to verify that the child can enter the United States.

Time Frame; 45-90 days

Cost: Nothing
Actual Time Frame: 2 weeks! Approval date 8/17/2015. Submitted 7/31/2015, arrived in their lock box 8/4/2015. 

6) Await Article 5. This comes after the I-800 is approved and is the notice that you are officially approved on all fronts. This document also states that you are eligible to travel, 

Time Frame; at the end of visa application it is issued immediately.

Cost: $2500 for in country costs as due at this point to our agency. Paid earlier in the summer this time around, just so it was done.

7) Arrange travel- usually for about 2.5 weeks after the Article 5 is issued.

Time Frame: In country, families are now spending about 6 weeks. We were there 10 with Flor, so 6 kind of sounds like a walk in the park, as long as that is really what happens...

Cost: This is our overall biggest expense. We are figuring about $7000 for flights, $3000 maybe for costs at home while we are gone, $4000 for rent, food, getting around, etc. while there (planning for longer than 6 weeks of course. We thought we'd be able to get a cheap place to stay when we were there last time, but it really was similar costs to here. We spent $1000 per month for rent that we were there-- and that was 2.5 months.) 

8) In country process- well, that can just be detailed in another spot. That's a whole issue in and of itself. :) 

So, since we are only on step one, we are looking at months and months out. We are really hoping for less than a year. Please pray with us for speediness at each step!