Some numbers are lucky, some numbers are not. Some numbers are happy, some numbers are sad. And some numbers are just plain depressing, which is perhaps why all I've managed for a headline on this post is 2,305.

That, ladies and gentlemen, is likely to be the number of Russian orphans who began new lives as American citizens this year.

Let me put this in context for you: In 1999, when I adopted my older son from Russia, 4,348 Russian orphans were adopted. In 2005, when my little guy came home, he was one of 4,639 Russian children adopted by U.S. families... more

Two years ago, as I was completing my second adoption from Russia, there was talk that Russia would soon begin requiring some sort of psychological test to determine parental fitness. Remember that, two years ago, Russian adoptions were being roiled by three high-profile cases of Russian-born children murdered by their American adoptive parents. An independent test of someone's suitability to be a parent didn't seem at all out of place.

Russia still hasn't passed a law mandating a psychological examination. But, speaking at the recent Adoptive Parents Committee conference,... more

Want something fun to do this morning if your agency is among the 46 that have not yet gotten accreditation to handle adoptions in Russia? Call Martin Renkiewicz and ask him why his agency is holding things up. No, this is not an overseas call. Mr. Renkiewicz's agency is right down in Washington, D.C.

Yes, you read that right. It looks as if the fault for the slow pace of accreditations lies not with Moscow, or with late post-placement reports, but with an obscure American bureaucracy that goes by the name of the U.S.... more

So, as I told you in part one of this post, the U.S. National Central Bureau of Interpol has stopped processing background checks on U.S. adoption agencies. Russia's Ministry of Justice needs this information to complete the accreditation of these agencies, so that they, in turn may complete the adoption of thousands of children now in Russian orphanages.

Now what?

One agency awaiting re-accreditation told me that the MoJ indicated that it would allow agencies to... more

Sometimes, the ins and outs of adopting from Russia just make my head hurt. Like today.

For the last two weeks, I have been trying to chase down a rumor that a U.S. government agency, not late post-placement reports, was holding up the re-accreditation process. I finally got confirmation today, after many rounds of phone calls and e-mails, that it was, but it is no longer.

Here's what happened. As part of the re-accreditation process, an obscure American bureaucracy that goes... more

The other day I looked at how some of the subtle differences in apostilles--the official seal that certifies your adoption paperwork as authentic--can trip up your adoption in Russia. Now I want to look at some ways to avoid having trouble in the first place.

None of these steps is 100% certain--nothing in an adoption in Russia ever is. But with a bit of common sense and vigilance, I think you can improve your chances of a smooth adoption journey. I should say at the outset though that a good apostille means... more

Early on in my tenure at this blog, I looked at one of the aspects to the documentation you need to assemble for a Russian adoption: the apostille. Now, I'd like to talk about what happens when good apostilles go bad. Or, at least, when a judge in Russia thinks that they did.

The modern-day apostille was created in 1961 by an international agreement on how documents should be legalized for use between countries. The idea was to find some common standards and formats by which countries could recognize... more

You know I've been pretty tough on USCIS about its fee increases and the technology problems that cause our adoption fingerprints to expire. But now, some of you will have a reason to cheer the technology at the agency.

On July 5, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, as the agency is formally known, launched a test of a Web-based information management tool... more

You might remember that, about a month ago, I told you there were going to be some changes in the way the U.S. Embassy in Moscow processes visas for the children we adopt. Changes that add more time--at least 24 hours--to your wait in Moscow. Changes that add another night of hotel costs in what is the world's most expensive city for expatriate living.

Those changes... more

You all know how long your agency has been waiting to be accredited by Moscow, and how much paperwork it has filed. But do you know where it stands with its Hague accreditation?

Say what?

The Hague Convention on Inter-Country Adoption is a piece of international law dating from 1993. It governs the rights of children, birth parents and adoptive parents in international adoption situations. The goal is to have a clear, universally accepted set... more