International Adoption Services
Home Study
The adoption home study is a biographical history of the adoptive family. The Department of Human Services, State of Minnesota has specific requirements to be implemented by the adoption agency. There are additional requirements for families pursuing an international adoption.
Home Study Steps
- In-home visit by the IAS social worker
- Home study topics discussed with the family
- Documents required from the family
- Background searches for all states of residence since persons in the home reached the age of 18
- Training required – online through 3rd party entities
- Review of the home study draft by the primary agency
The entire process takes 4 – 8 weeks to complete, depending on your availability, time needed for background searches, and timeliness in submitting your documents to the agency.
Documents Required for a Home Study
- Birth Certificate for each adopting parent
- Marriage Certificate (if applicable)
- Divorce decree(s) (if applicable)
- U.S. passport for at least one spouse if you were not born in the U.S. and a green card for a second spouse if not a U.S. Citizen
- Financial Statement
- Most current 1040 – Pages 1 & 2
- Employment Verification – each adoptive parent
- Physician’s Reports – all persons residing in the home
- Reference Letters – minimum of 3
- IAS Post Placement Agreement
- Proof of Adopting Training
- Primary agency agreement with IAS
- MN DHS Individual Fact Sheet – for each adopting parent
- Background Search Reports
The international country will have a list of documents (called a dossier) gathered by the family. Many of the documents are the same as the documents you are collecting for your home study. Copies scanned to PDF of these documents can be sent to IAS by email attachment.