|
 Colombia
Adoption Program
Children available for adoption
* Mostly infants, Hepatitis B and HIV tested.
Eligibility requirements
* Couples under 40 and married for at least
one year are eligible.
* Childless couples or couples with one child
are eligible. Couples with two children will
be considered on a case by case basis.
Process before travel
* Apply to INS for advanced approval to be eligible
to adopt from Colombia.
* The time between the dossier being sent to
Colombia, where it is examined, verified, and
approved until the time a family receives an
assignment is now a minimum of 18 months.
* Upon receiving the child's referral. which
includes a medical, social history, and a photo,
and after completion of the initial steps of
the adoption process in Colombia, The Alliance
will schedule the family's trip to Colombia
which is approximately two to three weeks after
the assignment.
Travel requirements
* Both parents must travel.
* The length of stay is four to six weeks. One
parent can return after one week, while the
other remains in Colombia until the adoption
is completed.
Explanation of Fees for Colombia Adoption
| Description
of Fee: |
Payment
|
| Preliminary Application Fee
(non-refundable) |
$200 |
| |
|
Application Processing Fee
This fee contributes to humanitarian aid,
maintaining programs, operating expenses
and communication costs. |
$2000 |
| |
|
Agency Administrative Fee
(non-refundable)
This fee contributes to initial document
preparation, notarizations, authentication,
and translations. |
$2000 |
| |
|
Home Study Fee - Families New
to AFC
This is a fee for home study service provided,
including individualized meetings, home
study group meetings, and preparation of
home study. |
$1,500 |
| |
|
| Home Study Update for returning
AFC Families |
$500 |
| |
|
| Home Study Update for families
transferring from another agency |
$600 |
| |
|
Post-Placement Fee
This fee is for the preparation, translation,
and mailing costs associated with post-placement
reporting as required by each state and
foreign country. |
$1,250 |
Families living outside of Massachusetts and
Rhode Island may have their home study prepared
by a licensed agency in their state of residence.
Alliance is happy to make recommendations of
licensed agencies in your state.
PROGRAM FEE: $12,500-16,500.00
(Non-Refundable). This fee includes costs in
the foreign country for the child such as medical/court
costs, legal fees and some child related costs.
The program fee is due at acceptance of a referral.
*
*Families may apply to Alliance for Children
Foundation’s Family Fund for financial
assistance when adopting a child with special
needs.
All international programs require additional
processing costs within the foreign country
including but not limited to visa & notary
costs, child’s medical, interpreter, travel
& accommodations.
General information
about Colombia
(Statistical information taken from the 2000
CIA Fact Book)
The Republic of Colombia is situated at the
juncture of Central and South America, just
south of Panama and bordering the South American
countries of Ecuador, Venezuela, Brazil, and
Peru. Its capital city of Bogota is located
in the center of the country. There are a marvelous
variety of landscapes within this country. Colombia
offers jungles, volcanoes, plains, over 3,000
km of coastline, islands, and mountains. The
variety in elevation is what dictates the weather
nationwide. The higher elevations have the cooler
climates. Colombia's fertile soil is perfect
for coffee, which is the country's most important
export crop. Oil, natural gas, iron ore, bananas,
and sugarcane are also all important to the
economy of Colombia.
The environmental issues that Colombia faces
are erupting volcanoes, earthquakes, and the
damages to the environment caused by man: air
pollution in the cities, and rapid deforestation.
Colombian people
and culture
Colombia has a population of nearly 40 million,
with 7 million residing in Bogota alone. The
ethnic groups in Colombia can be broken down
roughly as follows: 58% mestizos, 20% caucasian,
14% mulatto, 4% black, 3 % black-Amerindian,
1% Amerindian. One can see that the cultures
of Colombia are almost as diverse as its landscapes.
One thing that 90% of the population shares
is the Roman Catholic faith. Spanish is also
the official language that most Colombians share,
although there are many ethnic groups in Colombia
who speak their own native languages, or dialects,
in addition to Spanish. Many of the schools
must be bilingual for this reason.
The main meal of the day is eaten in the mid-afternoon,
and in the smaller towns, businesses will close
at lunchtime so that the families may eat together.
The staples of the cuisine of Colombia are soup,
rice, meat, beans, and salad, with coffee as
an obvious favorite beverage. When dining in
Colombia, it is considered rude to overeat.
If your host offers you extra servings, it is
best to politely refuse.
Colombians are avid dancers, and will take advantage
of any opportunity or excuse to dance. In addition
to the love of music and dance, soccer (futbol)
is by far the most popular sport. With over
40% of the population under the age of 20, there
are plenty of other sports with a regular following.
Cycling, swimming, basketball, and football
are close favorites.
|
