| Children Available for Bulgaria Adoption | Bulgaria Adoption Requirements | Bulgaria Adoption Timeline |
| Bulgaria Adoption Cost Overview | Bulgaria Adoption Process |
Request your Free Outreach Guide to learn more about Bulgaria Adoption today!
About Bulgaria
Bulgaria, home to nearly 8 million people, is located in Southeastern Europe on the Balkan Peninsula, bordering the Black Sea. It has existed for over 13 centuries, proving to be an integral part of Europe's history, and is now a member of the European Union, NATO, and the United Nations. Its neighbors include Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, and Greece and Turkey to the south.
Known for beautiful climates and landscapes, from the deep, blue-water beaches of the Black Sea to the snow-capped Alpine peaks of the Balkan Mountains, Bulgaria is an often overlooked tourist destination of Europe. It even hosts 9 UNESCO World Heritage sites throughout the country, ranging from ancient tombs to pristine national parks.
Nestled in between several picturesque mountain ranges and boasting elegant architecture, Sofia, Bulgaria's capital, is home to 1.2 million of the country's people and is a key city in the global economic system. Although the national language is Bulgarian, thanks to its tourism, a fair amount of the population speaks English, especially in large cities like Sofia and tourist-filled areas.
Governance of Bulgarian Adoptions
Bulgaria is party to the Hague Convention, and adoption is governed by the Ministry of Justice. Americans adopted 15 Bulgarian children in 2009 and 40 Bulgarian children in 2010. The number of adoptions each year is quickly rising as the Bulgarian government has streamlined its inter-country adoption process to better serve the country's orphaned and abandoned children. CAN expects 2011 to be a great year for helping many Bulgarian children find their forever families!
Children Available for Bulgarian Adoption
The children available for inter-country adoption in Bulgaria are between 1 and 17 years old, however, the average age of a child at referral is 4-5 years old unless parents wish to wait a bit longer to be referred a younger child. Special needs and older children, as well as sibling groups are also desperately in need of loving homes.
When selecting a child(ren), consider that you may adopt the following:
- Children aged 1 year to 16 years
- Children with special needs of all ages
- Sibling groups of two or more children
Children may be eligible for adoption due to being orphaned, relinquished by their parents, or abandoned for reasons of poverty, domestic violence, a stigma of single parenthood or mental/physical disabilities of their parents.
Bulgaria Adoption Requirements
In addition to the USCIS eligibility requirements for prospective adoptive parent(s), Bulgaria has the following adoption eligibility requirements. If you feel you are not eligible to adopt from Bulgaria, or you are unsure, we may be able to work with you. Please contact us for a free case-by-case consultation regarding your Bulgaria adoption.
- Citizenship: One adoptive parent must be a U.S. citizen.
- Age: Adoptive parents must be at least 25 years of age. The parent must be at least 15 years older than the adoptive child.
- Previous Children: There is no limit to the number of children already in the home.
- Marriage Status: Married couples are eligible to adopt. There are no prior divorce restrictions. Single parents are eligible to adopt children of either gender.
- Income: There is no minimum income required. However, you need to meet the income requirements provided by USCIS for the child to immigrate.
- Medical History: There are some medical restrictions. If you have a medical condition, please contact our adoption consultant to determine your eligibility.
- Criminal History: Applicants with a criminal history of child abuse, violence or domestic violence are not eligible to adopt.
Bulgaria adoption eligibility requirements are subject to change per Bulgaria's adoption laws. CAN updates these guidelines as necessary.
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Bulgaria Adoption Timeline
The time frame to complete an adoption from Bulgaria greatly depends on the age of the child you wish to adopt. Essentially, if you would like to adopt an older child or a child with special needs, you will experience a shorter wait time for your referral. For these children your wait could be less than one year for a special needs child, and less than 18 months for a child over 7 years old. More details on the wait time are available in our CAN Outreach Guide, and you may also contact CAN for the most current wait times.
The younger the child is that you are wishing to adopt, the longer your referral time will be. Healthy children 3-7 years old are usually referred in less than 2 years; healthy children under 3 years old are referred in approximately 2.5 years. The total adoption process time can vary depending on the time families take to complete their dossier paperwork, their preferences for age and gender, and country processes. This time frame is subject to change; please consult CAN for the most current processing times for your adoption from Bulgaria.
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Bulgaria Adoption Cost Overview
To give you a general understanding of adoption costs for Bulgaria, the following list outlines fees paid directly to CAN, fees paid for in-country adoption development and legal processes through CAN, and fees paid for your Home Study and Post Adoption reports. All listed fees are a portion of your adoption costs and are subject to change without notice. Please request our Children of All Nations Outreach Guide for a full list of estimated costs for your entire Bulgarian adoption.
Our Bulgarian adoption fees are among the lowest available. We strive to keep costs low so that we may help as many children as possible find their loving, forever family.
 |
Application Fee | $250 |
| (Opens your file to review and determine eligibility for adoption from your preferred country) | ||
|
CAN Professional Service Fee | $5,500 |
| (Provides families with personal consultation, instruction and support at every stage of the adoption process) | ||
|
Foreign Adoption Program Fee | $3,000 |
| (Allows CAN to work with foreign governments for program development) | ||
|
Legal and Facilitation Fee (Complies with foreign country document translation and obtains legal representation) | 6,000 Euros |
|
Home Study Fee (Home Study Update is not included) | $1,200 |
| (Assesses your readiness for international adoption. This amount is only for families residing in Texas. Fees for Home Studies conducted outside of Texas vary.) | ||
|
Post Adoption Fee | $1,200 |
| (Evaluates and provides 4 reports on how the adopted child is doing with the family. This amount is only for families residing in Texas and Florida. Fees for Post Adoption Reports conducted outside of Texas and Florida vary.) | ||
Don't forget that the IRS offers a Tax Credit of $13,170 to adoptive families.
CAN offers our families a Dossier Preparation Service to ease their adoption paper chase and to give assurance that their dossiers are correctly assembled for submission. CAN also provides Online Hague Parent Education Courses to help adoptive parents meet the minimum credit hours required by the Hague Convention. These services, along with the other amenities available to CAN families, are designed to make your international adoption process as effortless and enjoyable as possible. These fees are not included in any item listed above.
The international adoption process requires proper document preparation, filing and approval with the USCIS. Adoptive families are responsible for paying the set fees associated with each step. International adoption also involves traveling to the foreign country from which you are adopting. Travel costs include airfare, accommodations, meals and ground transportation, in addition to the requirements for your child(ren)'s entry into the U.S. (a visa and its required medical exam, as well as airfare). All fees are set by and are paid to third parties and may vary from case to case. These fees are not listed above.
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Bulgaria Adoption Process
1. Application and Approval
To adopt a child(ren), please complete our agency application. For your convenience, you may access the application online. We will promptly review your eligibility to adopt from Bulgaria once we receive your application. If approved, we will provide you with our agency contract that outlines our fees, services and important information regarding the Bulgaria adoption process. Upon receipt of your signed contract, CAN will start to provide you with placement services for children from Bulgaria.
2. The Paper Chase
Once your agency contract is in place, it is time to start assembling your dossier. This will include a home study, which will assess your readiness for international adoption from Bulgaria and help prepare you for adoptive parenthood, filing with USCIS for international adoption approval, and gathering your dossier documents. All dossier documents must go through the appropriate notarization, certification and authentication processes before being sent to Bulgaria. We offer a complete Dossier Preparation Service to ease your international adoption process and give you peace of mind.
To ensure that prospective adoptive parents are prepared for their international adoption journey, our agency requires that parents complete 10 hours of adoption training as mandated by the Hague Convention. To satisfy these hours, we have developed an online parent training program that we are proud to include in CAN's service plan. For an overview of the program, please click here. Please contact us for more information regarding adoption from Bulgaria.
3. Identifying a Child(ren)
Once your dossier is approved by the Bulgarian government, you will be placed on a registry of adoptive parents wait list according to your age preferences for a child. Then the Ministry of Justice in Sofia, Bulgaria will identify a child(ren) based on your preferences for gender, age and health status. You will then receive an invitation to come to Bulgaria, meet your child and accept your referral. Once the referral is accepted, the Ministry of Justice will approve the adoption and forward your case to the court.
4. Picking up Your Child(ren)
You will be required to make two trips to complete the adoption process. Each trip is approximately one week, and you must spend at least 5 days with your child during the first trip, as well as travel to the orphanage where your child lives, speak with the orphanage caretakers, and accept your referral in person. During both trips, you will be guided by one of our experienced in-country representatives. After you've accepted the referral, and the court process is complete, you will return to Bulgaria for your second trip to finish the visa process, finalize your adoption, and bring home your child. CAN and our Bulgarian representatives will assist you with your travel preparations, scheduling your flights and arranging accommodations. We will also ensure that, again, while you are in Bulgaria, an experienced guide will be with you every step of the way on your adoption process.
5. Post Adoption Requirements
Bulgaria requires that you submit four post adoption reports at 6, 12, 18 and 24 months following your return home from Bulgaria. These reports demonstrate to the Bulgarian government the benefits of international adoption for their children. CAN's post-adoption staff will guide you through the post-adoption process. You can now begin your new life with your children!
