When trying to get U.S. citizenship for your foreign-born child so they can return to the U.S. with you, you must follow some complicated, country-specific, and often not well-understood rules.
Marie is uniquely qualified to finalize adoptions for overseas Americans.
Call us to help you bring your child home to the U.S.
When trying to get U.S. citizenship for your foreign-born child so they can return to the U.S. with you, you must follow some complicated, country-specific, and often not well-understood rules.
Marie is uniquely qualified to finalize adoptions for overseas Americans.
Call us to help you bring your child home to the U.S.
U.S. citizens residing outside the U.S. often have unique avenues open to you to adopt a child, either from the country where you live or from another nearby country. However, obstacles can arise in finalizing the adoption to obtain U.S. citizenship for your new child. Often difficulty arises because your child comes from a country which grants only guardianships, often called a kafala, as opposed to final adoption decrees. This means the child will not be legally yours until you can obtain a final adoption decree.
Parents living abroad often do not have a legal state of residence in the U.S. where their adoption can be finalized. However, we can work with families from anywhere; residency in Washington is not necessary.
Here are some of the countries that award only guardianships where we have worked with families:
- Morocco
- Pakistan
- Afghanistan
- Jordan
- Algeria
- Haiti
- Democratic Republic of Congo
- India
- Ethiopia
- Ghana
- Indonesia
- Bangladesh
- Morocco
- Pakistan
- Afghanistan
- Jordan
- Algeria
- Haiti
- Democratic Republic of Congo
- India
- Ethiopia
- Ghana
- Indonesia
- Bangladesh
To apply for your child’s U.S. citizenship, you must have final adoption orders making you legal parents, not merely guardians. We have successfully converted foreign guardianship documents into finalized adoptions for dozens of families living overseas. We have also helped clients with children from Ukraine, China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Thailand, Japan, and others.
“I was referred to Marie as a non-resident U.S. citizen looking to finalize my childrens’ adoptions in the U.S. Our initial communication made me feel right at home, as she explained the whole process. Not only did she convince me that she knew what she was talking about, but she also provided little side commentary which showed her warmth. Whenever we hit a roadblock in planning, she was unfazed and immediately came up with another solution. Every time I wanted to bang my head against a wall, she talked me down and calmly offered an alternative scenario. It all worked out very smoothly and after months (years) of stress related to U.S. adoption finalization proceedings, it took a total of about two minutes at court. I am so grateful to her. I would hire her again if I adopted another child and will definitely refer others to her.”