Letter of Intent So you've received the referral of your waiting child!!! Congratulations! This is such an exciting time in the process. Once you have decided to move forward with the referral, your agency will lock the file of your child. You will have 72 hours to submit a Letter of Intent, abbreviated as LOI. The official name for the LOI is the Care, Nurture, and Rehabilitation Plan. It is basically a letter that introduces your family, states why you want to adopt that specific child, how you will care for them, how you will provide for them and make sure they get the best future in life, etc... Although it's very helpful to view samples of this letter, it's important that you write your own LOI. This letter needs to come from your heart. You'll need to sign and date the original Letter of Intent that you draft (it needs to be a typed letter), and then send it immediately to your agency (also send a copy via email)! Your agency will submit the LOI through the CCAA electronic system. Within 1-3 weeks, you'll receive Pre-Approval! Let's look at some samples! Also, the LOI must include a statement that you, the adoptive parents, will comply with all follow up post placement requirements in a timely manner. Samples: Letter of IntentSAMPLE #1: Letter of Intent/Rehabilitation and Nurture Plan (LOI)NOTE: PLEASE do not copy any of these samples. You need to write your OWN ORIGINAL Letter of Intent. We respectfully request to adopt Ming Lu as our daughter from the People's Republic of China. We have read Ming Lu's file and have researched her medical condition, hydrocephalus, extensively. We are confident that we can provide the best home and medical care for Ming Lu. We live near the Children's National Medical Center in Washington, DC, which focuses specifically on children's medical issues. This hospital has a pediatric team that will work together to treat Ming Lu. Dr. John Miller is a neurosurgeon at the Children's National Medical Center in Washington, DC with experience treating hydrocephalus and has reviewed Ming Lu's medical file. Dr. Miller and the other doctors on the neurosurgical team will examine and evaluate Ming Lu as soon as she arrives home with our family and will begin any needed medical treatment immediately. The community where we live includes many Chinese speaking families. In addition to attending her neighborhood school we will enroll Ming Lu in Chinese school to continue her education in Mandarin language and Chinese culture and to make friends with other Chinese children. We will always foster a love for China in our daughter. If Ming Lu needs extra tutoring to learn English or to be on the same level as her peers in school, we will provide tutors to help her excel in school. Our family is very loving. We are the parents of a son who is almost 8 years old and a 3 year old daughter adopted from the People's Republic of China. Our son is a kind, caring andresponsible boy and is a wonderful big brother to his little sister. He is very excited to meet his new sister and to help her adjust to her new life with our family. Our youngest daughter will be so happy to have a sister from China. We will all give Ming Lu lots of love and attention. Mrs. Conner is a former school teacher and will stay at home full time to take care of Ming Lu and to make sure that she feels very loved and that she receives the best education and medical care. Mr. Conner is the President of his company and works hard to earn a good living for his family. Our family's income and assets will more than comfortably support Ming Lu and provide for her medical care, education and future inheritance. We, Adam and Anne Conner, will love Ming Lu as our own daughter. She will be treated the same as any biological child. We will not mistreat, abuse or abandon her. We promise to love her, care for her and always provide for her needs. We would like to thank the People's Republic of China for the opportunity to adopt Ming Lu. We feel very honored and are eager to welcome Ming Lu into our family and provide a happy and loving home for her. We respectfully request to adopt Ming Lu as our daughter from the People's Republic of China. SAMPLE #2: Letter of Intent/Rehabilitation and Nurture Plan (LOI) NOTE: This is the LOI that our family wrote for our Joshua from China. He is coming home in February 2011! To Whom It May Concern: We would like to thank you for the opportunity to adopt Wu, Huai Gang from The People's Republic of China. We are eager to welcome him into our family and provide a happy home for him. We have carefully reviewed Wu Huaigang's file and medical information and have consulted with a trusted family doctor regarding his conditions. We feel confident that we are well prepared to handle his special need and any other issues that may arise. We have several excellent medical facilities near to our home, as well as an emergency care hospital. Wu Huaigang will receive the highest quality of medical attention. We are the loving parents of five children, ages 20, 17, 15, 11, and 3. We have been through many experiences in the process of raising them and feel that we have a very good understanding of the basic skills needed to successfully parent a child. Two of our children are adopted from overseas, and we are extremely well prepared to parent children from other cultures. We have done extensive research on adoption and are well informed about possible issues that adopted children may deal with. Each one of our children has a unique personality and therefore different needs. We have learned how to take care and raise children with different needs during their different stages of life and have raised children from infancy to adulthood. Even though there are normal ups and downs in parenting, we find that being parents is one of the greatest joys in our lives. Mrs. Krause is a former school teacher and will stay at home full time to take care of Wu Huaigang. This little boy will be very loved and will receive the best education and medical care. Mr. Krause works very hard to earn a good living for his family. Our family's income and assets will more than comfortably support Wu Huaigang and provide for his medical care, education and future inheritance. Our current children are very excited about adopting Wu Huaigang from the People's Republic of China. Our family values the culture of China and looks forward to welcoming this little boy into our family. Both our older sons are greatly looking forward to having a little brother. We believe we would be good parents for a special needs child based both on our personalities and on the many experiences we have had in our lives. We are comfortable in the company of many people who have physical disabilities or problems. We are acquainted with many families that have special needs children and enjoy being around them. Our children are also comfortable and loving with people who have special needs. They have had many opportunities to interact with special needs children, and they have always accepted these invitations without reservation. We have witnessed their kind and accepting nature towards special needs children as they have visited and played together. We are confident that Wu Huaigang would be accepted into our family and loved unconditionally. We have also been preparing ourselves for bringing a special needs child into our family by becoming educated in dealing with medical conditions of these children. We have done considerable research on Wu Huaigang's special needs and feel well prepared to care for him. Our family is in extremely good health. We do not suffer from any diseases or conditions that prohibit us from living an active and normal life. We have been seen by our family doctors and found to be in good health. Our health insurance will pay for any medical needs that our child would face. We look forward to the opportunity of welcoming Wu Huaigang as our son into our family. We promise to love him and care for him, and never to abandon him. He will be given all of the same rights and opportunities as our biological children have enjoyed. We promise to provide him with a high standard of education and to ensure his success in his future life. We are eager to welcome Wu Huaigang into our family and provide a happy and loving home for him. We promise to comply with all post-placement and follow up guidelines set forth by the China Center of Adoption Affairs.Thank you for your consideration of our request to adopt Wu Huaigang from the People's Republic of China. You Might Also Be Interested In:Home PageStill learning about the Waiting Child Program? With so many options out there, it's important to be well educated about the various programs available to you and your family. Find out why I Do Not Recommend The Traditional (Non Special Needs) Adoption Program Already home from China with your beautiful child? Share your adoption story with those still waiting! It will be a great encouragement to those who are in the middle of the adoption process now. Every family adopting from the special needs program should read this article by Love Without Boundaries' Amy Eldridge! Copyright 2010-2012
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Breaking It Down
Getting everything straight in the crazy process of adoption is tough! The adoption process can be broken down into three distinct steps: the home study, dossier, and the post LOA/referral paperwork.
Home Study
A home study is basically an in-depth review of you, your family, your finances, and your home environment. Before United States Citizenship and Immigration Services can approve you to adopt from another country, they need to know something about you - do you meet the requirements, do you have a history of criminal activity or child abuse, are you financially stable, are you prepared for the issues that come with adopting internationally, how do your children feel about the adoption, etc. This is the first step in your adoption process.
Dossier
What is a dossier? The official definition is "a collection of papers containing detailed information about a particular person or subject (usually a person's record). In this case, the record is being compiled on the adoptive parents. In order to adopt a child from China, you will be required to collect a series of documents that tell the CCAA about you, your family, your health, and your finances. Although the dossier and home study are two separate steps in the adoption process, you should be working on them at the same time in order to make the fastest progress. Also, some of the documents needed for your dossier can also be used for your home study, cutting down on paperwork time for you. The medical health for you need for your dossier can be copied and given to your social worker for the home study so you don't have to go to the doctor twice. The same can be done for employment letters and financial information.
Post Referral/LOA Process
Once your dossier and home study have been completed and sent to China, and you have received the referral of your child, you begin the third and last phase of the process. You will begin completing all the paperwork that will classify your child as your immediately relative and approve him/her for an immigrant visa to the United States. This process culminates when you receive your Travel Approval and are able to go to China!