Adoption and Foster Care

Adoption and foster care can be great ways to start and grow your military family, but there are some aspects to both adoption and fostering that are unique to military life. Whether you’re just starting to think about adoption and foster care or have completed the process and have questions, you can depend on Military OneSource for both the guidance and information you need to make the process go more smoothly and for ongoing support of your new family.

Military families have six adoption options, including agency adoption, independent adoption, identified adoption (a blend of agency and independent adoption), open adoption (where there is communication between adoptive parents, the birth parents and the child,) intercountry adoption and foster care adoption. You’ll want to know the ins and outs of each option so you can think carefully about what kind of support you’ll need in the process.

Foster care provides temporary homes to children who are removed from their homes due to health, safety or other circumstances. Foster care is designed with the goal of reuniting families once the crisis or situation leading to foster care has been resolved. When reuniting children with their families is not possible foster children may be placed for adoption. An estimated quarter of a million children are placed in foster care in our country each year and there are not enough foster homes to meet the need.

Military families can play a critical role in helping foster children overcome challenging life experiences by providing a stable and supportive home environment through the foster care program in their state. There are a variety of different resources to assist military families who are exploring foster care opportunities.

The Military Family Readiness System offers an array of parenting and family support for the military community from in-person resources, like the New Parent Support Program and installation Military and Family Support Centers, to the wide variety of online resources, such as the Thrive parenting program and more. For an overview of parenting resources to support you at every stage, visit the Military OneSource Military Parent Resource Center.

Parents can also learn about the expanded military parental leave program. Service members may be eligible for 12 weeks of non-chargeable, paid parental leave to welcome a child into their family through adoption or long-term foster care.