Twenty years ago, if you wanted to adopt an infant from China, you could almost get in line, wait 12-15 months and travel to the Orient to pick up your child. The chances were about 99-to-1 that you’d bring home a girl, unless you were willing to adopt a special needs boy, but the process was streamlined and had enjoyed steady growth over a number of decades. Over the last decade, though, that trend has completely reversed. And it’s not just adoptions from China, it’s international adoptions overall.

Consider these statistics. In 2004, nearly 23,000 foreign adoptees came into the United States. Just seven years later, the number was less than 10,000. In 2004, more than 13,000 children were adopted from China—by 2011, the number had dropped by more than 10,000.

According to adoption authorities, the trend has nothing to do with either supply or demand. There are just as many, if not more, children in orphanages in China and around the world, and there are just as many adoptive parents who want a child. Experts say it’s a change in attitude in those countries where the children live. Countries like China and Russia are finding that more and more people oppose sending orphans out of the country.

In addition, many foreign countries have implemented new rules making it harder for those most inclined and able to adopt to do so. The typical parent in a foreign adoption is older, and it’s not been uncommon for many to be single moms. In 2007, China changed its rules, prohibiting anyone over 50 from adopting, as well as single parents. The ban on single women was lifted in 2011, but all single adoptive mothers must now sign an affidavit swearing they are not gay. Families must also have at least $10,000 in income per family member and a minimum of $80,000 in assets.

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To set up an appointment, call us in Haddonfield at 856-429-5005 or in Woodbury at 856-845-2555. We can also be reached in Philadelphia at 215-563-2150 or by e-mail. For clients with personal injury or workers’ compensation claims, we offer a free initial consultation, and will represent you on a contingency basis, only charging attorney fees if we recover compensation for you.

Our offices are open weekdays between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Weekend and evening appointments may be arranged upon request. We will also come to your home or the hospital, if necessary.