Agency Eligibility Requirements
These intake eligibility requirements are a combination of agency, foreign country and immigration requirements and are used to help us determine potential eligibility for an adoption in a foreign country.
  1. Prospective adoptive families and orphans must meet eligibility requirements of the country from which they are adopting, Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) and their respective state laws.
  2. Families adopting from China must have $10,000 of annual income for each family member including the prospective adoptive child. $10,000 of income for each family member is recommended by America World for all other countries. Families without the recommended income will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
  3. In most cases, one parent must be at least 25 years old. For China, both parents must be at least 29 ½ upon submitting an application to America World and cannot submit a Dossier to China until both parents are 30.
  4. Prospective parents cannot have more than two (2) divorces per person. Two (2) will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. For Rwanda, no divorce history is permitted at this time.
  5. Prospective parents must be married for at least one (1) year before applying to America World. For Rwanda, a minimum of 5 years of marriage is required. For China, if there is any history of divorce, the couple must have been married for 5 years before applying. Single applicants who become engaged while in process will be required to suspend their adoption and reapply as a married couple one year after marriage.
  6. Single males are not permitted to adopt through America World.
  7. Prospective parents must be free of cancer or other life-threatening diseases for at least three (3) years before applying to America World. Some countries require more than 3 years of remission.
  8. Families who become pregnant during the adoption process may be required to withdraw until their youngest child is 6 months old. These situations are reviewed on a case-by-case basis depending on the stage of the adoption process, the country from which a family is adopting, etc. Families adopting from China may be able to submit a “Concurrent Family Building Application” if they become pregnant during the adoption process due to the long wait for a healthy referral from China.
  9. One or both prospective parents must agree and initial the Statement of Faith.
  10. If prospective parents, who previously adopted a healthy infant (under 3 years old), are applying for a subsequent adoption with America World, we will consider an application after receiving a favorable 6 month post adoption report.
    If prospective parents, who previously adopted a child with special needs are applying for a subsequent adoption with America World, we will consider an application after receiving favorable 6 and 12 month post adoption reports.
    If prospective parents, who previously adopted a child over the age of three years are applying for a subsequent adoption with America World, we will consider an application at 18 months post adoption. America World will consider the content of the 6 and 12 month post adoption reports as part of the application as well as requested information.
  11. If prospective parents are applying for a subsequent adoption with America World, timeliness of post adoption reports and the behavior of the family during the previous adoption(s) will be taken into consideration in determination of eligibility.
  12. Neither spouse may have felonies or multiple misdemeanors on their police records. Families with any criminal history that shows up on their police records, including a misdemeanor will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
  13. Any illegal drug usage must be at least 15 years old in order to be considered to adopt from Russia or Ukraine. China will grant limited exceptions on a case by case basis for families who have a minor drug usage history that is over 15 years old only if the family is open to adopting an older child through the Waiting Children program. China (healthy program), Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Rwanda will not accept any history of drug addiction.
  14. Individuals being treated for or who have a history of any type of mental health condition including depression and anxiety will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. China does not allow individuals to be on any type of medication for mental health during the adoption process and requires that any history of mental health diagnosis/ treatment be at least 2 years in the past.
  15. Families who are eligible for multiple discounts (i.e. pastors who are also 2nd time adopters) will receive the highest discount they are eligible for but the discounts are not cumulative.
  16. At the discretion of the Executive Director of Programs or Designee, additional information may be required to determine eligibility. Failure to disclose important information may affect a family’s eligibility.
Note: Applicants are expected to disclose any issues regarding health, criminal background, history of physical and sexual abuse, bankruptcy, financial stability, disabilities and special needs. Failure to disclose these items will impair America World’s ability to serve your family and may result in termination. Please contact our intake department at 800-429-3369 if you have questions or concerns about these items affecting your eligibility to move forward with the adoption process.



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