Adopting in West Virginia
The West Virginia Department of Health & Human Resources (WVDHHR) Bureau for Children and Families (BCF) provides information about adoption in Virginia. Families can also contact a licensed child-placing agency.
Potential adoptive families that want to adopt a child through WVDHHR will need to contact their local county office and request information on becoming an adoptive family. They will also be required to attend pre-service orientation training and have a family assessment (home study) completed by a social worker. The home study consists of informal interviews and the gathering of references, medical reports, a criminal background check, and other paperwork that the social worker may request.
Families who are approved to adopt a child will be added to a list that social workers use to match children needing homes with families who are available, approved, and ready for placement.
Some families choose to use a licensed agency to help them find an infant who needs an adoptive home. Agencies work with birthparents that create an adoption plan for their child. Adoptive families who are approved will be matched with a birthparent. The birth parent will have the opportunity to review the adoptive families picture portfolios before selecting a family. Some birth parents want to meet the family in person. The level of openness depends on what the adoptive family and the birth family are comfortable with. Adoptions that are done in the United States are called Domestic Adoptions and they require the family to have a Domestic Home Study completed.
International Adoptions take place when adoptive parents look into other countries to find a child who needs a home. The family will need to have an International Home Study completed. Children who qualify for adoption in other countries must be classified as orphans by the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS). The agency will help the family complete all the required documents and find a child who is available for adoption.
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