Throughout the long and often confusing process of adopting a new member of your family, you may have questions. The role of the adoption facilitator is to help you through parts of the adoption process so that you don’t feel alone in your journey.
What Adoption Facilitators Do
An adoption facilitator’s role is to help prospective families find a birthmother. Facilitators are responsible for establishing the initial connection between the two parties and will then require a fee from the adoptive family to cover the cost of making that connection.
In most states, adoption facilitators aren’t required to be licensed. Not having a license reduces what all a facilitator can do. Because of this though, adoption facilitators are able to focus on one specific area of the adoption process. They will often have a vast network of contacts and birthmothers and know the right questions to ask to make sure the birthmother and family are a good match for one another.
Difference From an Adoption Agency
Adoption facilitators are an alternative route one can take rather than going through an adoption agency to make the connection with a birthmother. Adoption facilitators are often quicker at making that connection than an agency would be because of the smaller client base.
However, because facilitators are not licensed to handle the entire adoption process, once a connection has been established with a birthmother, families will need to consult an adoption agency or adoption attorney to work through the rest of the process. Adoption agencies are equipped and licensed to handle the entire adoption process, from start to finish.
If you are wondering what the perks of hiring a facilitator are, it’s that these individuals usually have a wider array of connections and networks with birthparents and can thus hopefully make a more agreeable connection in a shorter amount of time.
Is a facilitator right for me?
This is a question that you will have to answer. Consider the pros and cons of an adoption agency, facilitator and attorney to decide which is best for you. These options will not only vary in cost, but in the services that they can provide you. For more information on adoption agencies, check out some articles on our website.
It’s also important to note that adoption facilitators are not legal in every state because they do not need a license to do their work. The states that allow adoption facilitators are Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Washington DC, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Wisconsin, Washington and Wyoming. However, laws are subject to change, so speak with an adoption attorney to make sure that using an adoption attorney is legal in your state.
Be sure to talk to a facilitator before enlisting his or her services. Discuss price and what he or she can offer to you. Feel free to reach out to someone who has used the services of an adoption facilitator in the past to hear their opinion.
