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Getting Started

Q If I decide to adopt internationally, how do I get started?

A There are two easy steps that you should start at the same time.

1. Send us your Application for Adoption & Adoption Services Agreement. Your application will be reviewed by our Application Review Team. Please be sure to answer each question and provide additional information as indicated. The review process should be complete within 48 hours unless we need to obtain additional information from you.
   
   Once your application is approved, we will send you an email with a username and password that gives you access to My FTIA - an amazing online database that provides FTIA adopting parents immediate access to a Dossier Guide. The Dossier Guide provides detailed and sample forms of all documents you will need to prepare for your adoption.
   
   You will be assigned a coordinator to guide you through the adoption process. Your coordinator will call you to welcome you to the program and set a time for an orientation call. The orientation call will be an opportunity for you to learn about the resources available through MyFTIA and answer any questions you may have.
2. Selecting your home study agency. The Hague Convention (Hague) requires that FTIA has a signed Agreement with your agency that completes your Home Study; we apply this standard to all adoptions, even if the country is not a Hague country. Before selecting a Home Study Agency and/or paying money to any Home Study Agency, we recommend consulting with us so we can either verify: 1) the agency you have preliminarily selected does have an Agreement with FTIA; 2) if the agency you have preliminarily selected does not have an Agreement in place, we can contact the agency to see if they are willing to sign the required Agreement; or 3) if the Home Study Agency will not sign the required Agreement, we can identify another agency for your Home Study with the necessary Agreement in place. Some countries have specific requirements for home study agencies. Please do not start the home study process until we confirm with you that the home study agency is qualified to prepare a home study for the country from which you are adopting.

We hope that with the above directions you can get a quick start to your international adoption. As always, please feel free to e-mail or call us with your questions. We look forward to working with you.