Adoption

Foster Care

Kinship Care

Infant adoption awareness Training

Abandoned Infants (AIA)
Assistance Nuestras Familias

Latino Family Institute receives funding from the California Department of Social Service (CDSS) Adoption's Bureau and will assist you in your kinship adoption process. Kinship adoption recognizes the importance of family ties. Through this grant, LFI offers a variety of supportive services to Kinship families. Our goal is to guide you through the adoption process. LFI also provides ongoing Post adoption services.

Adoption By Relatives

When adopting a child who is a relative, you are helping in a number of ways. Perhaps the most important is that the child is able to maintain family ties. In addition, the child's legal rights and responsibilities will be transferred to the adopting relative. Once the adoption is completed, supervision of the court or social services is no longer required; the adopting relative has all the authority and responsibilities of a parent.

The following will apply if you, a relative, decides to adopt:

• You will be assessed by the agency to make sure you can provide the child a safe and healthy home.
  
  
• You may be eligible for Adoption Assistance Program (AAP) payments and Medi-Cal for the child until the age of eighteen, or longer, if the child has certain medical conditions.
  
  
• You may sign legally binding Kinship adoption agreement to instruct the birth parents or other relatives on the contact they may have with your adopted child.

Kinship adoption Process

The following list of the documents that you will need to complete your Kinship adoption:

• Adoption application
  
  
• Release of Information Form
  
  
• Health Screening and TB test for all members in the home
  
  
• Letters of Reference
  
  
• Fingerprints
  
  
• Adoption Questionnaires 1 and 2

Once we have received your completed paper work, we will assign a Social Worker to conduct a home study. The Social Worker will interview all family members residing in the home. After the home study is completed, you will sign adoption placement papers to initiate the adoption finalization process. For adoption finalization process you may retain an attorney or complete the adoption paperwork yourself. LFI will guide you through all of the steps required.