Ukrainian Adoption Travel

One trip is an option for the Ukrainian program, and you can get everything done in one trip, but our families told us that breaking it up into 2 trips is more convenient.
So, the 2-trips option:

First trip: About 2 weeks.

First trip to any country is exciting, but especially so for a Ukrainian adoption, because during just your first trip you can go from meeting the child for the first time, all the way to the court hearing.

Here’s how it would probably look:

1. Arrive to the country and get situated.

2. Go for your appointment at the adoption center, and get a referral.

3. Travel to meet your prospective adoptive child.

4. If you decide that this is a good match, then you sign some paperwork and have a court hearing scheduled.

5. Attend court hearing.

7. There is an appeal period, during which nothing really happens, so you can go home.

This appeal period is effectively a 15 day break when nothing happens, you just wait. So most of our families chose to go back home for that time.

At home:

We’ll need to work on some more paperwork while you are home. That’s that USCIS and DHS stuff we talked about before. Don’t worry, we’ll help you with all of it.

Second trip: About 2 weeks.

This time around everything will be familiar, and even if the previous trip was your first one ever to a foreign country, now you know what to expect.

So, the court decision is in effect and you and your child just need to get the necessary paperwork, such as court decree, adoption certificate, new birth certificate, and your child’s new passport, then go to the US Embassy, follow their procedure for getting a visa, and go home.

This trip would be pretty boring, except that your child will be with you and fill all of that time with joy and, well, a kid being a kid.

Our families told us that they hardly noticed going places and doing paperwork, kids occupied all of their time. This will be your child’s first time out of the orphanage and into the grownup world in some time, so they’ll have lots of questions, most in the language you don’t understand, about absolutely everything. Brace yourself! Paperwork will be a welcome pause in the infinite barrage of “why’s” and “how’s”.

Your caseworker will discuss each and every one of your trips in detail before you go, and our in-country staff will be there to assist you and answer your questions.