Immigrating the child will fall under one of three (3) processes:
1. Hague Convention:
Under this process your child will enter the U.S. with either an IH-3 visa (if you adopted your child in a Hague country) or an IH-4 visa if you are going to complete the adoption in the U.S.
2. Non-Hague Adoptions:
Under this process your child will enter the U.S. with an IR-3 visa if the adoption was finalized in the child’s home country and you saw your child during or before the adoption process.
If the child will be adopted in the United States, she/he will enter with an IR-4 visa.
3. Immediate Relative Process:
If you are in this process, it means you did not qualify for either The Hague or Non-Hague process.
Under this process you will need to file a I-130 (which is a petition for alien relative) after you have acquired two (2) years legal/physical custody of your child (this does not have to be legal/physical through adoption, it can be, for example guardianship).
The adoption, though, must be finalized before the child turns 16 years old (and if there is a sibling involved with the adoption, before the sibling turns 18).
Your child will then adjust status as an IR-2.
For more detailed information, see our Adoption Page.