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EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS FOR ADOPTION
Private Employer Adoption Benefits
Many of the nation's employers offer some form of adoption benefits to their employees. Benefits, typically available only to the company's "regular" employees, may include:
- direct reimbursements in the range of $2,000 to $10,000 upon actual placement (usually a flat amount designated for specific adoption expenses)
- paid leave, in addition to or including vacation time, sick leave, or personal days
- unpaid leave for personal, hardship, medical, or child care (may range from 3 to 12 months - See Federal Family Medical Leave Act)
- adoption seminars and information classes, as well as counseling and support before and after placement
If you are a government employee, it's possible that additional adoption benefits may be available. Even if your employer doesn't currently offer adoption benefits, ask about their availability. You may be able to persuade your company to begin offering them, especially if maternity leave benefits are available. Work with other employees interested in adoption, gather information for the employer, and present your case. Adoption Network can assist you with this process.
Even if your employer doesn't currently offer adoption benefits, ask about their availability. You may be able to persuade your company to begin offering them. Work with other employees interested in adoption, gather information for the employer, and present your case. Also, find out if your employer offers an Employee Assistance Program (EAP). This benefit was designed to help employees deal with dramatic personal situations or problems. Talking with an EAP counselor could help reduce the stress and anxiety that is so often a part of the adoption process.
For more information about employer benefits:
- Call the
- List of adoption-friendly employers available online at: http://www.adoptionfriendlyworkplace.org/employers.asp.
Active Duty Military
The military will reimburse active-duty personnel for qualifying adoption costs up to $2,000 per child, whether adopting a healthy infant, a waiting child, or a child from abroad. Travel costs, foreign or domestic, are not covered. There is a maximum of $5,000 in a given year, even if both parents are in the military. In addition, certain commissioned officers of the Public Health Service and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration may qualify for these benefits. This benefit is available for both domestic and international adoptions. Reimbursement is made only after the adoption is finalized and only if the adoption was done through a state adoption agency or a non-profit private agency. Fees that can be reimbursed include adoption fees; placement fees; legal fees and court costs and medical expenses
A disabled adopted child also may be eligible for up to $1,000 a month in assistance under the military's Program for Persons with Disabilities. Furthermore, the military's Exceptional Family Member Program is designed to ensure that the adoptive families of children with special needs are assigned to duty stations where the child's needs can be met.
Although military families are not eligible for leave under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), commanders are encouraged to approve requests for leave once a child has been placed in the home of a service member.
For more information about adoption for military families:
- Department of Defense Instruction Number 1341.9 which is available online at:
http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/i13419wch1_072993/i13419p.pdf
- The National Military Family Association at:
- Call The Adoption Exchange Inc. at 1-303-755-4756, or contact the National Military Family Association at www.nmfa.org