How to Adopt a Child in PA: Pathways, Costs, and Requirements

To adopt a child in Pennsylvania, you choose one of four pathways (foster care, private agency, independent, or stepparent), pass three background clearances, complete a home study, wait out a 30-day birth parent revocation window after consent is signed, live with the child for a six-month supervisory period, and then finalize the adoption at a hearing in the county Orphans’ Court. The pathway you pick drives the cost and much of the paperwork, but every route ends at the same place: a judge signing the adoption decree.

Who Can Adopt

Pennsylvania does not restrict adoption based on marital status. Single individuals, married couples, and unmarried partners can all petition.¹ If you are married, your spouse must either join the petition or separately consent. For foster care adoption, you must be at least 21.

Every adult in the household has to clear three background checks before a child can be placed:

Pennsylvania State Police Criminal Record Check ($22 for adoptive parents).²
FBI criminal history check, using digital fingerprinting through IDEMIA ($24.95).³
Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Clearance, verifying no history of indicated abuse reports.

A disqualifying offense on any of these will stop the process. Depending on the type of adoption, some applicants can seek an exception for older or less serious offenses.

The Four Adoption Pathways and What They Cost

Foster Care Adoption

Children in foster care are in the legal custody of a county Children and Youth agency, and the state is actively looking for permanent families. This is the least expensive route. The state covers most costs and may reimburse up to $2,000 in non-recurring expenses such as court costs, attorney fees, and travel. Many children adopted from foster care also qualify for a monthly adoption subsidy, negotiated with the county agency, that runs until age 18 and can continue to 21 if the young adult is in school, employed, or in job training.⁴ The subsidy agreement must be signed at or before finalization.

Private Agency Adoption

Licensed private agencies match prospective parents with expectant mothers, provide counseling, and handle much of the legal work. This is the most common path to adopting a newborn. Total costs typically run $30,000 to $45,000, covering the agency’s placement fee, home study, legal representation, and birth-mother expenses permitted under Pennsylvania law.

Independent Adoption

Here the birth parents and adoptive parents connect directly, and attorneys handle the legal work instead of an agency. You get more flexibility and often more direct communication. You also carry more of the compliance burden, since no agency is tracking deadlines for you. Attorney fees vary widely with the case.

Stepparent Adoption

Adopting your spouse’s child is significantly simpler. Pennsylvania exempts stepparent adoptions from the Report of Intention to Adopt requirement.⁵ Because the child already lives with you, the formal home study requirement under the placement statute does not automatically apply, though a court can still order one.⁶ The other biological parent must consent or have their parental rights terminated by the court.

The Home Study

For agency and independent adoptions, a home study with a favorable recommendation is required before a child can be placed with you.⁶ It has to be conducted by a county Children and Youth agency, a licensed adoption agency, or a court-designated licensed social worker. The study must have been completed within three years of placement and updated within one year of placement.

The social worker evaluates your home environment, family dynamics, parenting experience, physical and mental health, financial stability, and cultural and religious background. Expect to hand over pay stubs, W-2s, and tax returns. You will also write an autobiographical statement covering your background and reasons for adopting, and gather character references from people outside your family.⁷

If a child becomes available while your study is still in progress, Pennsylvania allows an interim placement provided the person or agency running the study consents and the intermediary immediately notifies the court. If the study later comes back unfavorable, the court can order the child into temporary foster care.

Birth Parent Consent and the 30-Day Revocation Window

This is the most consequential timeline in a Pennsylvania adoption, and it is the one to understand cold before you invest emotionally in a placement.

No birth parent can sign a valid consent until at least 72 hours after the child’s birth.¹ A putative father can sign at any time after learning of the expected or actual birth.

After signing, both birth parents have a revocation window, but the clock is different for each:

Birth mother: consent becomes irrevocable 30 days after she signs.
Birth father or putative father: consent becomes irrevocable 30 days after the child’s birth or 30 days after he signs, whichever comes later.

The revocation period cannot be waived, even by agreement. A revocation must be in writing and served on the agency or person who received the child. Once the 30 days close, a birth parent can only challenge consent by filing a fraud or duress petition within 60 days of the birth or the consent signing (whichever is later), or within 30 days of the adoption decree, whichever comes first.

If the child is 12 or older, the child must also consent to the adoption.

Filing With the Orphans’ Court

Once a child is placed in your home, you file a Report of Intention to Adopt with the Orphans’ Court where the final petition will be filed. It is due within 30 days of receiving physical custody.⁵ The report includes identifying information about the child, the name and address of the intermediary, an itemized accounting of every payment made or owed to the intermediary, and a copy of the completed home study. You also sign an acknowledgment that you understand the birth parents’ revocation rights.

The Report of Intention to Adopt is not required when the child is your stepchild, grandchild, sibling, or niece or nephew.

After parental rights have been terminated, the final Petition for Adoption is filed. This petition gives the court the details about you and the child and formally asks the judge to grant the adoption.⁸

The Six-Month Supervisory Period and Final Hearing

Pennsylvania requires the child to live in your home for six months before the adoption can be finalized. During that period, a social worker makes at least three supervisory visits to see how the child is adjusting and how the family is functioning.⁹ Extensions beyond six months are rare and require compelling reasons.

The hearing itself is usually brief. The judge reviews the petition, hears testimony from you, confirms that the adoption serves the child’s welfare, and, if the legal requirements are met, signs the final adoption decree. A child who is 12 or older also speaks with the judge. The court issues a Certificate of Adoption, which is the official legal record of the new parent-child relationship.

After the Decree: Birth Certificate, Social Security, and Insurance

The court forwards the Certificate of Adoption to the Pennsylvania Department of Health’s Division of Vital Records, which creates a new birth certificate listing you as the parents and reflecting the child’s new legal name. Do not apply for the new certificate until Vital Records confirms the record has been updated.¹⁰ A certified copy costs $20, plus a $10 processing fee if you order online.¹¹

Apply for a new Social Security number for your child using Form SS-5, along with the adoption decree or amended birth certificate. The new number typically arrives in about two weeks.

Federal law gives you a 30-day window after adoption or placement to add your child to your employer-sponsored health plan through a special enrollment period, regardless of open enrollment timing.¹² Coverage is retroactive to the placement or adoption date, so tell HR quickly.

Federal Tax Credit and Job-Protected Leave

The federal adoption tax credit offsets a large share of adoption costs. For adoptions finalized in 2026, the maximum credit is $17,670 per child. Qualified expenses include adoption fees, attorney fees, court costs, home study fees, and travel directly related to the adoption.¹³ Costs of adopting a spouse’s child, surrogacy expenses, and any costs reimbursed by an employer or government program do not qualify.

Income limits apply. Families with modified adjusted gross income below $265,080 in 2026 can claim the full credit. It phases out between $265,080 and $305,080 and disappears above that. If you adopt a child that a state has determined has special needs, you can claim the full credit even if you paid little or nothing out of pocket.

The credit is partially refundable for 2026: if your tax liability is less than the full credit, up to $5,120 is refundable. Any unused amount can be carried forward. Claim it on IRS Form 8839.

The Family and Medical Leave Act gives eligible employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for the placement of a child for adoption, with group health benefits continued during the leave. To qualify, you must have worked for a covered employer for at least 12 months, logged at least 1,250 hours in the preceding year, and work at a location with 50 or more employees within 75 miles.¹⁴ You can take the leave all at once or, with employer agreement, intermittently for bonding. It must be used within one year of placement. Active-duty military members may also qualify for up to $2,000 per adopted child in reimbursed expenses through the Department of Defense, capped at $5,000 for multiple adoptions in the same year.

Two Situations With Their Own Rules

If you are adopting from another state, the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children applies. Both Pennsylvania and the sending state must approve the placement before the child can cross state lines. The Compact does not apply when a close relative (parent, grandparent, sibling, aunt, or uncle) is sending the child to you.

Separately, the federal Indian Child Welfare Act applies whenever a child who is a member of, or eligible for membership in, a federally recognized tribe is involved in an involuntary foster care placement or termination of parental rights. It requires certified-mail notice to the child’s tribe and parents, creates placement preferences favoring extended family and tribal members, and gives the tribe the right to intervene. Voluntary placements where the parent can reclaim the child on demand are generally exempt.¹⁵ Raise any possible Native American heritage with your attorney early; non-compliance can invalidate a completed adoption.

Post-Adoption Contact Agreements

Pennsylvania lets adoptive parents and birth parents negotiate ongoing contact after finalization, from exchanging letters and photos to scheduled visits. The agreement is only enforceable in court if a judge approves it on or before the date the adoption decree is entered.¹⁶ If the child is 12 or older, the child must consent to the agreement as well. A privately negotiated contact arrangement without court approval carries no legal force, and either side can walk away from its terms without consequence.

1
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 23 – Consents Necessary to Adoption
2
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Criminal Background Check
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Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. FBI Fingerprinting
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Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Adoption Assistance Q&A
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Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 23 – Report of Intention to Adopt
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Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 23 – Home Study and Preplacement Report
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Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Become an Adoptive Parent
8
Office of Children and Families in the Courts. Pennsylvania Dependency Benchbook – Chapter 19 Adoption
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Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. 55 Pennsylvania Code Chapter 3350 – Adoption Services
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Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Adoptions
11
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Birth Certificates
12
U.S. Department of Labor. FAQs on HIPAA Portability and Nondiscrimination Requirements for Workers
13
Internal Revenue Service. Adoption Credit
14
U.S. Department of Labor. Family and Medical Leave Act
15
Indian Affairs. ICWA Notice
16
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Rule 15.12 – Court Review and Approval of Contact Agreement