Top Ten Factors to Consider When Adopting from Taiwan

1. The Parents

Prospective parents must be 25 to 50 years old. Each parent must be at least 20 years older than the child. If one of the adoptive parents is between 50 and 55 years, the family needs to be open to adopting a child (or children) at least 5 years old or older, but in some cases, at least 7 years old or older, or a child with moderate/severe special needs. Couples must adopt jointly.

Single persons are eligible in certain cases, and it’s crucial to review the specific requirements with your placement agency. In May 2023, Taiwan’s legislature amended the same-sex marriage law to allow same-sex couples to adopt children to whom they are not biologically related. For clarity and applicability to your specific case, please review the policies with your placement agency.

Couples must be married for at least 2 years and, in some cases, at least 5 years, with no more than one divorce each in their history. Again, your agency will give guidance on these cases. Prospective parents must have no criminal record interfering with their ability to parent an adoptive child (such as child abuse, sexual abuse, or domestic violence).

The Taiwan program requires that prospective parents be in good physical health, with no record of drug or alcohol abuse. Parents with a history of mental health issues (anxiety, depression, etc.) will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Prospective parents must meet the USCIS requirements and prove their ability to support an adopted child.

2. The Family

For those wishing to adopt a younger child with minor health issues, there can be no more than two children in the home already. If you choose a Waiting Child, you can have no more than five children already in the home. And your youngest child at home must be at least one year old at the time of application to the Taiwan program.

3. The Kids

In addition to meeting the USCIS requirements that prove a child’s status as an orphan, Taiwan requires proof of relinquishment or abandonment by the child’s birth parents if they are still living. Prospective parents are generally unable to adopt a child known to be a relation by blood or marriage.

Taiwan has an excellent social welfare system and tries to reunite children with their birth families or place them with adoptive Taiwanese families. Taiwan’s Waiting Child program is for children with identified needs. The standard program (where birth parents get matched with hopeful adoptive parents) is not consistently available and always involves a longer wait than the Waiting Child program. If you are only interested in the standard program, please get in touch with your chosen adoption service provider (ASP) for current availability and requirements.

In the Waiting Child program, both genders are available for adoption from Taiwan. In 2023, about 44% of the children placed were boys, and 56% were girls. The children in the Waiting Child program range in age from 2 to 15 and have varying levels of special needs.

It is essential to expect every child to have some developmental delay and a complicated birth family history. Typically, they enter care due to neglect, abuse, abandonment, and other complications in their birth family that prevent appropriate care. You can read more detailed information about The Needs below.

The youngest children placed for international adoption from Taiwan are typically between 2 and 5 years old. However, the majority of the kids placed in recent years are between 5 and 12 years old. Sibling groups are available but only to couples. The child welfare ministry often places the children in specialized care or with foster families while they wait for adoptive placements.

4. The Process

Taiwan’s social welfare programs are robust and keep detailed, accurate records of the children in their care. Further, they are committed to adhering to the child profile information prospective parents outline in their home study and dossier. Prospective parents can expect referrals to reflect what they submit for consideration in that profile.

Taiwan is NOT a party to the Hague Convention. We recommend choosing an adoption service provider with a well-established, reputable Taiwan adoption program. You will begin the adoption home study process once you have applied and are approved to work with your chosen agency. The home study will include (both agency- and country-) required training, interviews, and home visits.

Upon completing the home study, you apply for approval to immigrate the child you will be adopting to the US (Form I-600A) from USCIS, along with your home study and supporting documentation. While waiting for I-600A approval, you can gather your Preliminary Packet, which includes the approved application, home study report, and family photos.

When the child welfare institute notifies your agency of a match for your family, you will receive the child’s social and medical history and sometimes pictures. Once you accept the referral, you can complete the dossier preparation. Your adoption service provider (ASP) reviews, authenticates, and translates the dossier. They send it to the child welfare foundation that referred your child, who then submits your dossier and the child’s documentation to the Taiwan court for additional processing.

The court process can take about six months and consists of three proceedings: one hearing and two rulings in which parental rights are terminated. The judge can decide if the adoptive parents (one or both) must be present for this final court proceeding. The trip is usually less than a week if you are required to attend. You become the child’s legal parents once the birth parents’ rights are terminated. At this point, you and your spouse will be invited to travel to unite with your child.

As with any international adoption, many factors impact the length of the adoption process. If you are waiting for an older child with complex identified needs or one who is part of a sibling group, your wait will be approximately 18-24 months from application to placement. Prospective parents with narrow criteria regarding milder needs, younger children, etc., will wait longer. Conversely, if you are open to a child older than five years, your wait for a referral will be shorter.

5. The Travel

The trip to meet and receive placement of your new child typically lasts about seven days. Some families adopting older kids might stay longer to ease into attachment. This program does require both parents to travel. Ask your adoption service provider for details about itineraries, travel groups, and guides in-country.

6. The Program

The Waiting Child program is small but consistent and predictable. There were 74 adoptions in FY2024. This compares to 59 in 2023, 68 in 2022, 48 in 2021, and 42 in 2020.

7. The Cost

Taiwan is not a signatory to the Hague Convention, so no Median Adoption Service Provider Convention Fee is documented in the State Department’s FYE 2024 Annual Report. Prospective parents should expect their expenses to range from $30,000 to $50,000, excluding travel expenses. Multiple trips and sibling groups will incur additional processing costs.

8. The Needs

Older children in the Taiwan program (ages five years and up) are often considered “special needs” simply because of their age. Examples of needs commonly seen in the Taiwan program (across all ages) include, but are not limited to: vision or hearing impairments, limb differences, cleft lip and palate, heart conditions, Hepatitis B, prenatal exposure, family history of mental illness, or developmental delays.

Children who experience trauma, loss, and institutional care may also experience special needs like developmental delays, ADHD, and short- and long-term impacts from insufficient prenatal care, premature birth, or prenatal substance exposure.

9. The Post-Adoption Reports

Taiwan requires five years of post-adoption reports. In the first year, post-placement reports are required at 3, 6, and 12 months. Thereafter, one report per year is required. The reports should include photos of the child, and must be completed by a licensed social worker or agency through home visits. Please seek guidance from your placing agency for clarity.

Creating a Family always urges families to comply with post-adoption requirements on time. Your cooperation contributes to the program’s stability and supports Taiwan’s history of positive experiences with US-citizen parents.

10. The Additional Resources

This information is current as of November 2025, and represents our best estimates and approximations only. Depending upon your individual circumstances, even the widest ranges can vary greatly. Please always refer to your chosen adoption service provider (ASP) for specifics regarding your process.

This information is subject to change; therefore, check with a reputable agency approved to place from this country for the most current information.

Image Credits:Te Ta; Anna Tarazevich