Guatemala Adoption

The Program
Since 1993 CWA has worked diligently to place hundreds of children from Guatemala. Our Guatemalan adoptions are proceeding as well as ever with many children coming home each month. Birth mothers with an unplanned pregnancy contact attorneys for an adoption plan. These attorneys then refer the child to CWA for placement with a family. Once a family’s dossier is complete, including the USCIS approval, a referral of a boy can be two months or less. Referral of a girl can take from 3-5 months. Once a referral is accepted by the family, the total time for finalization of the adoption process is about six months. Then you can bring your child home! The adoption is completed by proxy (permission granted to attorneys through Power of Attorney from adoptive parent). By U.S. law it is necessary to readopt the child in the United States since the child is not seen by both parents before the adoption is completed in Guatemala. CWA has Spanish speaking staff in our offices. CWA’s Guatemala Program Director, Nancy Betancourt, speaks fluent Spanish and understands Latin culture.

The Children
Mostly newborns and infants are available for adoption, usually relinquished at birth. Babies typically go directly from their birth mother’s custody into private foster homes where they receive excellent care in a loving family setting. Occasionally older children are available. Immunizations are usually up to date on the children. Both boys and girls are available for adoption with faster referral time for boys. With a referral, families get photos and medical information of the baby as well as of birth mother.

Parent Eligibility
Couples between the ages of 25 and 55, with at least one parent under 50, and singles (both men and women) between the ages of 25 and 50 can adopt from Guatemala.

Travel
The Guatemala program offers easy travel for one or both parents. The trip is a short 4-5 day stay in the capitol city. Friendly English speaking facilitators will take the parents to all of their appointments. The hotels also have English speaking staff to help make your stay a pleasant one. For adopting parents that feel they cannot possibly travel, a child escort can be arranged to bring your child to the US, after being duly authorized by the USCIS. The escort authorization process by the USCIS could take up to an extra 30 days. Additional fees would be necessary.

Note: Due to the nature of international adoption, all information contained on this webpage is subject to change without notice.