The Adoption Time Frame in Florida

When you choose to adopt, you’re really taking your first steps on a personal journey of fulfillment. For some, that journey can be long and winding. Though everyone follows similar steps, each adoption timeline in Florida can vary greatly from the next. Still, the wait is worth it because it means everyone involved will have a positive experience. 

If you’re a hopeful parent considering adoption, have you asked, “How long will it take to adopt a child?” That may be but one of the remaining questions you have about the process and the time it takes to adopt in Florida, like:

• How do I adopt a child?
• What steps should I take for adoption finalization?
• How long is the average adoption time frame in Florida?
• Will partnering with American Adoptions shorten my adoption wait in Florida?
• And many more

Florida adoption wait times are a significant concern for hopeful adoptive parents, and it’s normal to have questions related to the wait. Thankfully, you can get the answers you need by talking to an adoption professional. We’d love to help. Just complete our online form or call 1-800-ADOPTION anytime to connect with an adoption professional.

You can also get a basic understanding of the Florida adoption timeline and how American Adoptions works to minimize your adoption wait by reading more below.

Answering the Question, “How Much Time Does It Take to Adopt a Child in FL?”

Adoption is a complex legal and social process, so it makes sense that waiting times for adoption in Florida often vary on a case-to-case basis. Understanding what factors can negatively impact your Florida adoption time frames means learning more about the steps required as part of the adoption process.

Below you will find the steps in the adoption process:

1. Determine adoption is right for your family: Adopting a child means making a lifelong commitment. Therefore, you must give careful consideration when deciding if adoption is the right way to build your family. 
2. Choose the kind of adoption you prefer: There are three types of adoption, and each one has a different time to adoption in Florida.
3. Select an adoption agency: Your adoption agency is your guide throughout the time period it takes to adopt a child in Florida. You may consider using a national adoption agency to lower Florida's adoption wait and provide robust resources.
4. Successfully complete a home study: In every adoption, a home study is required, and they can take time to complete. While it can extend your Florida wait for adoption, home studies benefit everyone involved.
5. Find a match with an expectant mother: Finding an adoption opportunity that matches your preferences may stretch your Florida adoption timeline. After connecting with an expectant mother, you’ll need to get to know her and start a relationship.
6. Adhere to the hospital plan: The expectant birth mother makes her wishes for the birth known with her hospital plan. That way, you’ll be aware of her preferences and wishes for the birth and transfer of physical custody.
7. Finalize the adoption: The adoption finalization hearing generally happens up to six months after the physical placement of the child in the adoptive home. Waiting for finalization can extend the adoption wait in Florida.

All of these steps mark necessary and critical components of the adoption process, even though they may represent potential speedbumps causing your adoption timeline in Florida to be extended.

What Are the Causes of Extended Adoption Time Frames in Florida?

Your Florida adoption time frame can stall for any number of reasons while you wait to move on to the next step. What specifically leads to a longer adoption timeline in Florida? Some of the factors may include the agency you choose, the kind of adoption you’re considering, your adoption home study, and ICPC approval.

For more information on each of these potential stall points, read below:

• Agency choice: Your choice of agency can have a tremendous impact on your adoption time frame in Florida. Using a local private adoption agency that’s working with a few local expectant birth mothers may lead to a longer adoption timeline in Florida. Partnering with a national adoption agency like American Adoptions gives you access to adoption opportunities across the U.S., which can sharply shorten your Florida adoption timeline.
• Type of adoption: Different types of adoption take longer than others. That disparity can cause longer adoption wait times in Florida for some kinds of adoptions. For example, international adoption may take years because the regulations of several governments must be respected. Foster care adoptions can only take place after the parental rights of the birth parents are terminated. That may take years.
• The adoption home study: Because its intent is to protect children, the adoption home study is thorough and time-consuming. Your home study may be longer than others due to factors like local laws and regulations, background check concerns, or safety concerns in the home. The average home study takes 90 days to complete. However, your adoption professional can help you prepare and increase your chances of a quick home study and a timely adoption in FL.
• ICPC: The Interstate Compact on Child Placement, or ICPC, regulates adoption in the U.S. by requiring both states in an interstate adoption to review documentation (like the adoptive parent’s home study, consent paperwork, and other legal documents) before the transfer of custody can occur. The timeline for approval can vary, potentially lengthening your adoption wait in FL. 

What American Adoptions of Florida Does to Shorten Your FL Adoption Wait Time

We go to great lengths at American Adoptions to minimize Florida adoption wait times for hopeful parents who want to build a family. We’ve helped more than 13,000 families with their adoptions, and our decades of experience, national reach, and robust resources allow us to offer some of the shortest adoption time frames available.

Your American Adoption specialist will take several measures to shorten your FL adoption time frame. A lot of those actions take place behind the scenes. A few of the ways that your adoption professional is working to accelerate your infant adoption wait in Florida include:

• National Exposure – Local adoption professionals may be able to connect you with a few pregnant mothers in their state or region. But national agencies like American Adoptions work with pregnant mothers across the U.S., so you’re more likely to get an adoption opportunity quickly.
• Robust Advertising – American Adoptions extensively markets our agency to women considering adoption. Across the U.S. In fact, we offer hopeful families more than 800x more exposure than other leading agencies. We promote your family through crisis pregnancy centers, Yellow Pages, hospitals, social media and other adoption websites, and others. The result is that more prospective birth mothers find our agency. That leads to additional adoption opportunities and shortens the average adoption wait in Florida for our families.
• Networking – Our nationwide network of adoption professionals works with birth mothers in all 50 states, and they can contact our agency if they’re working with a birth mother in need of a family.
• Balance – American Adoptions is focused on balancing the number of adoptions completed and the number of adoptive families working with our agency. That allows us to ensure accurate wait time estimates. American Adoptions professionals are licensed, so you can be sure our wait times have been confirmed by state authorities. Unlicensed professionals aren’t regulated and may offer false adoption wait times without accountability.
• 24/7 Availability – A woman considering adoption can call our agency at any time, day or night. We always have someone available to answer the phone. Our adoption specialists are on call 24/7, so a woman seeking information and resources never receives a voicemail.

When working with American Adoptions, you can be confident your adoption specialist is taking every possible action to shorten wait periods to adopt a newborn in Florida. They want you to succeed in reaching your goals, and they want to see your dreams of building a family come to fruition.

Closing Thoughts on Managing Your Adoption Timeline

Understanding the adoption process timeline helps you properly set expectations and head off adoption wait depression. Your adoption professional will provide you with an estimate of the waiting times for adoption in Florida, but understand that there are variables that may lead to unexpected extensions of the adoption time frame in Florida.

If you want to learn more about the adoption process and what factors can shape adoption wait in Florida, it’s a good idea to speak with a professional today. You can do that by calling 1-800-ADOPTION or completing our online form. We’ll connect you with one of our experienced adoption specialists when you’re ready.

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