Thailand Post Adoption Reports & Documentation

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Foster Family/Caretaker Correspondence

Two weeks after your child arrives in the U.S., you are responsible for sending us a letter and 3 photos which we will forward to your child’s foster family or other caretakers.

Please mail printed photos so they can be easily delivered to the foster family.

Photo Submission Due Dates

2 weeks

COURIER MAIL ADDRESS:
Holt International Children’s Services
ATTN: Thailand Program
250 Country Club Rd
Eugene, OR 97401

REGULAR MAIL ADDRESS:
Holt International Children’s Services
ATTN: Thailand Program
PO BOX 2880
Eugene, OR 97402

If you prefer, you may email your letter and photos. Be sure each photo is at least 200 KB in size for good printing quality. See photo guidelines below.

Holt International is happy to help you communicate with your child’s foster family thereafter as often as you would like.

Foster families really appreciate this! You may send us photos and letters or cards for translation. We will forward them to HSF on your behalf. You are welcome to communicate as often as you would like. We cannot accept packages or gifts due to international shipping costs and customs clearance. You may send us correspondence by email or mail it to one of the addresses above.

Photo Due Dates & Requirements for Post Placement Reports

After your child arrives in the U.S., you are responsible for sending 6 photos on the following PDF template at the specified due dates. Holt will add these photos to the corresponding report completed by your social worker. Sibling groups or multiples require separate reports and photos be submitted for each child.

Due dates are based upon the date of arrival in the United States. If your report photos will be delayed, please notify us so we can inform the proper officials. Please contact us for case-specific due dates or questions on the information and photos to provide. We are happy to help guide you.

Include a caption for all 6 photos on the form below. Provide details describing who, where and when, such as Aunt Mary with Tommy at the zoo on summer vacation. Please fill out the form carefully each time you submit photos on the specified due dates. Accurate information on adoptive parents and child allows us to successfully merge your photos with the report completed by your social worker.

Photo Template Due Dates

Photo Template

2 month
4 months
6 months

After printing the template below, tape printed glossy photos in each space and include a caption for each. Provide details describing who, where and when, such as Aunt Mary with Tommy at the zoo on summer vacation. Please fill out the form carefully each time you submit photos for your post adoption reports. Accurate information on adoptive parents and child allows us to successfully merge your photos with the report completed by your social worker.

Download Post Adoption Placement Template Here

Photo Tips & Guidelines Prior to Submitting Form

Six photos are required for each post placement report. Select photos that are large enough and clear enough to see your child’s face. Remember, these photos are going to a foreign government with different cultural norms. We ask that you take this into serious consideration when selecting photos.

✔︎ Photos to Submit

A variety of photos with family and/or friends, not just photos of your child alone (details provided on template)
Include both parents; if not within the same photo, then one-on-one with the adoptee
Choose photos that highlight your child enjoying routine family activities and/or special events (going to school, eating breakfast, going to the aquarium, family vacation, etc.)
Expressions of contentment on your child’s face
Seasonal photos showing appropriate clothing, such as warm clothing if environment looks cold

X Photos Not to Submit

Anything that obscures your child’s face, such as costumes with masks, heavy face paint, messy food faces or sunglasses
No digital effects, such as sepia tone or other types of photo filters
No baggy or ill-fitting clothing, including bathing suits or swim shorts
No bath photos, shirtless or bare bodies
No presence of weapons, toy weapons or hunting photos
Avoid blurry or low resolution photos

Annual Self Report

Starting one year after date of arrival in the U.S. and again at the specified due dates, you are responsible for completing an Annual Self Report on behalf of your child. Each report requires 8 photos and information that assures overseas officials that your child is in a caring and nurturing home. See above guidance for types of photos to submit and not to submit.

To fulfill annual report requirements on the form below, include all information about your child’s development. Provide complete answers that can be formatted into a letter, with at least the minimum number of words required for each section.

8 photos must be submitted with the form (maximum size of 8 MB each) with a caption for each describing who, where and when details, such as Anna and Grandma playing checkers in our living room.

Click the Save button at bottom of form to avoid the possibility of losing any work. This creates a unique link you can return to when you’re ready to complete the form. Contact [email protected] if you need assistance.

Annual Self Report Due Dates

Every year until your child turns 18

Permanent Case File Documents

After your child’s arrival to the U.S. please send copies of documents received overseas to secure in your permanent case file:

U.S. Adoption Decree
Issued after re-finalization (IH-3 cases)
Registration of Adoption
This is issued upon your visit to a Thai consulate after receiving the Letter of Registration from Thailand. Required to be sent overseas.
Foreign Passport/US Visa
Provided to you overseas. We need copies of the photo/info page and U.S. visa page.
Overseas documents
We need copies of all documents your family received overseas, such as the Adoption Registration, Hague Certificate, Birth Certificate, Abandonment Certificate or any other legal documents provided.

Optional Documents for your Permanent Case File

Our post adoption services department receives thousands of inquiries from adoptive parents and adult adoptees requesting copies of their case file. You are welcome to submit documents for Holt to keep in your child’s case file. Most families find this is a helpful, safe and confidential way to keep a backup record in case of document loss, theft, fire, etc. If you would like to provide these documents at any point, feel free to email them to us.

New State Birth Certificate
In most states, this document is only available after your child’s adoption is re-finalized or finalized in your local court.
Certificate of Citizenship
This is required to be sent overseas and should arrive 90 days after arrival home.
U.S. Passport
It is optional if you want us to add this to your file. Apply for a passport if you plan to travel outside the U.S.
Social Security Card
It is optional if you want to provide this document for your permanent file or not.

Contact us at [email protected] if you have further questions or if your case file has been closed.

Steps for Documentation of U.S. Citizenship

This applies to all families who have completed an adoption from Thailand. Because your child arrived on an IH-4 visa, he/she qualifies for automatic U.S. citizenship. Documentation steps in this process are outlined below.

flowchart showing documentation process for children adopted from Thailand

Adoption Taxpayer Identification Number (or ATIN)

Adoption Finalization in the U.S.

Children from Thailand arrive on an IH-4 visa, which is a non-finalized adoption. You must finalize the adoption according to the laws of your state of residence. This is required to fulfill USCIS requirements for your child to become a citizen. Holt is required to send a photocopy of the U.S. Adoption Decree (court order) overseas promptly after adoption finalization, so HSF knows this important step is complete.

Plan Ahead & Gather Info

Contact your social worker before beginning the adoption finalization process with your local court, so actions can be coordinated. Processes and paperwork requirements vary greatly per state/county/court. In the majority of cases, it is most helpful to hire an international adoption attorney, though in some courts it may not be necessary if the process is simple. Typically, the adoption process involves: providing copies of paperwork about yourself and your child, filing a petition requesting a court hearing, and personally appearing before the judge. The finalization process may take anywhere from weeks to months, depending on your local court system, so please be prepared for this.

HSF Guardianship Cases: HSF will issue the “consent” about 3-4 months after receipt of the final post adoption Report. This “consent” serves as proof that the legal guardian (HSF) permits your family to adopt the child placed with you, and is required by the court. Once HSF’s consent is received, Holt will issue the Agreement to Adoption and send both originals to you for finalization.

Thai DSWD Cases: DSWD does not issue consents, so this is not required for adoption finalization. Holt’s Agreement to Adoption will be issued upon receipt of the 6 month post adoption Report to be used for finalization.

Adoption Finalization (What does this step mean for our family?)

After the adoption is finalized, you will have legal custody of your child and they will become a U.S. citizen! Please immediately e-mail (or mail) a copy of the U.S. Adoption Decree (court order) to the post-placement staff, as we are required to send it to Thailand and keep a copy in your case file.

If there has been a legal name change for your child, it should be included in the wording of the U.S. Adoption Decree, thereby making it legal to use the new name on official documents.

Registration of Adoption (or ROA) at Thai Consulate or Embassy

Why Registration is required: According to Thai law, your adoption is not considered “finalized” in Thailand until you complete the “registration” of the adoption with the Thai embassy or one of its consulates in the U.S. In your dossier, you signed and notarized a form called the “Agreement to Complete Adoption by Thai and American Law” and at that time, you chose which embassy or consulate you would visit to complete this registration. Unfortunately, you will not be able to change embassies or consulates once this document has been signed. Registration a completely different step from the U.S. finalization, and is usually done after the U.S. finalization.

If you plan to adopt from Thailand again, the registration of your current adoption must be completed before DSDW will give first approval for your next adoption. Also, if your child would like to apply for Thai citizenship someday, the Thai government will request proof of their Registration of Adoption.

We ask for your patience and understanding of this procedure. We realize it may be inconvenient to travel to the Thai consulate. Please remember that the Thai government places great emphasis on having families register the adoption by Thai law and that this is an important legal step to protect your family.

Timing of the Permission to Register (PTR) Letter

Approximately 6+ months after we send your final post adoption report to Thailand, the Thai government will issue your Permission to Register letter. You will need the original, so it is very important that you inform us if you move during the post-placement stage of the adoption process. Simultaneous with our notice to you, the Thai DSDW will inform their embassy or consulate of permission for you to register. This notice can take up to three months to reach the consulate or embassy. The Permission to Register letter will ask you to plan a trip to the Thai embassy or consulate within six months from the date you receive the letter. The consulate listed in the letter will be the one your family chose on the dossier form: “Agreement to Complete Adoption.”

Contact the Embassy or Consulate to Plan Your Visit

When you receive the Permission to Register letter, contact the Embassy or Consulate to find out if you need to schedule an appointment or if you can just drop in. Also be sure to inquire about what documents you need to bring, and whether both parents are required to attend (your child will need to attend). The following documents are usually required:

Identification cards of parents (i.e. driver’s license, passport)
Child’s passport
Copy of Memorandum of Agreement from Thai DSDW
Marriage License
Current pictures of child (3) (usually passport photo sized)
USCIS Permanent Resident Card
Permission to Register letter

Families are typically asked to fax or scan and email copies of the requested documents to the consulate prior to the registration appointment. Often times, families receive an invitation letter directly from the specific consulate they agreed to travel to in the dossier. This indicates they have received your file, and are ready to receive your family in person.

When contacting the consulate, we recommend that you inquire about the mobile consulate. The consulate travels to different states for Thai festivals, and families are able to complete the Registration of Adoption at these festivals. It can save time and money by attending a festival that is at a closer location, if one is occurring within six months of the PTR letter.

Embassies and Consulate Contact Information:

Embassy and Consular Office
Royal Thai Embassy
1024 Wisconsin Avenue NW
Washington, D.C. 20007
Contact: Porn Chai
1-202-684-8493
www.thaiembdc.org

Royal Thai Consulate – General
700 N. Rush Street
Chicago, IL 60611
1-312-664-3129
www.thaiconsulatechicago.org
[email protected]

Royal Thai Consulate – General
611 N. Larchmont Blvd. 2^nd Fl.
Los Angeles, CA 90004
1-323-962-9574 Ext. 225
www.thaiconsulatela.org

Royal Thai Consulate – General
351 East 52^nd Street
New York, NY 10017
1-212-754-1770
www.thaiconsulnewyork.com

After Registration: Provide Important Documents to Holt

At the visit you’ll receive a legal document called the Registration of Adoption (ROA). It will be mostly in Thai (an English translation is not necessary). Please e-mail a color copy to Holt’s post-placement staff as soon as possible. It is usually printed on paper longer than 8.5×11, so when scanning or copying, please make sure the full document is visible, without the top or bottom text cut off.

You also will receive the original Thai Birth Certificate (BC) for your child at the meeting with the consulate. This may be needed to apply for your child’s U.S. Birth Certificate or for other reasons. Please e-mail Holt a color copy of the Thai Birth Certificate as well.

Upon receipt of copies of the ROA and U.S. Adoption Decree, Holt will close your adoption file, and prepare it for safe, permanent storage in our vault.

U.S. Birth Certificate

In most states, a new Birth Certificate can be issued, however some states issue a Certificate of Foreign Birth, which can be used in the same way. Processes vary per state, so please ask either your social worker or attorney, or contact your local vital statistics office for more details.

Certificate of Citizenship (or COC)

Although your child gains citizenship the day the adoption is finalized, proof of citizenship is not automatically provided to your family. Please apply for the Certificate of Citizenship via USCIS by completing the requirements for form N-600. This document serves as proof of U.S. citizenship so be sure to keep it in a safe place. The COC will need to be signed to be considered valid (please see “How to sign a COC on behalf of a minor” below). Contact USCIS at [email protected] or visit the USCIS website for more information and the most current forms.

How to sign a Certificate of Citizenship on behalf of a minor

The instructions provided below are from USCIS’s Buffalo office regarding how to properly sign a Certificate of Citizenship on behalf of your child. Please do not wait to sign the COC on your child’s behalf as it is not valid unless it has been signed.

COC Instructions from USCIS

U.S. Passport

Your child cannot travel out of the country without a U.S. passport. It provides proof of U.S. citizenship for travel until it expires. You will need the COC to apply for or renew a U.S. passport. For more information on how to apply for a U.S. passport, visit the U.S. Department of State here.

The passport office will take the supporting documents and send them to the regional passport office. You’ll get them back, usually with 6-8 weeks. We recommend making a photocopy of all documents before sending them. It is possible for the documents to be lost. To make sure you get your originals back, pay the additional fee for it to be expedited and for upgraded mail service with a tracking number.

Contact us at [email protected] if you have further questions.