Adopting an Older Child From Indiana Foster Care – What You Need to Know

By: Grant Kirsh

When many people think about adopting from foster care, they picture an infant or a very young child. But the reality of Indiana’s foster care system is that the majority of children waiting for adoptive homes are older, school-age children and teenagers who have been waiting, sometimes for years, for someone to choose them.

At Kirsh & Kirsh, P.C., we have helped families complete nearly 3,000 foster care adoptions in Indiana. We are a family-run law firm based right here in Indiana, and we work with families across Marion County, Lake County, Allen County, Hamilton County, Tippecanoe County, St. Joseph County, Hendricks County, Elkhart County, Johnson County, Delaware County, Vanderburgh County, Porter County, Madison County, Vigo County, Monroe County, and beyond. Here is what you need to know about adopting an older child from Indiana foster care.

Why Are Older Children Waiting?

Older children in Indiana’s foster care system are often overlooked, not because they are harder to love, but because many prospective adoptive families do not know what to expect or feel uncertain about the challenges involved. That uncertainty is understandable. But it means that children who desperately need permanent families are often passed over.

The truth is that older children often have a remarkable capacity for connection, resilience, and growth when they are given a stable, loving home. Many families who adopt older children describe it as one of the most meaningful experiences of their lives.

What to Expect When Adopting an Older Child

Adopting an older child is different from adopting an infant, and it is important to go in with honest expectations.

They come with a history. Older children in foster care have experienced things, instability, loss, sometimes abuse or neglect, that have shaped them. That history does not disappear when they move into your home. It takes time, patience, and sometimes professional support to help a child feel truly safe and settled.

Attachment takes time. Do not expect an older child to bond with you immediately. Trust is built slowly, especially for children who have learned, through experience, that adults cannot always be counted on. This is normal. Give it time.

They have a voice. Older children in Indiana foster care are often able to participate in discussions about their own future, including their adoption. Their feelings and preferences matter and should be respected throughout the process.

What Are the Legal Steps?

The legal process for adopting an older child from Indiana foster care follows the same general path as any foster care adoption. The child is placed in your home, parental rights are terminated, which is involuntary in most cases, and the adoption is finalized in court. The timeline begins when the child’s permanency plan changes to adoption or a concurrent plan of reunification and adoption is established. Most of the time the Indiana Department of Child Services will require that the child be placed in your home for 6 months prior to them consenting to the adoption. This is a policy of DCS, not a law.

At Kirsh & Kirsh, P.C., we handle the legal side of this process for families across Indiana. We know the courts in every county and we will guide your family from the first placement through finalization day.

Financial Support Is Available

Indiana offers adoption assistance, referred as adoption subsidies, for children adopted from foster care who meet eligibility criteria. For all children, this assistance can help cover ongoing costs related to their care. An experienced adoption attorney can help you understand what your family may qualify for. The three adoption subsidies that all children in Indiana qualify for are: (1) a recurring adoption subsidy which is equal to the daily “per diem” rate paid to licensed foster parents when they foster a child, this amount is paid through the age of age and can be as little as $20/day to over $100/day for children with extreme special needs; (2) Medicaid for the child through the age of 18 years old; and (3) a non-recurring adoption expense of $2,000 to help cover the legal fees for the adoption attorney who handles the adoption.

Call us at 317-575-5555. Visit us at DCSAdoptions.com.

About the Author
Grant Kirsh is a second-generation adoption attorney and owner of Kirsh & Kirsh, P.C., a family law firm in Indianapolis, Indiana that has been serving Indiana families since 1981. Grant graduated from Indiana University McKinney School of Law in 2013 and has personally handled nearly 3,000 foster care adoptions and his law firm has handled over 5,000 private newborn adoptions. He practices all forms of domestic adoption, with a deep personal commitment to expectant mothers considering adoption in Indiana and Indiana’s foster care system and the families and children it serves.