Helping Families Adopt Orphans Act

Congresswoman Wilson Introduces the Helping Families Adopt Orphans Act Legislation

Congresswoman Heather Wilson today announced she has introduced the Helping Families Adopt Orphans Act, legislation to aid families adopting orphans from foreign countries.

The legislation would extend the validity of the I-171H "Notice of Favorable Determination Concerning Application for Advance Processing of Orphan Petition" form to at least two years.

This form is issued by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service, an agency of the Department of Homeland Security. It is the final form needed to adopt international orphans and is the ticket to adoption for many families.

The form is currently valid for 18 months, although the time needed to complete the adoption process has significantly increased over the last few years because of delays in travel approval, visas for orphans, and additional processing time to gain approval by foreign governments.