Oregon foster care and adoption guidelines
There are always children needing safe and loving homes in the state of Oregon. This page provides some general information on foster care and adoption for your review.
On this page:
- State contact information
- Foster care and adoption licensing requirements
- Costs to foster and adopt
- Agency contact and orientation information
- Post-adoption support services
- Information on Oregon's waiting children
State contact information
Oregon Department of Human Services
Email: info@everychildoregon.org
Adoption information line: 800-331-0503
Para información en español:
Línea de Información Acerca del Cuidado de Crianza y La Adopción
Phone: 800-331-0503
Foster care and adoption licensing requirements
Who can adopt?
Oregon welcomes families of all different configurations, cultures, sizes, and strengths. We primarily seek strong, nurturing, flexible families who can develop an educated awareness of the extraordinary and ongoing needs of children. Families are sought on the basis of their abilities to permanently and successfully parent a child who needs a family, and who can commit to fully supporting the unique circumstances, culture, needs and history associated with that child or sibling group, no matter what.
How long does the adoption process take?
The initial adoption process generally takes four to six months to complete but in some areas of the state can take longer – start early! The time it take to be matched and have a child placed in your home is then on a case-by-case basis.
Who can be a foster parent?
Foster families, now called “resource families” in Oregon, come in all shapes and sizes, just like children in foster care. Oregon always needs stable, supportive, diverse families to care for children who have entered the child welfare system. The majority of these children will eventually reunify with birth family or with a relative. Resource parents do not need to be stay-at-home parents, married, or below any specific age. However, resource parents do need to be at least 21 years old and have a source of income to support themselves.
How long does foster certification take?
The process generally takes between two and four months, but can vary in different parts of the state.
Costs to foster and adopt
Foster care
There are no fees for foster certification.
Adoption
There are no fees for adopting a child from Oregon foster care when you choose the Oregon Department of Human Services as your agency.
The Special Needs Adoption Coalition (267 KB PDF) is an organization of private agencies providing adoption from foster care services in the state of Oregon. Each agency can provide a list of charges for their specific services.
Some private agency fees are reimbursable if you adopt a child from Oregon foster care.
Families can work with some of the private agencies to adopt children from other states and may be eligible for partial reimburse of fees or of nonrecurring adoption-related costs through the child’s state and/or federal options
Agency contact and orientation information
View more information from Oregon Dept. of Human Services.
View a directory of agencies of The Special Needs Adoption Coalition (267 KB PDF).
Orientations and trainings
- ODHS Foundations Training
- ODHS Resource Parent Training
- Boys & Girls Aid Foundations Trainings. Inquire by calling 503-542-2301 or info@boysandgirlsaid.org.
Post-adoption support services
See a comprehensive list of post-adoption and guardianship support services and support groups available to families who live in Oregon. The Oregon Post Adoption Resource Center is the contracted service who provides free post-adoption and guardianship support services to all families who live in Oregon.
Information on children
According to recent reports, on any given day approximately 5-6000 Oregon children are in foster care. Among these children, somewhere between 100-200 may be available for adoption and waiting for adoptive families.
The children in foster care who are already legally free for adoption are mostly older school-aged children. Some are part of a sibling pair or group that need to be adopted together. These children have all suffered trauma and many acute losses, including the loss of birth family. They are all incredibly resilient children who deserve to be loved and nurtured.