Adoption is a legal means for another family to permanently take on the responsibility of raising a child and become the new family for the child. Sometimes birth parents are unable to care for their children. Other times, parents, for a variety of reasons, may seek a new family to care for their child. When you adopt a child, you permanently take over all legal rights and responsibilities to parent that child. You are called an “adoptive parent”.
To adopt a child in Ontario, you must be a resident of Ontario and over 18 years of age. You can adopt as an individual or as a couple. But, no more than two people can adopt a child.
Your age, health and financial situation are some of the things that are taken into account before you are approved to adopt a child. But you cannot be denied the right to adopt a child because of your race, gender, sexual orientation, physical disability, or because you are not married.
Different ways to adopt
There are four main types of adoption:
Public Adoption
The adoption of a child in the permanent care of a Children’s Aid Society (CAS) is called a public adoption. Children become eligible for public adoption because:
- their birth parents decided to make an adoption plan
- an Ontario court decided the child must be permanently removed from their birth parents or legal guardians.
There is no cost to go through the public adoption process with a Children’s Aid Society. To be eligible for adoption you have to complete an application, a homestudy and mandatory training. Once these steps are complete you will be notified if you are approved for adoption. Once you are approved for adoption, it can take anywhere from six months to over two years to be matched with a child.
Private Adoption
The adoption of a child (usually a baby) using a private adoption agency rather than CAS is called a private adoption. Sometimes it is also referred to as a “domestic adoption”. Agencies that take care of private adoptions charge fees for their services. Services include all the paperwork, finding and matching of families and children. The fees can be generally $15,000-$30,000. There are additional fees for a homestudy assessment and parent training programs required by the Government of Ontario. And if the child is born somewhere else in Canada you will have to budget for travel costs and check with the provincial or territory requirements.
International Adoption
The adoption of a child that lives outside Canada, including relatives, is called international adoption. Children from international adoptions can be infants, toddlers or school-age and can have siblings too. Most of these children have spent time in an orphanage or state care.
To adopt a child from outside Canada can be expensive. You will need to find a licensed agency and budget for their fees, as well as the required Ontario homestudy assessment, mandatory parent training program and your travel and accommodation costs when you go to meet and bring your child back to Ontario. You will also have to submit an application to Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to get permission for your adopted child to move and reside permanently in Canada.
Be sure you work with a recognized and licensed agency – there are international laws that must be followed in order to legally adopt a child from outside of Canada. It is important to know that not all countries allow international adoption; IRCC maintains a list of countries with suspensions or restrictions on international adoption.
Adoption of a Relative
The adoption of a family member from within Canada, such as a stepchild or other relative, is called family adoption. If the child lives in Ontario the process looks a bit different than the other types of adoption. Family adoption is sometimes called kinship adoption.
If the child you are adopting lives in Ontario you may not have to do the training program or complete a home study assessment.
Adopting a relative from outside Canada follows the same process as international adoption.
The way you adopt a child can affect things such as the amount of time and money it takes to adopt a child. For example, a private or international adoption usually costs more than a public or family adoption.
The way you adopt can also affect the adoption process. For example, private and international adoptions are approved by the Ministry of Children and Youth Services. Public adoptions are approved by a Children’s Aid Society. Family adoptions, when the child being adopted lives in Ontario, are approved by the court.
If you chose a public, private, or international adoption, you must:
- take a parent training course, and
- get a home study
But if you are adopting a child living in Ontario from a family member, you usually do not have to do any courses or get a home study.
Before you adopt a child, think about things like whether you are ready to:
- give a child a secure, nurturing, and loving home
- make a long-term commitment to a child
- take on the responsibilities of supporting and raising a child
- start a multi-step adoption process
The adoption process is complex and can take at least a year and sometimes longer to complete. We will guide you through the adoption process.