Even though Ella's adoption was finalized in Viet Nam, we still chose to readopt her in our home state. This will provide her with a United States birth certificate with my husband and I listed as parents, a legal name change and an American finalization of the adoption. We sent in our paperwork last week and should be scheduled a court date in June. Finding the proper paperwork (without hiring a lawyer) was a bit confusing and complicated, so I wanted to post a series of informative articles about readoption in the hopes that it may help someone.

Every state is different, so your decision to readopt may be based on your particular state's statutes when it comes to recognizing foreign finalized adoptions. As of July 2005:

The following states fully recognize the foreign adoption decree only after the child is readopted in the state's court:

• Connecticut
• Kansas
• Louisiana
• Maine
• South Carolina

The following states do not offer any recognition of a foreign adoption decree and require that the child must be readopted in the state's court:

• 
  Colorado
• Pennsylvania

The following states fully recognize foreign adoption decrees:

• Alaska
• Arkansas
• California
• Delaware
• Florida
• Georgia
• Hawaii
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kentucky
• Maryland
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Missouri
• Montana
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New Mexico
• New York
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Texas
• Utah
• Vermont
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin
• Northern Mariana Islands

The remaining five states are unclear; they may not recognize foreign adoption decrees under specific circumstances.

Some states (CA and CT) may not grant full recognition if the parents did not see the child before finalization. Ohio and Texas may not grant full recognition if they feel that any part of the adoption process abroad violates their state laws.

The Child Welfare Information Gateway has a wonderful resource with statutes listed by state. Please bear in mind that these may have changed since this information was published, and it would be advisable to check with your state for the current information.

The bottom line for us was that we wanted to ensure Ella's and our protection as a family. By readopting we will guarantee that her adoption is final (by Vietnamese and US standards). Also, although we treasure her Vietnamese birth certificate as an important part of her past, her future will be much easier with a US issued one.

Continued...