What are Mississippi's adoption laws?

Mississippi adoption law is found in Mississippi Code Title 93, Chapter 17, and adoptions are handled by the Chancery Court in the county where you file. Here are the main points for stepparent families.

Court: Your petition goes to the Chancery Court. Mississippi has 82 counties, and each has its own Chancery Court clerk who can confirm local filing details.

Residency: Miss. Code § 93-17-3 sets a 6-month residency requirement.

Who can adopt: Mississippi requires adopting parents to be at least 21 or at least 10 years older than the child.

Child's consent: A child who is 14 or older must consent to the adoption (Miss. Code § 93-17-5).

Abandonment: Mississippi's abandonment period is 12 months (Miss. Code § 93-15-103). If your situation involves a parent who has not been in the child's life, how that applies to you depends on your facts, so ask the Chancery Court clerk or an attorney.

Termination of rights: Mississippi does not treat this as a separate proceeding. It is handled within the adoption case.

Home study: A home study is waived for stepparent adoptions (Miss. Code § 93-17-11).

What the paperwork involves:

• A petition for adoption
• Consent forms, or a motion to waive consent
• Your spouse's consent to the adoption
• Service on the other parent, either personally by a sheriff or process server, or by publication if that parent's location is unknown

If the other parent will not sign, cannot be found, or objects, the process depends on the details of your case. An attorney or the Chancery Court clerk can address that specific issue.

Timeline: A stepparent adoption typically takes 3-6 months. An adult adoption typically takes 4-8 weeks.

Adult adoption: Mississippi permits it. The adult being adopted must consent, and if they are over 14, that consent must be sworn or acknowledged. A married person's spouse generally joins the petition. For a consenting adult, the chancellor may waive some petition and procedural requirements, including the home study. Whether the court will waive them is the chancellor's decision, so confirm the details with the clerk.

Cost: Court filing fees run about $150-$300. The total cost of a stepparent adoption handled without an attorney is typically under $1,000, compared with $3,000-$5,000+ for attorney representation.

After the adoption: Once the adoption is final, the Mississippi State Department of Health Vital Records is the agency to contact about birth certificate records.

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 (or one adult adoptee) and $99 for each additional child.