Step 1
– Paperwork, paperwork!!
Application letter on our intent
Birth certificates
Marriage License
Divorce Decree
Employment letters
Tax returns showing 5 years of residence in North Carolina
Physical exams
State police background checks
Fingerprinting by both FBI and State of North Carolina
Autobiographies on each of us
Financial statement
Homestudy
Photograph collage
Proof of medical and insurance
Letters of personal reference
Several other forms for our agency
Approval from U.S. Department of Homeland Security to adopt
internationally
After these documents are collected, many of them need to be
Notarized, then taken to the County Clerk of Courts for
Certification, then sent to Secretary of State for State
certification, then to the Chinese Consulate for Authentication.
Step 2 – The long wait!
We now have what is called our "Dossier" which is sent to China
and we move into stage 2 - the wait for the referral of our
daughter. We were told at first that this would take
approximately 7-8 months. We are still waiting and it has been
10 months this August. We will receive a phone call informing us
of our referral. Referral is a package of information about our
baby. The next day, the FEDEX “stork” delivers the referral
package containing her photographs and information telling us
her age, demeanor, weight, height and what province in China she
is located in. We are given a short window of time (usually 72
hrs) to accept or decline the referral. Once we accept the baby
we then await our Travel Authorization and Itinerary for while
we are in China.
Step 3 – Travel to China!!
Traveling to China to pick her up will be arranged as soon as
possible (usually within a few weeks). We will more than likely
travel with other families. We will first arrive in the child’s
providence to finalize the Chinese side of the adoption and then
our last week will be spent probably in Guangzhou to finalize
the American side of the adoption. During this two week period
we will sight see, shop and most importantly bond with our baby
girl! We will be in China for approximately two weeks. |