Adoption Process

Families will receive a picture and detailed medical reports on their referred child as well as some background information about the child's birth family. Children are tested for Hepatitis B and HIV before leaving Korea. Parents may expect to receive a referral in 4-12 months after completion of the Korea application and homestudy. Travel occurs 6-12 months later.

With the new Child Citizenship Act, children adopted from Korea will become U.S. citizens at the time the adoption is legalized in the U.S. courts. Once the child is a U.S. citizen, his/her Korean citizenship needs to be terminated. In order to do this, a copy of the child's adoption decree must be sent to the main office of Wide Horizons For Children. This will be forwarded on to Holt who will remove the child from the Korean citizenship roles. In some states, the adoption decree is sent directly to Wide Horizonbs by the court. In this case it is not necessary to send a copy to Wide Horizons. More information will be provided to families at the time of finalization regarding this issue.

Travel to Korea

Families are required to make one trip of 5-7 days to bring your child home. Accommodations in Seoul are modern and confortable, and English is widely spoken.

Travel Resources

U.S. Department of State - Lists any current travel advisories for China and other countries.

Travel Protectors, LLC - Offers medical coverage and assistance services for Americans traveling outside the U.S.

Re-Fingerprinting & I600A Updating

Are your fingerprints up to date? The U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Service (CIS, formerly BCIS/INS) regulations state that fingerprints must be no more than 15 months old at the time of I600 filing for child's immigrant visa. Read more and learn how to ensure that your fingerprints are current.