Lifestyle / Adoption / Adoption Subsidies: Federal or state adoption benefits (also known as adoption assistance) designed to help offset the short- and long-term costs associated with adopting children who need special services. To be eligible for the Federal IV-E subsidy program, children must meet each of the following characteristics: a court has ordered that the child cannot or should not be returned to the birth family: the child has special needs, as determined by the state's definition of special needs: a 'reasonable effort' has been made to place the child without a subsidy: the child also must have been eligible for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) at the time of the adoption, or the child's birth family must have been receiving - or eligible to receive - Aid for Families with Dependent Children (AFDC). Benefits available through subsidy programs vary by state, but commonly include: monthly cash payments - up to an amount that is $1 less than the foster care payment the state would have made if the child were still in basic family foster care medical assistance - through the federal program (and some state programs), Medicaid benefits social services - post-adoption services such as respite care, counseling, day care, etc. nonrecurring adoption expenses - a one-time reimbursement (depending upon the state, between $400 and $2,000) for costs such as adoption fees, court costs, attorney fees, physical and psychological examinations and other expenses related to the legal adoption of a child with special needs. Before adopting a child with special needs, ask your agency about the availability of federal and state subsidies.
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Lifestyle / Adoption / Foster-Adoption: A child placement in which birth parents' rights have not yet been severed by the court or in which birth parents are appealing the court's decision but foster parents agree to adopt the child if/when MORE
Lifestyle / Adoption / Foster Adoption Placement: Foster placement of a child, with adoption being the final goal, once all legal requirements have been met. The couple must be certified as suitable to adopt with their home licensed as a foster home. MORE
Lifestyle / Adoption / Independent Adoption: An adoption arranged privately by a non-licensed third party (i.e., doctor or lawyer) or between the birth family and adoptive parents. MORE