http://www.adoption.state.gov/country/china.html .
Adoption of children from China to the United States began in 1992, when the Chinese government passed a law ratifying international adoption. In 2009, Americans adopted 3,001 children from China, the largest number from any country outside the U.S.
The average age of children adopted from China is 11 months. Over 90% are girls, because of China's population control policies.
One child adopted from China was found with a note that read: "In our countryside, the thought that man is more important than woman is very popular. I don't have the strength to overthrow it."
From : http://www.adoptivefamilies.com/china_adoption.php
Number of Adoptions from China:
2009: 3,001
2008: 3,911
2007: 5,453
2006: 6,493
2005: 7,906
2004: 7,044
2003: 6,859
2002: 5,053
Age/Gender of Children Adopted From China in 2006
Source: INS Immigration Statistics
91% Female
44% under 1 year of age
52% 1 – 4 years of age
Estimated Cost: $20,000 to $25,000
Profile of Children: 91% girls; 44% under the age of 1 at the time of adoption (2006); all children eligible for adoption must be legally resident in one of ChinaÕs child welfare institutes. Some use of foster care.
Travel: At least one parent must travel to China to adopt. Average stay is 10-14 days. U.S. visa issued at consulate in Guangzhou.
Timeline: From completed dossier to referral, approximately 30 to 36 months, although agencies report lengthening wait times due to backlog of dossiers. Travel is normally three months after referral.
Family Status: Married couples only. Married a minimum of 2 years if a first marriage; 5 years if second or third marriage. No more than 2 previous marriages allowed for either spouse. No more than 4 children living in home. Both spouses must have H.S. diploma. Additional requirements regarding health, legal history, and income have also been put into place. Click here to read the full, verbatim text of CCAA's new guidelines.
From: http://www.adoptioninstitute.org/FactOverview/international.html :
China Adoption Policies and Procedures
In October 2001, concerns about timely processing of large numbers of adoption applications led the China Center of Adoption Affairs (CCAA) to develop new policies restricting the number of applications by U.S. agencies. For 2002, each agency has an application quota based on their average number of adoptions for the years 1998 to 2000.
Additionally, China has limited the number of single parent placements for each agency to only 5% of an agency's adoptions.
The October 12, 2001 letter from the China Center of Adoption Affairs to U.S. adoption agencies which officially announced China's new adoption restrictions to the U.S. is posted on the Families with Children From China website, http://www.fwcc.org/quotas.htm.]
One reason internationally adopted girls far out-number boys is that children from China now constitute more than one-quarter of the children adopted internationally by U.S. citizens and most of these Chinese children are girls.
