HOPING TO ADOPT

At The Children’s Home of Pittsburgh & Lemieux Family Center, we want to help you turn your dreams of parenting into a reality. We are here to support you through the process of becoming parents through adoption. The decision to adopt can be difficult, often followed by long periods of heartache and disappointment. We are here to support you through the emotional experience of adoption.

Adoption is a lifelong commitment, and our program is designed to address the long-term needs of everyone involved. We provide you with as much background information on your adopted child as possible. We believe your adopted child will benefit by having a complete understanding of his or her adoption story. Whether it’s an open adoption, semi-open, or closed adoption, we understand that every situation is unique. 

About our Adoption Program

The Children's Home of Pittsburgh offers a comprehensive, domestic infant adoption program serving western Pennsylvania.

We are a state licensed, private, non-profit organization. We have been a licensed adoption agency since the 1930s and have completed more than 7,000 adoptions in western Pennsylvania.

The Children’s Home of Pittsburgh places an average of 24 infants each year. About half of our placements are Caucasian infants and half are African American or mixed-race infants.

All of our social workers have Masters Degrees and years of experience working in the field of adoption.

At The Children's Home of Pittsburgh, you will receive personal support from your family study social worker who will work with you throughout the process.

Our Adoption Process:

1. To get started, call our adoption department at 412-441-4884
2. Attend an orientation meeting (typically conducted 2-3 times per year. The adoption department will let you know the date of the next scheduled orientation)
3. Complete application materials
4. Family study – to be completed by a licensed social worker who is assigned to work with you throughout the process. 
5. Series of educational meetings on topics including: adoption law in Pennsylvania, talking to your child about adoption as he/she grows up, and the birthparent/adoptive family relationship
6. Develop your birthparent letter with the help of your social worker. This letter will help birthparents find you and will be presented to birthparents who come to The Children's Home of Pittsburgh to select a family to adopt their child. 
7. Ongoing support and guidance from your family study social worker throughout the adoption process; including placement, follow up visit, and beyond.
   

Who is eligible to adopt through The Children's Home of Pittsburgh?

• Adoptive families must live within a 70-mile radius of Pittsburgh and live in the state of Pennsylvania
• The Children’s Home of Pittsburgh accepts completed family studies for families who live outside of this radius only if they are adopting an African-American or special needs infant. 
• The Children’s Home of Pittsburgh does not discriminate on the basis of age, gender, religion, ethnic background, income, or race 
• There is no restriction on the number of children already in your family
  

What is the fee to adopt?

The total fee to adopt at The Children’s Home of Pittsburgh is $21,000. This fee is payable in three installments. The first installment is due after your application has been approved. The second installment is due after the completion of your family study. The third installment is due after a child is placed with you. Special arrangements are sometimes made for children with specific special needs, and scholarship money is occasionally available in those cases. All costs will be outlined for you in a written contract with no hidden fees.

Adoption Tax Credit Available to Adoptive Families

Parents who finalized an adoption in 2008 may claim a maximum credit of $11,390 for adoption expenses on their federal income tax returns. The tax credit phases out for taxpayers with high modified adjusted gross incomes. Although the tax credit is set to expire in 2010, proposals to make that benefit permanent have received much legislative support.

Qualifying expenses include necessary adoption fees, court costs, attorney fees, traveling expenses, and other expenses directly related to the adoption. Adoptive parents who plan to claim the credit should file Form 8839, titled Qualified Adoption Expenses, and attach it to Form 1040. For more information and other downloads to required forms, visit http://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc607.html.