In January 2007 the China Center of Adoption Affairs (CCAA) reported that it had approximately 24,000 dossiers from families waiting to be matched with Chinese children. Based on this large number of applications and fewer children being abandoned, the CCAA has changed its eligibility requirements for parents to adopt from China.

According to a letter from the CCAA, the following changes will take effect for dossiers registered/logged in by the CCAA after April 30, 2007:

• Married couples only.
• Couples must be married a minimum of two years, and couples with prior divorces must be married at least five years.
• Both spouses must be 30–49 years of age (up to 55 for families adopting children who are older or have special needs).
• Applicants must be "physically and mentally healthy" as defined by the CCAA. Any of the following conditions may disqualify an applicant:
  • A body mass index (BMI) of 40 or more (see this online BMI calculator), for either applicant.
  • Infectious disease still at an infective stage
  • Mental handicap
  • Blindness or severe vision impairment
  • Inability to hear or speak, unless planning to adopt a child with the same condition
  • Afunction or dysfunction of limbs or trunk caused by impairment, incompleteness, numbness or deformation; severe facial deformation
  • Severe diseases that require long-term treatment and affect life expectancy, such as cancer, lupus, kidney disease, epilepsy, etc.
  • A major organ transplantation less than 10 years earlier
  • A history of cancer
  • Schizophrenia
  • Taking medication for mental disorders (mild or severe), including depression, bipolar disorder and anxiety disorder, within the previous two years
• In addition to the requirement for the family’s income to exceed $10,000 per family member (including the child to be adopted), the family’s net worth must exceed $80,000.
• Each applicant must hold a high school diploma or equivalent.
• The youngest child currently in the home must be over 1 year of age.
• Applicants must have no criminal record.

All previous qualifications, such as no more than four children in the home, are still in effect.

International adoption is often subject to change but always focused on the needs of the child. WACAP has been finding homes for children for 30 years and has worked in China since 1990. Fortunately, in most cases, WACAP and adoptive families can adapt to changes as they occur and successfully complete their adoptions. The WACAP staff is here to help you as you move forward in your plans to adopt a child who needs a family.

Please contact us if you have questions about these changes. For further reading, please review these online newspaper articles.

Seattle Times, Dec. 20, 2006 (WACAP CEO Lillian Thogersen is quoted)
New York Times, Dec. 19, 2006
New York Times, Dec. 20, 2006