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What Is the Process for Adoption in Georgia?

· 8 min read

In Georgia, the Department of Human Services assigns authority over the adoption process to its Division of Family & Children Services (DFCS). The DFCS does not have authority over private adoptions, but it has authority over all adoptions in which a child is a ward of the state or in the custody of a licensed adoption agency.

The four requirements for adoptive parents

Before we look at the steps of the adoption process, it’s worth reviewing the qualifications prospective parents must meet before they can adopt. In Georgia, there are four requirements. These are available for review on the DFCS website:

  1. The prospective parent must either be married and living with a spouse, or the parent must be at least 21 years of age.
  2. Unless the adopted child is a stepchild or relative (such as a niece or nephew), the parent must be at least 10 years older than the child.
  3. Parents must meet a residency requirement. They must either be residents of Georgia, or they must be residents of the state where the child will live after leaving Georgia. Georgia places this second requirement on adoptions that involve children born in Georgia or who were living in Georgia at the time someone placed them for adoption.
  4. The parent must be able to demonstrate the physical, mental and financial resources necessary to care for the child.

To this last point, prospective parents can expect a social worker to conduct a home study. The home study is part of the adoption process and serves to ensure that the parents can provide a safe and nurturing environment. In other words, the state does not take prospective parents at their word that they have the physical, mental and financial resources they need. The state will conduct evaluations.

The seven steps of Georgia’s adoption process

The DFCS website also identifies the seven steps of the adoption process:

  1. The adoption process begins when you make an official inquiry with the DFCS. You will receive more information about the rest of the process.
  2. The second step is to attend an information session. You will get more information about the process and requirements, and the DFCS will schedule a home visit. This home visit will take place prior to the third step.
  3. Parents who continue with the process must complete the Adoption Preparation Program, also known as IMPACT (Initial interest, Mutual selection, Pre-service training, Assessment, Continuing development and Teamwork). This program consists of 23 classroom hours of training. During the time you are working through the IMPACT training, officials will conduct more home visits, gather more personal information (such as medical reports and background checks) and talk to you about adoption.
  4. After you complete the Adoption Preparation Program, the DFCS will forward your Family Evaluation to the Adoption Exchange, identifying you as a parent ready for adoption.
  5. During Pre-Placement, you can look for a good match among the children available for adoption. Some prospective parents may join support groups while they wait to find a match. Prospective parents who can identify the child they wish to adopt may move through this pre-placement period more quickly.
  6. After you match with an available child, you can start the Placement process. This includes reviewing detailed information about the child and scheduling a series of pre-placement visits.
  7. Finalization of the adoption process starts when the DFCS sends a release. You can then file an adoption petition with the court, and a Superior Court Judge will hold a hearing before finalizing the adoption.

This process can vary in duration. Certainly, the pre-placement period is longer for some prospective parents than for others, and certain obstacles may delay or interrupt the process altogether.

For example, you must ensure the biological parents have terminated their parental rights. Biological fathers who were not married to the mother at the child’s birth and who are not listed on the birth certificate may not have paternal rights at the beginning of the process, but they might file for paternity when they learn of it.

The DFCS website also identifies the seven steps of the adoption process:

  1. The adoption process begins when you make an official inquiry with the DFCS. You will receive more information about the rest of the process.
  2. The second step is to attend an information session. You will get more information about the process and requirements, and the DFCS will schedule a home visit. This home visit will take place prior to the third step.
  3. Parents who continue with the process must complete the Adoption Preparation Program, also known as IMPACT (Initial interest, Mutual selection, Pre-service training, Assessment, Continuing development and Teamwork). This program consists of 23 classroom hours of training. During the time you are working through the IMPACT training, officials will conduct more home visits, gather more personal information (such as medical reports and background checks) and talk to you about adoption.
  4. After you complete the Adoption Preparation Program, the DFCS will forward your Family Evaluation to the Adoption Exchange, identifying you as a parent ready for adoption.
  5. During Pre-Placement, you can look for a good match among the children available for adoption. Some prospective parents may join support groups while they wait to find a match. Prospective parents who can identify the child they wish to adopt may move through this pre-placement period more quickly.
  6. After you match with an available child, you can start the Placement process. This includes reviewing detailed information about the child and scheduling a series of pre-placement visits.
  7. Finalization of the adoption process starts when the DFCS sends a release. You can then file an adoption petition with the court, and a Superior Court Judge will hold a hearing before finalizing the adoption.

This process can vary in duration. Certainly, the pre-placement period is longer for some prospective parents than for others, and certain obstacles may delay or interrupt the process altogether.

For example, you must ensure the biological parents have terminated their parental rights. Biological fathers who were not married to the mother at the child’s birth and who are not listed on the birth certificate may not have paternal rights at the beginning of the process, but they might file for paternity when they learn of it.

The DFCS website also identifies the seven steps of the adoption process:

  1. The adoption process begins when you make an official inquiry with the DFCS. You will receive more information about the rest of the process.
  2. The second step is to attend an information session. You will get more information about the process and requirements, and the DFCS will schedule a home visit. This home visit will take place prior to the third step.
  3. Parents who continue with the process must complete the Adoption Preparation Program, also known as IMPACT (Initial interest, Mutual selection, Pre-service training, Assessment, Continuing development and Teamwork). This program consists of 23 classroom hours of training. During the time you are working through the IMPACT training, officials will conduct more home visits, gather more personal information (such as medical reports and background checks) and talk to you about adoption.
  4. After you complete the Adoption Preparation Program, the DFCS will forward your Family Evaluation to the Adoption Exchange, identifying you as a parent ready for adoption.
  5. During Pre-Placement, you can look for a good match among the children available for adoption. Some prospective parents may join support groups while they wait to find a match. Prospective parents who can identify the child they wish to adopt may move through this pre-placement period more quickly.
  6. After you match with an available child, you can start the Placement process. This includes reviewing detailed information about the child and scheduling a series of pre-placement visits.
  7. Finalization of the adoption process starts when the DFCS sends a release. You can then file an adoption petition with the court, and a Superior Court Judge will hold a hearing before finalizing the adoption.

This process can vary in duration. Certainly, the pre-placement period is longer for some prospective parents than for others, and certain obstacles may delay or interrupt the process altogether.

For example, you must ensure the biological parents have terminated their parental rights. Biological fathers who were not married to the mother at the child’s birth and who are not listed on the birth certificate may not have paternal rights at the beginning of the process, but they might file for paternity when they learn of it.

What is different about the private adoption process?

As noted earlier, the DFCS does not have authority over private and independent adoptions. This means the DFCS does not provide the same structure and certainty for adoptions that involve relatives, stepchildren and non-relatives who are neither wards of the state nor in the custody of an adoption agency.

In these cases, prospective parents will still have to ensure the termination of biological parents’ rights. They may also expect home visits from social workers who will ensure their homes are suitable for raising children. But they will need to address adoption’s many legal stipulations without the same degree of DFCS oversight.

Accordingly, many of the prospective parents in private adoptions choose to work with family law attorneys. A good family law attorney can guide you through the process and make sure you start your new family with all the legal rights and protections you deserve.

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