Bulgaria Adoption
– Featured Bulgarian Adoption Story –
– March, 2018 –
– Home since January, 2018 –
Step 1 - View Waiting Children
Bulgaria is an exception to this rule, because the Bulgarian MOJ will give future parents the benefit of the doubt that they will in fact complete those requirements. If the MOJ approves your application to adopt a child listed on their list, they will take the child off the list for 6 months – while you work to get your CIS approval and other papers. If you fail to do so, the planned adoption would not continue.
Understand that this permission is done at a government level, not agency level. Agencies don’t have that authority. Agencies have not authority to “hold” a child until you become approved. So as you are researching ask these questions. We do not charge adoptive parents to help them prepare the application needed for MOJ.
Step 2 - Consult a Doctor
Children who are on the waiting lists will sometimes be on these lists because their needs are more severe than other children. That is more reason to make sure that you are not acting on impulse, but that you’ve done what you can to prepare yourselves for some of the struggles ahead of you in helping your child overcome whatever issues he or she may be dealing with.
Don’t rush into a life long decision without talking to a doctor.
Step 3 - Complete MOJ Application
So, don’t fall in love with a child who may or may not be there. Don’t rush in on an impulse. Along with that, be aware of agencies who make it seem as if though you need to send in your application and fee very quickly because there is another family who might do it any minute.
Though, it is true that there are other adoptive parents who may adopt a child you’re considering, don’t worry. Don’t worry because God has a plan for you and your family. He is not going to mess it up if you’re a “few days late”. Besides, no agency has the legal right to “secure” a child for you. These children are under the jurisdiction of foreign countries’ governments.
The Bulgarian Ministry of Justice has an application. Before you even become our client, we’ll give you this application. You’ll fill it out. We’ll submit it to Bulgarian Central Authority – Ministry of Justice. If they approve it, then we can help you. Then we’ll ask you to become our client. Then, we’ll give you our application which is the first time a fee is due to the agency ($300).
After we approve your application, then we continue with the agency’s contract and the fee due with that. However, we don’t want to lead you on, charge you for services which aren’t really ours to provide. We’ll want to be certain that we’ll be able to help you adopt the child that you want to adopt before we accept you as a client.
Bulgarian Adoption Cost – Waiting Child Route:
Documented agency fees – precisely $21,500 AND 8,000 Euros (Roughly $30,000). It is spread over time.
Additional cost, like air travel, described below – roughly another $10,000
If you qualify for one of our financing options, for a $20,000 Adoption Loan with a 60 month term at 5.99% APR, the monthly payment can be approximately as low as $387.
Financing – Monthly Payments Available
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Waiting Child Fee Schedule |
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| MOJ Application Preparation | Free | (most agencies charge for this) |
| Upon submission of Application to MOJ | 1,600 Euro | Wire to Bulgaria |
| Agency Applicaiton Fee | $300 | Due with application |
| Agency Fee | $6,200 | Payment Plan Available |
| IAAME Overseight Fee | $500 | Per child – Payable to IAAME – Due w contract |
| Dossier Fee | $6,500 | Due 6 – 9 months after Agency Fee |
| 1,000 Euro | Wire to Bulgaria | |
| MOJ Approval of Dossier | 5,400 Euros |
Due about 3 months after dossier wire to Bulgaria
|
| First Trip | $5,000 | Due shortly before travel |
| PayPal Available | ||
| Second Trip | $3,000 | Due shortly before travel |
| PayPal Available | ||
| Total | $21,500 and 8,000 Euro |
Bulgarian Adoption Cost – Simplified.
If you qualify for one of our financing options, for a $20,000 Adoption Loan with a 60 month term at 5.99% APR, the monthly payment can be approximately as low as $387.
St. Mary's President - is Bulgarian
Our Founder and acting CEO, Lina was born in Bulgaria. She spent most of her adult life in Bulgaria where she obtained her Ph.D. Having lived there, she’s personally known the best attorneys in Bulgaria before they even knew they’d work together one day (now) to help people adopt children. She understands the culture. Knows how Bulgaria works. Knows the best people.
Our first Bulgarian child was placed in 2002.
Health of the Children
Bulgaria’s “waiting children” will typlically have more pressing needs if they’re younger. Adoptive parents, in order to be qualified to adopt them need to consult a doctor who can help the parents evaluate the info provided, including the videos, and make educated decisions judging their own capabilites and the child’s needs. Older children, pre-teens and teens, may by on the waiting child list only because of age.
Bulgaria’s traditional adoption program, though it can take upto 3 years of waiting, gives adoptive parents quite a bit of input in regards to what they’re willing to accept or not accept. This is done through a medical questionnaire that the adoptive parents complete.
If parents are ok with waiting estimated for the “traditional route”, this might be a good option.
As with any other country, the medical and social info is made available by the governmental authorities who suprevise the adoption process.
Often times the father will have unclear history, or history will not be provided.
Travel
Watch this video to see what one mom says about traveling to Bulgaria.
Age of the Children
From there on, children from 5 – 8 will take less waiting.
And children over 8 will take the least amount of anticipated waiting. Which will likely be under a year.
For more info on how the time frames can vary and how your input plays a role, please contact us and we will explain.
Timing
The timing for Bulgaria can be quite different depending on whether you go the “traditional route” or the “waiting child route”.
Waiting Child Route:
Whole process can take about a year, maybe even a little less.
If MOJ approves your application for the child you want to adopt, they take the child off their waiting list, and give you 6 months to meet paper requirements.
In those 6 months, you complete home study and dossier.
After submitting that paperwork to Bulgarian MOJ, it is estimated that you’ll be invited to visit your child about 3 moths later.
Then, there are about 3 months in between trips.
Bulgaria requires 2 trips which are 7 to 10 days in length.
Traditional Route:
With traditional, the process can take a few years. You have to meet the same paperwork requirements as waiting child, but there is no “timeline to chase” set by the MOJ, so you can go at your own pace in competing your home study and your dossier. Then you turn in that adoption paperwork to Bulgarian MOJ and wait to be matched with a child. Depending on your criteria, your wait can vary. Trip requirements are the same.
Remember: you can pursue both “traditional” and “waiting child” at the same time.
Do I Qualify
Traditional: Have to be 15 years older than child. No more than 50 year difference. No lenght of marriage req.
Step 1 - Apply With Our Agency
After deciding that adoption is what you’d like to pursue, the two biggest questions that follow are what country and what agency? You should probably look at country first, since different countries have different requirements, like age, that may not work for you. Then agency is a big one also. Different agencies work very differently from one another.
You would be surprised as to how different your experience can be based on the agency you select. We’re specialized and focused on 2 countries in close proximity to each other. We have nearly 20 years of experience with each and we confident that we know how to help our parents navigate through their process for each.
Step 2 - Do Paperwork
Preparing your paperwork is the first way you’ll experience that agencies do things differently. With us, you will work with person that tells you about the process before you become a client. That person will be your contact the whole time, from start to finish. You will not get passed on to others as you advance thru the process. Prepareing the paperwork, in addition to being a legal task, is also important in terms of cultural interpretation. Preparing the paperwork in mind with how a country works and what it wants to see is a big step.
That is why being an expert on few countries rather offering many is a business strategy that we have chosen. We think it allows us to serve our clients better.
Our president and founder is Bulgarian born and educated. That gives the agency an even deeper understanding of Bulgaria in particular and Eastern Europe as a region.
– Back to Bulgaria Main Page or contact us here.
Step 3 - Apply to CIS
First major milestone is to get the approval of USCIS. Consistent with the laws guiding your international adoption, an approval from government is needed in order for you to be considered by the foreign government. Therefore, once prepared, your home study is turned into USCIS. USCIS will do their own fingerprints (in addition to the ones we ran on you) and based on our social worker’s recommendation, will issue their approval for you as adoptive parents. This document plays a key role of your dossier.
In addition to meeting state and federal requirements, the home study that you are submitting to CIS must also meet the foreign country’s requirements.
– Back to Bulgaria Main Page or contact us here.
Bulgaria Adoption Cost – Traditional Route
| Traditional Fee Structure | ||
| Applicaiton Fee | $300 | Due with application |
| Agency Fee | $6,200 | Payment Plan Available (Due with signed contract -PayPal or check) |
| IAAME Overseight Fee | $500 | Per child – Payable to IAAME – Due w contract |
| Dossier Fee | $6,500 | On your time table – when you complete your dossier (PayPal or check) |
| 1,000 Euro | Wire to Bulgaria | |
| Foreign Fees | ||
| First Trip | 5,000 Euros and $5,000 | After you’ve been matched and accepted your child. (Wire and PayPal) |
| Second Trip | 2,000 Euros and $3,000 | After court date has approved you as parents. (Wire and PayPal) |
| Total | $21,500 and 8,000 Euro |
Bulgarian Adoption Cost – Simplified.
If you qualify for one of our financing options, for a $20,000 Adoption Loan with a 60 month term at 5.99% APR, the monthly payment can be approximately as low as $387.
Step 1 - Apply With Our Agency
Ultimately, in order to adopt from Bulgaria, you have to prepare the SAME amount of paperwork.
So, with our agency, we will let you switch or pursue both routes at the same time. No fee to change or switch.
Saint Mary International Adoptions’ Bulgaria Adoption Program
Our agency founder is Bulgarian born. Our first ever adoption was from Bulgaria, back in 2002. Over the years we’ve seen Bulgaria slow down and pick up. Currently, there are many Bulgarian adoptions taking place each year! We have seen an increasing number of Bulgarian applications for our agency in recent years.
We invite you to learn about the process through our parents’ success stories and their personal interviews about the Bulgarian adoption process with our agency. These stories provide unique and unfiltered perspectives.
We’d like to humbly point out that the parents you’ll see in the videos are the true heroes who sacrificed quite a bit to get their children home.
As believers, we praise God for each child adopted and the desire for each adoption into our parents’ hearts.
What is the Adoption Dossier
What is the adoption dossier?
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5*****Star Reviews
We think it is important for adoptive parents to understand the cultural and economic facts about the country they are planning to adopt from. It is helpful to understand the situation and the circumstances surrounding the people and children. Below are a few facts we took from CIA’s website. To read in depth about Bulgaria, click on the map and it will take you to this source.
- Religion: Eastern Orthodox 59.4%; Unspecified 27.4%
- Literacy: Total population: 98.4%
- Population: 7.1 million
- Unemployment: 28.4%
Verse of Day - June 12, 2018
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.