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Kaitlin Flowers
DeBock
English IV Honors
4 March 2015
Adoption Overseas
Overseas or International adoption is one of the many types of adoption in the world
today. Adoption is when an individual or a couple become the legal guardian(s) of a child who is
a national of a different country. Overseas adoption has become extremely popular since the end
of WWII. This sudden popularity is said to be due to all the orphans in the European and Asian
countries that were left bankrupt at the end of the war. A controversial question that has been
arising more and more in this day and age is; should we allow adoption overseas? The two most
common responses include: yes, the U.S should allow adoption overseas so that these children
can get out of bad circumstances. The next most common response is: no, Americans should
focus on our own country, because the U.S already many children here that need to be adopted.
Overpopulation of the foster care system and under adoption of natural born children has a direct
correlation to the increasing popularity of overseas adoption.
In the world of adoption includes many different types of adoption to choose from. The
different types include; private, foster care system, and international adoption. According to the
article, Approaches to Adoption, international adoption is on the rise ranking only about 10%
behind the leading choice of adoption; private or independent adoption. While the foster
adoption percentage is falling tremendously. Overseas adoption is said to have major problems.
According to the article Approaches to Adoption Corruption and abuse are common in

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overseas adoption due to the agencies not being well regulated. Since overseas adoption centers
are not well regulated corruption in other countries it is easy for normal people in that particular
country to try and abuse the adoption system just to make a quick buck. This is where child
trafficking can come into play. There have been cases where children are abducted or procured
illegally then offered as orphans for adoption or sale. Agencies in other countries not being well
regulated would already add to what would seem like the decline in overseas adoption, but it
obviously does not affect peoples desires to adopt overseas that much, because In 2004 more
than 23,000 children were adopted from about 90 different countries. (McCaffrey 1). Since these
risks are so vast it makes more since to just adopt from the American systems here that have less
potential of being corrupt.
The American government is also on board for the most part of trying to adopt in our own
country first rather go searching for orphans in another country. In the United States alone about
half a million children reside in foster homes and the number is growing rapidly. (Gossett 1)
This steady increase in the population of children in foster homes in increasing so much due to
not just the normal population growth were seeing around the world but the increasing popularity
of international adoption. The reason for this unexplained growth in international adoption first
started at the end of World War II. There were many orphans left in the economically depressed
countries of Europe and Asia, so naturally Americans decided to step in and try to help. Ever
since then overseas adoption has for the most part grown. Although this has not stopped the
American national government from preventing ways to limit international adoption. According
to the article, If Charity begins at Home, Why Do We Go Searching Abroad? Congress
implemented one plan called the Federal Adoption Tax Credit. It was designed for the sole
purpose of limiting international adoption. It attempted to do this by promoting adoption in the

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U.S and foster care. It gave people who adopted inside the country special rights that they
otherwise would not get if they adopted from overseas. For example, people who adopted inside
the country could receive benefits such as tax benefits and adoption assistance. Although this tax
seemed to promote adoption in the U.S there were others in America that still did not adopt
overseas. For example celebrities and Christians. Celebrities were big advocators of adopting
overseas. Since they are very much admired people follow them and want to do what they do
which in turn increases overseas adoption. Christians are also big advocators, because they are
the largest religion in America and they believe that it is their duty to cleanse these foreign
children and bring them to God. This is also a reason for the continuous increase of international
adoption.
Overseas adoption is on the rise, although the problems and risks associated with
international adoption are becoming more known then they were right after the Second World
War. The three most common problems associated with international adoption according the
article, Adoption from Foreign Countries: An Overview is its too expensive, time consuming,
and complicated. International adoption is much more expensive than domestic. When people
decide to adopt internationally they not only have to pay the normal fees for the child like they
normally would here in American, but they must also pay for their Visa not to mention its
required in most countries that the parents looking to adopt must pay several visits to the child
before it can be finalized and approved. Adopting overseas is also time consuming. While in
America it takes between 1-12 months it can take anywhere between 1-4 years internationally.
What makes overseas adoption so complicated is the extensive amount of legal adoption
requirements the particular person or couple has to go through. One last issue with international
adoption is according to Sexton and Geraldine is, children are less likely to feel at home in a new

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country. This is said to happen for several reasons. One of which is if the child is of a different
race than the parents they will have a hard time of feeling accepted at school and other activities
they participate in. It is also said that children adopted from overseas and brought into the U.S
could experience a lack of cultural identity which could cause problems for them in their future
when they try to find themselves.
Overpopulation of the foster care system and under adoption of natural born children has
a direct correlation to the increasing popularity of overseas adoption. Overseas adoption has
become a viable option for several reasons. Some examples of this is because there are big
promoters of international adoption and because of all the orphans that were left in Europe and
Asia after World War II. International adoption should be regulated more heavily. There are
millions of children in the U.S that need to be adopted so the need to search overseas is
completely unnecessary.

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Works Cited
Gossett, Duke D. "If Charity Begins at Home, Why Do We Go Searching Abroad? Why the
Federal Adoption Tax Credit Should Not Subsidize International Adoptions." Ebsco Host.
Lewis and Clark Law Review, Web. 19 Feb. 2015.

McCaffrey, Paul. "Approaches to Adoption." Ebsco Host. Points of View Reference Shelf, Web.
19 Feb. 2015.

Sexton, Jennifer, and Geraldine Wagner. "Adoption from Foreign Countries: An Overview."
Ebsco Host. Points of View: Adoption from Foreign Countries, Web. 20 Feb. 2015.