Can I adopt my stepchild who was born in another country in Indiana?

Yes. You can ask an Indiana Circuit or Superior Court to approve a stepparent adoption of a stepchild born in another country, and the Indiana steps below apply to your family. The data we rely on for Indiana doesn't change them based on where the child was born, so the court clerk in your county can confirm any detail specific to a foreign birth.

Where you file: Stepparent adoptions are filed in the Circuit or Superior Court in your Indiana county. Indiana has 92 counties, and the Circuit or Superior Court clerk in yours can tell you about local filing practices. The governing law is Indiana Code Title 31, Article 19.

Residency: Indiana has no minimum residency period before you can file (Ind. Code § 31-19-2-2).

Consent and the other parent:

• A child age 14 or older must consent to the adoption (Ind. Code § 31-19-9-1).
• If the other biological parent has abandoned the child, the abandonment period is 6 months (Ind. Code § 31-19-9-8). Whether your situation meets that standard depends on your facts, so ask an attorney or the clerk.
• If you can't locate the other parent after reasonable efforts, Indiana has a procedure for giving notice by publication.
• If the other parent lives abroad, the clerk or an attorney can tell you how notice works in your case.

Home study: Indiana waives the home study in stepparent adoptions (Ind. Code § 31-19-8-5).

Marriage length: Indiana doesn't specify a minimum length of marriage, but the court wants to see a stable relationship.

Foreign documents and the birth certificate:

• You will likely need the child's foreign birth certificate. Ask the clerk whether the court requires a translation or any other proof of the child's identity.
• Ask Indiana State Department of Health Vital Records whether, and how, a new birth record or a certified copy of the adoption order can be obtained for a child born abroad.

Immigration and citizenship: Whether an adoption affects your stepchild's immigration status or citizenship is a federal question, and Indiana's adoption statutes don't answer it.