GHANA ADOPTION OVERVIEW
All God’s Children International is one of five U.S. agencies authorized to provide adoption services for children in Ghana. The country of Ghana embraced the regulations of the Hague Convention in 2017, and AGCI is one of the only agencies with 3 Hague-accredited programs in Africa!
All God’s Children International works directly in partnership with Plusone Charities in Ghana. Although Plusone Charities is a relatively new agency, its executive director, Attorney Naa Adjorkor Mohenu, has been working in international adoption since 2013.
Approximately 3,500 children are living in over 139 residential homes in Ghana. Children enter care for a variety of reasons including poverty, abuse, neglect, and death or illness of a parent. Children may also enter care when they have a special need their family is not able to provide for.
- Most children available for adoption are between the ages of 5 to 14.
- All children eligible for adoption have medical conditions, are part of a sibling group, or are considered older orphans.
- Families adopting from our Ghana adoption program can select the gender of their adopted child.
- Timeframe: 17-36+ months. Timeframe is from registered dossier to completion. Timeframes are dependent on family’s openness to medical conditions, gender, and age of child.
- Complete a FREE Pre-App to view waiting children..
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WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO ADOPT FROM GHANA?
Age of Parents
Married couples and single women with Ghanaian citizenship must be at least 25 years of age or 21 years old in the case of relative adoption. There must be at least 21 years between the age of the younger parent and the child. The age limit for prospective adoptive parents at the time of placement is 50 years old and 65 years old in cases of relative adoption.
Marital Status
Couples married at least one year are welcome to adopt. Each spouse may have no more than two divorces, which will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
Children in Family
Couples with five or fewer minor children and single women with two or fewer minor children are welcome to adopt from Ghana. The youngest child in the home must be at least 3 years old at the time of application.
Income
Families must have an income of at least $15,000 per family member, including the adopted child.
Criminal History
Applicants with a criminal history will be assessed on a case-by-case basis
Medical History
Applicants cannot have a past or current diagnosis of a communicable and/or life-threatening disease or other condition that impairs their ability to parent and/or the quality of life of a child. All other medical conditions will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO ADOPT FROM GHANA?
There are so many ways to fund your adoption! You can learn more about AGCI specific grants, adoption loans, and employee benefits and more on our How to Fund Page!
AGENCY FEES
APPLICATION: This non-refundable fee covers the cost of a review of your application to confirm your eligibility for your desired program.
U.S. AGENCY*: The agency fee covers AGCI’s cost to facilitate your adoption with agency and government officials in both the United States and foreign country. Processing expenses for AGCI include, but are not limited to, personnel costs, administrative overhead, operational costs, staff training and education, state, federal, and international licensing and accreditations, communications and insurance.
PROGRAM FEE*: This fee provides care for orphans around the world and allows AGCI to provide the medical, emotional, spiritual, and developmental care that every child deserves.
POST-ADOPTION SERVICE: This fee allows us to provide post-adoption support services to your family and process post-adoption reports. *If adopting siblings, agency and 1st program fees increase.
HOME STUDY AND POST-ADOPTION
HOME STUDY SERVICES: These fees cover the services needed to prepare and complete your adoption home study. These fees vary depending on your home study agency.
POST-ADOPTION REPORTS: These fees cover the cost for your home study agency to provide post-placement visits and reports upon arrival home. These fees vary depending on your home study agency.
HOME STUDY REVIEW: All home studies will be reviewed by AGCI to ensure it meets all AGCI, USCIS, Hague, and sending country criteria. Home study and Post Adoption service fees are paid to your cooperating agency.
GHANA COUNTRY FEES & EXPENSES
These fees cover the cost of facilitating an international adoption in Ghana. These fees include, but are not limited to costs related to personnel, administration, training and education, legal fees and communications associated with government and agency authorities, government fees, and care of your child prior to the completion of your adoption.
ADDITIONAL & THIRD PARTY EXPENSES
Fee Disclosure: All fees paid to AGCI are paid in advance of service. AGCI fees are non-refundable and may not be waived. If services are terminated and a refund is due, all refunds will be processed within 60 days of withdrawal and/or closure of the adoption file upon receiving the Adoption Termination Contract.
GHANA ADOPTION PROCESS
STEP ONE
Once contracted with AGCI, your next steps are to begin your home study, education, and dossier.
STEP TWO
Once your dossier is registered, the Central Authority places families on their waiting list until a child is referred. Once information on the child is received, you will have two weeks to make an informed decision about accepting the referral of the child or children matched with your family. Wait times vary depending on your family’s openness to age, number of children and identified specialized needs.
STEP THREE
Parents travel to meet your child and finalize the adoption! In-country travel typically spans 11-18+ weeks.
STEP FOUR
Welcome home! AGCI and Ghana require post-adoption reports prepared by a licensed social worker to be submitted on the 3, 6, 12, 24, 36, and 48-months anniversaries of your child’s arrival into the U.S. AGCI is here for support throughout your child’s life—connect with us at any time for ongoing support services!
GHANA ADOPTION TEAM
AGCI partners with Plusone Charities in Ghana, which works directly under the authority of the Central Adoption Authority Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection.
