Can I adopt my stepchild if we recently moved to Kentucky?

Yes. Kentucky has no waiting period for residents, so if you have moved to Kentucky and are living here, you generally don't have to wait before filing. Non-residents need 12 months in the state, which is why it matters that you are a Kentucky resident (KRS § 199.470).

What "recently moved" means for you:

• A Kentucky resident has no minimum time requirement to meet, so a move last month is treated differently from a move that hasn't actually happened yet.
• If you are still living elsewhere or splitting your time between states, your situation depends on facts. The Circuit Court clerk in the Kentucky county where you plan to file, or an attorney, can confirm whether you qualify as a resident.
• Kentucky law on exactly what proves residency should also be confirmed with the clerk.

Where you file: Stepparent adoptions are filed in Circuit Court. Kentucky has 120 counties, and each clerk's office can tell you its local filing steps and which county is right for your family.

What you'll want to prepare:

• A Petition for Adoption.
• Consent forms, or a motion to dispense with consent if a biological parent will not or cannot consent.
• Your spouse's consent to the adoption.
• Criminal background checks through the Kentucky State Police for adoption petitioners.
• Birth and marriage records. For Kentucky records, the Kentucky Office of Vital Statistics is the agency to contact.

Consent and the other parent: Kentucky sets the child's consent age at 12 (KRS § 199.500). If the other biological parent has had no contact for 90 days (3 months), that can establish grounds for proceeding (KRS § 199.502). Contested cases, or cases where the other parent can't be found, depend on the specific facts. For those, ask the clerk or an attorney. Kentucky allows service by sheriff or process server, or by publication if a parent's location is unknown after diligent efforts.

Home study: It is waived for stepparent adoptions in Kentucky (KRS § 199.473).

Timeline and cost: Stepparent adoptions in Kentucky typically take 3-6 months. Court filing fees generally run $150-$300, and the total typically comes to under $1,000, compared with $3,000-$5,000+ when hiring an attorney.

How we help: StepParent Adoption 360 is a document preparation service, not a law firm. You answer questions online, and we prepare the complete court document package for your county. You then file it yourself without an attorney. The price is $349 for the first child, plus $99 for each additional child. Court-ready documents are delivered within 24-48 hours after you finish the questions, and we back them with a 100% court acceptance guarantee. We have helped 501 Kentucky families, and 34,000+ families nationwide since 2001.