Adoption is incredibly important because it gives over 110,000 children each year a loving, nurturing and safe family environment, which is something they are unlikely to have had otherwise.
But as any parent will tell you, raising a child is expensive (the average family spends just over $310,000 to raise a child in the USA to be specific).
Given this cost, it’s not surprising that a common question among potential applicants is do you get paid for adoption?
Contrary to popular belief, adoptive parents do not usually receive money for adopting a child.
But have you heard about non-biological parents getting monthly checks or other financial support to help raise a child?
If true, doesn’t that contradict what we just said?
Let’s take a look.
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Do You Get Paid When You Adopt A Child?
People without children may not realize that the cost of raising a child can really add up quickly – from diapers (expect to pay $2,000 in the first year alone) to bigger ticket items like bassinets, cribs and baby monitors, having a family is expensive business.
So people thinking about the process may naturally ask: do you get money for adopting a child?
How much do adoptive parents get paid you ask?
Typically the answer is zero, and in fact the opposite is true, because the cost of a domestic abortion in the USA can range anywhere from $20,000 to $45,000.
Adoption has a range of benefits because it provides a loving, safe home to children in need, and enables the 10% of women who have trouble conceiving, and the 10% of all males who suffer from infertility, the chance of having a family.
However, getting paid or receiving money for adopting a child is not part of the process, even in you are single.
So you should realize the process will likely cost you more than having a biological child, especially if the adoption is via a private agency and you factor in the costs above.
Do You Get A Monthly Check When You Adopt A Child?
We’ve seen that you will not get a one-off payment for adopting a child, but what about monthly payments or stipends?
The answer is the same – parents who adopt a child do not get a monthly check or regular payment simply because they rehomed a child.
The confusion as to why some non-biological parents get monthly parents and some do not comes down to fostering vs adopting.
Let’s take a look at both to help clear things up.
Fostering
Legally speaking, a foster child is a ward of the state, and not the legal son or daughter of their foster parent.
This means they are the state’s financial responsibility, unlike an adopted child (see below).
If you decide to foster a child, you will receive a relatively small stipend or monthly payment from the government, which is designed to help with the cost of caring for the child.
It’s worth noting that the amount received is fairly small, and if the money is spent as it should – on caring for the foster child – then foster parents certainly won’t be able to make a profit from this arrangement.
Adopting
It’s worth remembering that adoption and fostering are two very different things.
This is because after the process is finalized, there is absolutely no difference legally-speaking between an adopted child and a biological child.
The parent(s) of an adopted child are therefore financially responsible for their son or daughter, just as they would be if the child was biologically their own.
Adopting a child is essentially a way of becoming a parent, and taking on everything that parenting involves, from the good to the bad and to the expensive!
When looked at in this way, it’s easy to see why parents do not get paid for adopting a child, and why parents do not receive any monthly checks or other stipends to help with the cost of raising the child.
Conclusion
- Parents do not get paid to adopt a child, and do not receive monthly payments to help offset the cost of raising their adopted son or daughter.
- The confusion often comes down to foster children vs adopted children.
- As a foster child is the ward of the state, they are technically under the care of the government, and it is therefore the government who is financially responsible for them until they become an adult.
- Foster parents therefore receive a monthly payment to help offset the costs of caring for a foster child.
- This differs to adopted children, who become the financial responsibility of their new parents once the process is complete.
- Adopting a child is a way of becoming a parent, and taking on everything this involves, and when the situation is viewed in this way, it’s not hard to see why you do not get paid, and why you don’t get a monthly check when you adopt a child.
See Also: Navigating Your Child’s Early Development