Russia
is a country rich in history, culture and treasures. With borders
longer that any other country in the World and an area covering over
6.5 million square miles. Russia stretches into two continents, Europe
and Asia divided by the Ural Mountains.
The
Children:
Children available for adoption from Russia range in age from 8 months
to 16 years of age. The children of Russia are as diverse as its land
with about seventy-five distinct nationalities. With the influences
of all of these nationalities, Russia provides a unique mix of many
children. Children from Russia may be Slavic, Asian, Gipsy, or Mid-Eastern
or an intriguing combination of all.
Prospective
parents:
Single women and couples who have been married for at least one year
can apply to adopt from Russia. Families of any size are eligible
to adopt from Russia. The younger prospective parent cannot be more
than 45 years older than an adoptable child, some regions do allow
up to 47 years difference. Parents must be at least 16 years older
than the child to be adopted. Russia also allows unrelated children
to be adopted at the same time.
Trip
Process:
Russia requires two trips to complete the adoption. All trips begin
with arrival to Moscow where you will be met by your coordinator.
Your coordinator will be traveling with you to your region of adoption
and will be assisting you with the legal process. You formally accept
a child on the first trip, then return home to wait for the papers
to be filed in court and a court date to be set. On the second trip
to Russia you legally adopt the child, receive their visa, and bring
your child home. Some regions allow one parent to travel on the first
trip, but both parents have to be present at the court hearing.
Timelines:
The time to adoption varies with document preparation completion,
age of child, gender of child, political climate and region. The most
desired child in adoption is an infant girl thus creating the longest
wait. Generally there is very little wait for older children. As a
general rule of thumb most adoptions are complete within one year.