China Update - sort of, not really

Many of you know that we applied to the China non special needs program in Fall 2005. At that time, the wait was less than a year. We were practically encouraged to go this route because we wanted to start a family soon and adoption through a domestic program could take 2 to 3 years. We have not let our paperwork expire because we believe we will someday bring home our daughter, Maggie Rose, from China. However, the wait continues to drag. That is why we have applied to domestic adoption programs. The following is information from a China adoption rumor site that gives more insight into the dismal state of the China adoption program. Comments are from the rumor web site.

The CCAA(authority in China that handles foreign adoptions)  recently sent a delegation out to visit, and the country they visited has shared some of what they learned from the CCAA.


What does this tell us that is important?

» The NSN program is not going to increase in numbers of babies available. The SN program is going to continue to be the main focus of the program.

» They say a minimum waiting period of four years – but that’s where it is now. I guess it’s just confirmation the wait isn’t going to decrease any, but we all pretty much knew that.

» The backlog is reported at being around 20,000. That’s an important number, but we keep hearing different figures from different CCAA people, so I’m not sure how reliable that is. Last year some very high up people at the CCAA were saying it was anywhere from 12,000 to 18,000, depending on who was doing the talking. I think it’s probably down around 15,000 to 18,000 at this point, but I don’t think we have any way of knowing for sure.

» It is troubling to me that they seem to be saying that, while they do intend to continue grandfathering people in under the old rules, they reserve the right to decline a particular family if they choose.

» We’ve heard hints of that last part before – of the CCAA taking on more responsibilities, and that there could be a name change involved.