Types of Adoption

The types of adoptions available are often not portrayed in the media correctly. Much has changed in the last 30 years of adoption, and almost all the changes are for the better. In the United States, most of adoptions today are considered semi-open. A small portion of adoptions are fully closed or fully open. Below we will explain what each of these types of adoptions are.

Semi-Open Adoption

A semi-open adoption is actually the most versatile kind of adoption as it can work in many different ways. Semi-open means that the birth and adoptive families have some kind of contact with one another. The kind of contact varies greatly. A semi-open adoption typically means that correspondence occurs through the adoption agency so that the birth and adoptive families do not know each other’s last names, addresses, or any other contact information. The frequency that birth and adoptive families communicate with one another can differ as well. Here are some examples of semi-open adoptions (although we couldn’t possible cover them all):

A birth mother decides that she would like to talk to the adoptive family on the phone or meet them in person prior to the birth of her baby but does not wish to have ongoing phone calls or visits with the family after the birth of the baby. The adoption caseworker from Transitions Adoption Agency would facilitate this phone call or meeting to help everyone feel comfortable.
A birth mother does not wish to talk to or meet the family in person but wants to receive a yearly update and photos on how her baby is doing until the age of 18. The correspondence would be sent by the adoptive family to Transitions Adoption Agency’s office each year, and then mailed to the birth family from the office. This way both the birth and adoptive family’s contact information is kept confidential. She may wish to choose the adoptive family for her family from the waiting families available at Transitions Adoption Agency, or she may ask Transitions’ staff to choose the adoptive family for her.
A birth mother may decide that she would like to speak to the adoptive family on the phone around the birth of the baby, but then decides she does not wish to receive any photos or updates on the baby as he or she grows.

Open Adoption

In open adoption usually, a birth and adoptive family will have ongoing contact and visits throughout the child’s life. Sometimes this means that written correspondence still goes through the agency and in addition the families see one another once a year in person. The yearly visit often takes place in a public place where the child can play during the visit. Sometimes the meetings are at a restaurant, a park, or a museum. Visits sometimes last just an hour and other times they may be several hours long. The birth and adoptive families will find a comfort level with each other that works for them and they decide together how frequently and how long the visits last. The reason visits are typically once a year is because often the birth and adoptive families may not live near one another and travel will be required. The adoptive families usually travel to meet the birth parent/s near her or his home. In some situations, a staff member from the adoption agency is also present at the visit. Open adoption doesn’t always look exactly like this. There are variations in open adoption as well. In open adoption birth and adoptive families build a relationship that grows over time. Some birth families may wish to send their child a birthday card or present. In some rare cases, birth and adoptive families share all identifying information. Another aspect of open adoption is sometimes exchanging phone numbers and sending photo updates via text to the birth family. Transitions Adoption Agency would work with the birth and adoptive families in the early stages of their open relationship to see what this might look like for each family.

Closed Adoption

A closed adoption generally is an adoption where the birth mother does not wish to know what family is chosen for her child, and does wish to have any contact before, during, or after the birth of her baby. Often in a closed adoption a birth mother wishes for the agency to choose the adoptive family for her. A woman choosing a closed adoption may be feeling too overwhelmed by the birth and adoption that she does not believe she wants to have a continual connection with her child’s adoptive family. However, at Transitions Adoption Agency we encourage those choosing a closed adoption to contact us in the future if they decide they do want to receive updates from the adoptive family about their child. We require all our adoptive families to be open to a minimum level of contact with a birth family of at least one update and set of photos per year. So, if a birth mother initially chooses a closed adoption, but later decides she would really enjoy receiving these updates, we can provide her with those updates. We understand and respect a birth mother who feels the need to choose a closed adoption and will respect whatever decision she makes about this. Even in a closed adoption, Transitions Adoption Agency will ask if a birth mother would be open to her child contact her after the age of 18 or not.

As we say at Transitions Adoption Agency, adoption is not one-size-fits-all. There is no manual to tell us how adoption contact should occur and that is because no two people and no two families are exactly alike. We will all work together to see what works best for all the people involved. What works best for a birth and adoptive family when the baby is born sometimes changes over time. We do however ask all our adoptive families to make a commitment to honor whatever kind of adoption a birth family is asking for prior to birth of the baby. We match birth and adoptive families together who have similar desires about the level of openness they are looking for. In Pennsylvania, commitment levels have become enforceable and we take very seriously the type of adoption a birth parent asks for. We will go over this in more detail with our birth and adoptive families during the adoption process.