General Information
Our Mission is to enable prospective adoptive parent(s) to achieve their dream of adoption as well as to provide nurturing, secure, loving and permanent homes for foreign-born orphans.
Adoption Horizons, Inc. is an Intercountry child placement agency, licensed by the Province of Ontario, Ministry of Children and Youth Services under the Intercountry Adoption Act of Ontario to facilitate adoptions from Russia.
Adoption Horizons, Inc. is a non-profit organization, originally established and created in 1995 by adoptive parents seeking to assist other prospective adoptive parents in the international adoption process. The Agency has considerable adoption experience, working with 55 to 60 families per year. As of January 2010, Adoption Horizons has facilitated the placement of more than 635 children.
In order to help ease new families into the adoption process, Adoption Horizons hosts a regular Support Group, run by adoptive parents who have already completed their adoptions and are looking to share their experiences. Members of these Groups gather every 2 or 3 months and work together to help make the adoption expereience more knowledgable and enjoyable. Anyone who is currently considering adopting from Russia is encouraged to attend one of these functions, the details of which are updated in the Announcements section on our homepage.
A post-adoption Support Group is also available. This group meets to help out families who have completed the adoption process and strive to discuss their experiences as well as assist each other with regards to different issues. This group is currently on hold.
Additional information is presented during Adoption Horizons' annual Public Information Meeting.
Irina Zaretsky, executive director of Adoption Horizons, began her career in adoption in Russia, her home country, and since then, has gained wide experience in both Canada and the Republics of the former Soviet Union.
Children available for international adoption from Russia reside in orphanages and are legal orphans. These children have been abandoned, orphaned or relinquished for adoption by their parents.
RUSSIA - Adoption Horizons started a program in Russia in August 1995, working with nine different regions. Russian legislation requires that all children available for international adoption must be registered for one month with the Regional Data Bank and for six months with the National Data Bank before they can be presented to foreigners. Russian legislation requires two mandatory trips to complete an adoption: first trip – to meet and establish contact with the child, second trip – to finalize the adoption. All international adoptions are processed by the Russian Regional Courts. Both parents must appear in court in the city where the child is residing.
Adoption Horizons will help you:
- Decide which country is right for you
- To provide you with child’s information (medical report and two pictures), if applicable
- Prepare your adoption files for the submission to the Government of the country of the child's origin
- Translate and legalize your adoption files
- Coordinate and facilitate the adoption process
- Arrange a Canadian Designated Medical Practitioner’s trip to the orphanage to examine the child for immigration purposes
- Make all the necessary arrangements for your traveling and lodging
- Act as a liaison between you, the orphanage, the foreign source and the foreign government officials until the adoption is finalized and you are back home with your adopted child
- Register your child with the consular authorities of the child’s country of origin upon your return
- Monitor, translate and forward post-placement reports to the child’s country of origin
All children identified for international adoption undergo a medical examination and blood tests for HIV and Hepatitis B prior to placement. Adoption Horizons will make every effort to obtain as much medical and social information about the adoptive child as possible. However, please bear in mind that information regarding the child’s health may be limited.
In order to meet Canadian Immigration requirements, the adoptive child must be examined by a Canadian Designated Medical Practitioner located in Russia. When all examinations are done you will receive a copy of the medical report.
Adoption Horizons has a flexible policy. You are under no pressure or obligation to accept the first referral. Our goal is to find the right family for every child!
Adoption Horizons will make all the necessary arrangements for your traveling and lodging. You can either stay with a host family or in a hotel. Translators, drivers and coordinators will be provided. A local adoption coordinator/interpreter with a driver will meet you at the airport as soon as you arrive in the country of your child's origin.
The Adoption Procedure:
- Applicants engage an approved adoption practitioner to prepare Homestudy
- Adoption practitioner submits Homestudy to Adoption Horizons, Inc.
- Adoption Horizons, Inc. reviews the Homestudy and submits it to the Ministry of Children and Youth Services
- The Ministry reviews the Homestudy, issues a "Letter of Recommendation" and forwards it to Adoption Horizons
- Applicants file a "Sponsorship" application with Immigration Canada
- Immigration Canada reviews/approves "Sponsorship" application and forwards a copy to the Canadian Visa Office in the country of origin of the adoption
- The Ministry reviews applicants' file and prepares a "Letter of No-Objection" and forwards a copy to Immigration Canada and to the agency
- Applicants gather the required documents and submit them to the agency
- Adoption Horizons notarizes, authenticates and translates the documents and sends them to the child’s country of origin
- Child’s social and medical information is provided (is applicable)
- Prospective parent receive invitation to travel to meet with a child (if applicable)
- Upon returning from the first trip applicants meet with approved adoption practitioner to review a proposal
- Canadian DMP examines a child and sends a report to High Medical Commission
- Applicants travel to the foreign country to attend a court hearing
- Post-placement reports are submitted
Adoption Horizons holds 2 cultural events throughout the year, which includes our Summer Picnic at the end of June and our Christmas Party in January.
We hope that this answers many of your questions. Our pledge to you is that we will do our best to get your child home in the least possible time.