Adopting a child who is over 18

With more than 30 years of adoption experience, our board certified adoption specialists can walk you through the process of adopting an adult.

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The many reasons to adopt an adult Adult adoptions are more common than ever, and they can occur in a wide range of situations. Adult adoption makes sense in other situations, including: Ease of inheritance: Adult adoption helps ensure that financial assets and property rights are transferred more easily to the adoptee. If the adult up for adoption is married, some states will want to have the consent of the adopted person's spouse.

Interestingly, adult adoptions are not always granted. Many are rejected because of a preexisting sexual relationship between the two parties. Since the courts are formalizing the relationship of parent and child; hence, any sexual relationship will prohibit the adoption.

Age differences might also can halt a proposed adult adoption. In most states, restrictions exist that require the adopting party to be older than the person adopted. Any suspected fraud will stop an adult adoption in its tracks. Fraud, alleged or real, could include someone asking a wealthy individual to adopt him or her in order to inherit property. If the adopting party doesn't fully consent or understand the act, the courts will likely suspect fraud.

Fraud can also relate to insurance, property, or marital issues. Anyone considering an adult adoption is advised to learn the laws governing adoptions in his or her state and to consult an attorney.

A full understanding of adult adoption and its effects is necessary before beginning the process of gaining or becoming a brand new son or daughter, no matter what your age is. Contents 2 min read. Read more. Family Law Basics. The cost of a name change varies depending on where you live and the type of name change you want.

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Starting a Business. As a business owner, you have many options for paying yourself, but each comes with tax implications. Perhaps a stepfather wanted to adopt a child but did not have the permission from the biological father. Or, a foster child ages out of the system, but the family wants permanent ties.

There are many reasons why an adult may be adopted, and it happens more often that you might think. We will cover the following in this article:. Often times, a stepparent wants to adopt their stepchild, yet the biological parent will not consent to the adoption. If the stepparent was more of a parent to the child than the biological parent was, the stepparent and child have the opportunity to make it official once the child reaches the age of Once the child is an adult, permission from a biological parent is not needed for the adoption to take place.

When you adopt your adult stepchild, they also become eligible to inherit from you as a legal heir. When an adult is adopted, the person adopting has no financial obligation of child support, so the official adoption is more a sign of a bond that is being acknowledged through legal means. Adopting your adult stepchild is more of a symbolic gesture to validate the bond between the stepparent and stepchild.

There are so many stepparents that play an active parental role when the biological parent is out of the picture. Sadly, many biological parents refuse to allow their child to be adopted by the stepparent, even though they know the stepparent is playing the active role.