The Cost of Adoption

As you probably know, we have a hill to climb financially to get to the adoption point.  We are not "buying" a baby, but we do have to fees to pay in each step of the documentation process to complete a perfectly legal adoption.  In case you were wondering, here is a list of the fees we will be incurring throughout the next year*:

Home Study Process:
Application fee               $250
Home Study fee            $1500
Mileage                           $250
Background chks              $40
3 Post-Placement Fees    $750

Home Study Total:     $2790


International Adoption Process:
Application fee                                  $300
Agency fee                                       $5000
Dossier Fee                                      $1100
Medical Evaluations                            $75
Foreign Adoption paperwork            $890
Program Fee                                  $10000  ($15000 for siblings)
Round Trip Air Fare   (2 trips)        $7100
Travel Visas                                        $80
Court Documents for child                $900
US Embassy fee (child's visa)           $404
Food, lodging, trans. in Ethiopia     $1120
Care Center fee                                  $250 per month until child is picked up
Gifts for people caring for child        $400 (recommended)

Adoption Agency Total:   approx. $29,000

*Note: all fees are approximations based on Fee Schedules given by agencies.