The year 2017 has been an exciting one for families adopting from Ukraine with MLJ Adoptions! Ukraine has long been a popular country for American families interested in international adoption. In 2014, a shift in U.S. law had a significant impact on families adopting from Ukraine; the Universal Accreditation Act now requires U.S. families to use a Hague-Accredited Adoption Agency when adopting from Ukraine. While this can be more complicated for families, as an agency, we haven’t seen this affect the adoption process on Ukraine’s side. In fact, with many nonprofits organizing hosting programs from Ukraine, we are seeing an increased interest in families adopting from Ukraine.
All three families who have received matches this year in our Ukraine program have traveled within three months of their dossiers being submitted to the adoption authority in Ukraine. You can see more information about the children they were matched with below:
- Male child, 5 years old; family waited 2 months to be invited to travel to Ukraine once their dossier was submitted.
- Male child, 11 years old; family waited 3 months to be invited to travel to Ukraine once their dossier was submitted. This family participated in our Ukraine Hosting Program and pursued the adoption of the sweet boy who they hosted.
- Female child, 5 years old; family waited 3 months to be invited to travel to Ukraine once their dossier was submitted.
Families adopting from Ukraine submit their dossier to the adoption authority, and then wait to be invited to travel. Once they arrive in Ukraine, they have an appointment with the adoption authority where they are presented with the matches of children. Based on this information, the family can decide which child they want to visit and meet before moving forward with the child’s adoption. This process is different from other countries, where families may be matched with a child before they travel, and receive information on the child’s medical and social background.
Our fourth round of families are wrapping up their Ukraine Summer Hosting experience. Nine children were able to experience the love of a family through the program this summer! We hope to see several of the host families move forward with adopting from Ukraine.
Families who participated in a summer hosting program, and are interested in adopting from Ukraine, can receive a $500 deduction of their second payment, if they submit an MLJ Adoptions’ Application by the end of August.
If you’re interested in adopting from Ukraine, contact us.
Caitlin Snyder
Caitlin Snyder works as the Director of Marketing and Outreach for MLJ Adoptions. Working in international adoption has given Caitlin the unique opportunity to pursue both a passion to advocate on behalf of vulnerable people and a profession at the same time.
Caitlin Snyder
Caitlin Snyder works as the Director of Marketing and Outreach for MLJ Adoptions. Working in international adoption has given Caitlin the unique opportunity to pursue both a passion to advocate on behalf of vulnerable people and a profession at the same time.