Lithuania is located in Eastern Europe, on the coast of the Baltic Sea. In the north, Lithuania borders with Latvia, in the east and south with Belarus, in the south-west with Poland and with the Kaliningrad region of the Russian Federation.  Generally, Adoption from Lithuania can take 1 year to 24 months to complete.  The process may be faster for children with special needs or older children. Many sibling groups are available for adoption.  Lithuania utilizes a referral system for adoptions by noncitizens, meaning that you will receive information about a child after your dossier is submitted.  An advantage of the Lithuanian adoption program is that prospective parents receive a good amount of information, pictures and sometimes video on the referral presented. 

 

Parent Requirements

Married couples under 43 may apply for adoption in Lithuania. There must be a minimum of 18 years between adoptive parents and child. Prospective parents should have no more than 1 previous marriage per parent.

Adoption Process

• The first step is a simple one ... fill out our registration form We will contact you with information about country programs and our services.  Our experienced consultants will assist you with all questions and concerns.
• Request an adoption contract from your consultant, complete it and send it in to our Illinois office with the initial fee.
• Your contract will be reviewed and approved by our director and then you will be assigned a caseworker to complete your adoption.
• Your caseworker will inform you of the steps needed to move forward with your adoption. Some of these steps include: submitting your petition to adopt an orphan from overseas (I600A form from the INS), starting your homestudy if you do not have one completed and collecting documents and completing forms needed for your adoption dossier.
• Once your dossier is complete, all documents need to be notarized and apostilled.
• Send in your notarized, apostilled, and complete dossier to your caseworker.
• Your caseworker will make sure the dossier is complete. She will then send the dossier to Lithuania and await your referral.

Travel

On your first trip to Lithuania you will meet the child and have an opportunity to ask questions about the child's health and disposition.  If you chose to accept the referred child for adoption you will sign papers committing to adopt that child and return to the United States.  You will be notified as to when you may return to Lithuania for court.