There are some circumstances in which families without an active home study can apply for a Gift of Adoption grant.
In the following situation, a home study is not required to complete the adoption and, therefore, not required in order to apply for a Gift of Adoption grant:
- Kinship/Relative Adoption– Gift of Adoption awards grants to help complete kinship/relative adoptions. Gift of Adoption only requires home studies for kinship/relative adoptions in states where a home study is required to complete the adoption. If your state does not require a home study to complete your kinship/relative adoption, you may apply without submitting a home study. Your attorney will need to provide you with a letter indicating a home study is not required for your adoption. Please contact grants@giftofadoption.org for directions on how to submit your application without an active home study.
Following are some situations where applications can be submitted without an active home study (but the home study will have to be completed before a grant can be released):
- Subsequent Adoption– we can provide grants to adopt a child where a family has custody of a child who was previously adopted or in a guardianship with another family but is being placed in a new adoptive home that is better suited for that child.
- Former Foster Child– we understand that former foster children often become adoptable after actively being in foster care and sometimes those adoptions are no longer covered by a state subsidy. We provide grants to families who are adopting a child who has previously been in foster care and is not eligible for an adoption subsidy, even if the prospective adoptive family is not yet home study approved to adopt or the home study for that family is no longer active.
Gift of Adoption can also provide grants to families with unique requirements to become certified or home study approved to adopt, including assistance to make the home compliant with state requirements (i.e. to secure pool fencing, etc.), or to secure a vehicle for families adopting a child in special circumstances (i.e. wheelchair accessible vehicles).
Generally (but not always), to be eligible for these type of Gift of Adoption grants without a home study
- The child being adopted is over the age of 1;
- The child is already in the care of or already been identified as adoptable by the prospective adoptive family;
- The prospective adoptive family is working with an adoption attorney/family attorney/foster or adoption agency/Department of Child Services social worker who can attest to the adoption opportunity and the financial need to complete the adoption;
- The adoption attorney/family attorney/foster or adoption agency/Department of Child Services social worker can attest that the home study is either not required to complete the adoption or that there is great confidence that the home study (when required) will be successfully completed and the adoption will be finalized.
- The prospective adoptive family must show financial need through documents submitted for review (recent tax return, recent check stubs for all reported income earners, detailed estimate of costs expected to incur to complete the adoption).
- All grants will be paid directly to a provider (attorney, agency, etc.) rather than the prospective adoptive family, where possible.
If you have questions about our process or would like to better understand the circumstances where a grant might be awarded without a home study, please contact us at grants@giftofadoption.org.
Application Fee Waiver Request
In rare circumstances, we can offer an application fee waiver. Fee waivers are typically only awarded if you have already been matched with the child you are adopting (or the child has already been placed with your family) AND the total cost of the adoption will be less than $14,000 AND your total household income is less than $65,000. Please complete the form here to request a waiver.