Families who adopt from Ukraine with or without an adoption agency have the same issue. Who will help shepherd the family through the adoption process in Ukraine? The answer is a facilitator.

In the absence of agencies in particular, interpreters currently play the key role in guiding prospective foreign adopters through the adoption process. Undoubtedly, they generally work hard. Essentially interpreters organize every aspect of adopters’ stay in Ukraine from arrival to departure and accompany them throughout – and indeed they are more commonly referred to as “facilitators” or “accompagnateurs”. Under current Ukrainian procedures their assistance is vital since they alone are familiar with both the system and the language. The list of activities that they carry out is impressive.


From: Assessment of the Adoption System in Ukraine by International Social Service, October 2005

If you decide to adopt independently (without an adoption agency) the facilitator fee, airline tickets to Ukraine and your home study will be the most expensive items.

You need to get in writing what services are covered in the facilitator's fee. Every facilitator has different services in the fee. This makes it difficult to compare costs and services. And there are around 300 Ukrainian citizens who provide some type of translation service for adoptions, so shop around.

They may provide services like:

• Translate your dossier into Ukrainian for submission.



• They will stay in contact via email or phone on the status of your dossier's approval.



• A translator will travel with you in Ukraine to the SDA and the orphanage.



• Your travel and lodging will be arranged for you while you are in Ukraine.



• All the Ukrainian adoption paperwork will be chased, notarized and filed with the proper offices.



• The adoption court hearing will be scheduled and your translator will be in court with you.



• The adoption decree, birth certificates and other paperwork will be translated into English.

Cathy Harris provides another variation on independent adoption. Instead of working directly with an Ukrainian facilitator a family hires her. Her company, Ukrainian Angels, provides paperwork assistance and hooks the family up with a trustworthy facilitator. Cathy has helped with 20% of American adoptions from Ukraine since 1999.


Her web site is a very useful place to visit regardless of a family's adoption choices. Cathy posts statistics, photos and stories about the adoptions that she is involved with.


Cristin's blog (americanexpat.blog-city.com) has a good list of various facilitators. Look for the list on the right hand side. She does list Sense Resource Center as a facilitator, but they are now an adoption agency. And she is missing Kiev Adoption. I should really tell her. :)