Canada has several agencies that offer grants for adoptions.
The need to pair orphaned children with families wanting to adopt is a constant cycle in Canada and many other countries. Interested families must undergo a plethora of paperwork and background checks and pay large sums of money before an adoption can go through. In Canada, there are certain grant options available to these families wanting to adopt, which can help alleviate expensive up-front adoption costs.
Cost of Adoption
A family going through the adoption process can sometimes expect to pay up to $20,000 to $30,000 up front. These up-front costs go toward expenses such as cost of travel, detailed reports and correspondence between Canada and foreign governments, international agency adoption fees and medical exams.
Unlike a loan, a grant is free money that the recipient does not have to pay back, which makes it doubly beneficial to a family who can't afford to go through the adoption process alone but wants to adopt a needing child. Since the pool of children and families in the process is so large, grants typically go to families in greater need, which is based on household income. Like any grant program, adoption grant companies have strict application processes and specific deadlines that must be followed.
Grant Agency Criteria
Canada has several agencies that offer grants to families wanting to adopt a child. Grants typically range from $2,000 to $10,000. The applicant should do research to determine the stipulations placed on adoption grants. This saves both parties time and will keep the applicant from seeking a grant with a company that does not offer grants that fall in line with their circumstances.
Typical grant program categories and circumstances that agencies consider include income need and amount requested; special grants for adoptions involving children with special needs; and the age of the child and whether or not they will be adopted with their siblings.
Notable Canadian Grant Agencies
The two most notable Canadian companies that offer adoption grants are Orphan's Hope: Kids to Canada and Embracing Children Humanitarian Organization, or ECHO. Both organizations depend heavily on volunteers, donations and fundraisers.
Orphan's Hope, founded in 2002, offers up to $10,000 to help parents adopt children from foreign countries in need of a family. Families must qualify for assistance, as the need is typically great. The company does not receive government funding, so it exists mainly by individual and corporate donations. Orphan's Hope says 93 percent of their donations are distributed directly to the needing family.
ECHO, founded in 2004, also specializes in international adoption. Unlike Orphan's Hope, ECHO is completely volunteer driven. The company follows strict guidelines for eligibility for grants to be given out per fiscal year.
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