Honduras Adoption
Introduction
About the Children
Introduction
Honduras is a beautiful, agricultural country located in Central America. It is bordered by Guatemala, Nicaragua, and El Salvador.
In late 2020, Agape Adoptions received approval from the adoption authority in Honduras, Direcciόn de Ninez, Adolescencia y Familia, or Directorate of Childhood, Adolescence and Family (DINAF) to facilitate a Honduras adoption program. DINAF handles the adoption process in conjunction with Honduran courts and Foreign Supervised Provider (FSP). DINAF ensures the eligibility of children for inter country adoption when biological family members are not able to care for the child. Agape Adoptions is directly authorized by DINAF and works with an in country FSP to process all adoption cases successfully.
All adoptions from Honduras are completed in accordance with the Hague Convention on inter country adoption. More information can be found here.
Eligibility
About the Children
Introduction
Citizenship
One adoptive parent must be a US citizen.
Age
Applicants must be at least 25 years old and no older than 60 to adopt from Honduras.
Marital Status
Married couples and heterosexual single women are eligible to adopt from Honduras. Honduras does not permit same sex couples to adopt.
Criminal History
Applicants with a criminal history of child abuse, violence, domestic violence or termination of parental rights are not eligible to adopt.
Health Conditions
Applicants must be healthy with no serious, chronic transmissible disease (HIV positive, venereal disease, tuberculosis, etc.) or other life-threatening illnesses.
Income
There is no minimum income required. However, applicants must meet the income requirements provided by USCIS for the child to immigrate.
Children in Home
Honduras does not limit the number of children in the home, however, DINAF utilizes a family selection process where they present at least two families for the same child and then choose the best family.
About the Children
About the Children
About the Children
Thus far the vast majority of adoptions Agape has processed from Honduras are families adopting children who are known to them. If you are interested in adopting a child who is already known to you, please reach out to us at agape@agapeadoptions.org.
Although the vast majority of adoptions thus far are children known to their adoptive families, there are children in governmental care throughout Honduras who are in need of intercountry adoption and DINAF is committed to ensuring these children live long, happy and healthy lives with families. The majority of the children in care throughout Honduras are between the ages of 3-16 years of age (Children must be adopted prior to turning 16 years old in Honduras, per USCIS immigration requirements), but most children are over the age of 8 years old. Infant or healthy children adoption is not an option through the Honduras program.
Children are largely of Hispanic descent but may also be Mestizo.
Families considering adoption from Honduras will have access to the child’s social and medical background information before travel. In most cases, additional information is available upon request.
Process & Timeline
Travel & Bonding Period; Post Adoption Requirements
About the Children
- Complete adoption application for preliminary approval by Agape Adoptions.
- Complete adoption home study report (generally about 3-4 months to complete).
- Collect, notarize, and submit original dossier documents to Agape Adoptions.
- Submit and file immigration documents with the USCIS office.
- Upon completion, Agape Adoptions will submit the dossier to our FSP in Honduras for further processing for a referral. (Referrals are estimated to take 12-24 months from dossier submission, depending on the child approval parameters.) Note: DINAF utilizes a family selection process where they present at least two families for the same child(ren) and then choose the best family.
- Complete secondary immigration paperwork (child specific documents) and prepare for adoption travel.
Travel & Bonding Period; Post Adoption Requirements
Travel & Bonding Period; Post Adoption Requirements
Travel & Bonding Period; Post Adoption Requirements
Travel & Bonding Periods
There are two trips required when you adopt from Honduras. Trip one is 7-10 days and both parents must travel.
Trip 2 is 2-3 weeks and is about 3-4 months after the completion of the first trip. Both parents must travel but one parent may return home after about one week.
Post adoption requirements
Reports written by a social worker are due at 3, 6, 9, 12, 18 and 24 months after date of placement, followed by annual self-reports until your child is 18 years old. Post-placement reports are required for all children adopted from Honduras.
Fees
Travel & Bonding Period; Post Adoption Requirements
Travel & Bonding Period; Post Adoption Requirements
Total Agency Fees: $6750
Total Application, Parent Education, Dossier and Other Paperwork Processing Fees: $4450 - $4900
Total USCIS, Department of State and IAAME Fees: $1695 (based on two PAPs; immigration fees will increase for each additional household member)
Total Home Study and Post Adoption Fees: ~$3750
(variables include additional mileage fee based on distance from office and amount of state clearances that need to be processed for the Home Study)
Home Study Review Fee, for families completing their home study with another agency: $550
Total Attorney Fees in Honduras: $8,000 - $10,000 (based on the processing for one child)
Total Visa Fees: $20 (based on two PAPs traveling)
Total Estimated Travel Fees: ~$6,600 - $10,000 (for two PAPs and one adopted child), includes estimate for lodging and in country transportation)
Total In Country Fees for Child’s Adoption Processing: ~$625
Total Estimated Honduras Adoption Program Expenses: $31,815--$38,290
A detailed fee schedule is available upon request
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