Children Available for Adoption from China

The majority of children from China available for adoption are girls, although boys are occasionally available.

The children that are available for adoption Children are as young as 3 months through approximately 13 years of age.  Typically the majority of the children are not younger than 7 months.  INS Immigration Statistics for 2003 indicated that 95% of the adopted children were girls with 49% under one year of age and 48% between 1-4 years of age.  While the great majority of Chinese children available for adoption are girls, occasionally a healthy male infant will be referred to a family for adoption. In addition to healthy children, children with special needs are also available for adoption.

In comparison to other underdeveloped countries, the overall health of Chinese orphans is exceptional.  Chinese children have been well cared for and are generally healthy. Birth mothers typically live a simple life and many of the babies adopted from China are in much better health than those coming from other countries. Neither Fetal Alcohol Syndrome nor Syphilis is problematic in China.  Developmental delays due to lack of stimulation is one of the major health issues seen in children eligible for adoption, but the Chinese children frequently catch up quickly once they start receiving one-on-one attention from their new parent(s).  As in many third world countries, the child may suffer not only from developmental delays, but also from malnutrition and effects of being institutionalized. However, due to the placement of children at a relatively young age, bonding and attachment disorder issues are less common than in countries where children are institutionalized for long periods of time.

Since the China Center of Adoption Affairs, China's governmental body, oversees all adoptions, the status of each child who has been orphaned or abandoned is carefully screened and determined before a child is referred. Abandoned children are given such status upon completion of a thorough search for the birth parents, as instituted by the Civil Affairs Bureau in China. Because of this scrutiny there is never a threat of a birth parent seeking custody of the adopted child in the future. Additionally, adopting families never have to worry about an adoption going through after a child has been referred to them.