Preparing
for Adoption

1. I want to adopt a child

The first thing to do is going with an identity document to the "Vara da Infância"- Child and Youth Court in your city. It is there where the legal adoption process begins. It is the only way to guarantee the adoption rights of the child in court.

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Does marital status matter? No. Single people, a same-sex couple, or either people who are not married on paper but have a stable relationship can adopt, as long as they are over 18 years of age and 16 years older than the adopted child. What matters is that the technical team and the judge consider that these people are prepared to the parenting role.

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Find "Vara da Infância"- Child and Youth Court in your city

2. Adoption Support Groups

It is not a mandatory step, but it makes a big difference.

In the Adoption Support Group, you meet and talk with people who are in the same situation and with others who have already adopted.

Believe me: it is a very rich and vital exchange for the process.

3. Gather the documents 

On your first visit to the Child and Youth Court, in addition to receiving all the guidance and being able to clarify your doubts, you will receive a form to fill out and a list of documents necessary to start the process.

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This documentation must be delivered to the Forum's registry office that the Court will indicate. The registration process officially begins when you provide all supporting documents.

4. Preparation and evaluation

The Adoption Preparation Course is offered by the Forum where your process was opened. It is mandatory, free and lasts, on average, two months, with weekly classes.

After the course, there are assessments conducted by the technical team, which are generally divided into psychosocial (interview with a social worker) and psychoemotional (interview with a psychologist).

These assessments are previously scheduled and aim to understand adoption applicants better.

5. Child profile definition

During the interviews, you can choose the characteristics of the adopted child. They will ask minimum and maximum age, ethinicity, gender, health and other things. These options will be used when you are already in the adoption queue. If the available child is a girl and you have marked only a boy, you will not be called. But if you marked boy or girl, this could be your turn. The same goes for the other items, such as age or ethnicity.

Remember that adopting children older than two years is already considered late adoption. The process is the same as for any adoption, but older children tend to have fewer prospective mothers and fathers on the waiting list.

6. Congratulations! You are in the adoption queue

Based on the report of the technical team and the opinion issued by the Public Prosecutor, the judge gives his sentence. With the request accepted, you enter the National Adoption and Sheltered System, in other words, you are in line, waiting for your child.

What if my application is not approved?

Find out the reasons that led to the refusal of the request so that you can adjust and start the process again.

7. Waiting for THE CALL

This moment is one of the most anticipated and one of the most exciting as well. It is when the Child and Youth Court calls to inform you that there is a child that matches the desired profile, and they ask if you are interested in meeting them in person.

If your answer is Yes, you first meet the child on paper (photo and life history). Then you wait for permission to visit the shelter.

8. The meeting

The day has come for you to go to the shelter home to meet the child in person. After this first meeting, you will be interviewed separately to say whether or not you want to continue with the process. When everything goes well, the adaptation stage begins, with visits and short walks.

What is the duration of the adaptation period?

There is no set time. This period can take days, weeks and even months. The goal is to make sure that everyone involved wants to be a family.

9. The best is yet to come

Everything went well together! Time to get provisional custody. The technical team will still make periodic follow-ups until the moment when a conclusive assessment is presented to the judge. And if, after this process, the sentence is favourable, your child will have a new birth registration.

Now you are a new family. ❤️