Children eligible for international adoption will have at least some medical conditions noted in their medical file that are not considered "special needs" in the U.S. Families who apply to adopt from Korea will be matched with a child who has at least one noted medical condition that has either already resolved by time of match with a family or is under follow up and not considered a major medical concern. Common medical conditions include prematurity and related medical issues and delays, reported use of minor to moderate alcohol/tobacco use during pregnancy, hospitalization shortly after birth for issues that are now resolved, heart murmur (often resolved), heart conditions not requiring surgery, low birth weight, minor to moderate developmental delays, skin conditions, and potentially hereditary family medical history. Children adopted internationally are mostly boys, 6-12 months at time of match, and 18-30 months at time of placement.

The current timeframe from application to placement is 26-30 months.

Yes! While standard eligibility guidelines state that parents must be no older than 44 ½ at the time of application, if both parents are of full Korean-American heritage, one parent is a Korean adoptee, or if a family has previously adopted a child from Korea, we can accept your application until either spouse is 49 ½.

More boys are released for international adoption than girls, because Korean families tend to prefer to adopt girls domestically. All families must be open to adopting a child of either gender, and should expect to most likely be matched with a boy. Families cannot decline a child referral based on the gender of a child.

Child information is one of the tremendous strengths of the Korea adoption program. Since the program is so well established, there is generally a great deal of information available about the child, including the social history of the child's birth family. Children receive a well baby check every month and families can generally expect to receive updated photos of their child at varying intervals throughout the process (usually every 3-4 months). Families also receive copies of all medical evaluations and records.

Yes, both parents must travel for the first trip to attend the court hearing. One parent may travel for the second trip to complete the visa process and bring the child home, although an additional adult companion is recommended.

Holt can place children from Korea with families from all 50 states.