Primary Provider Services – Nigeria

If you have legally finalized the adoption of a child from Nigeria and need home study and immigration assistance to bring them to the US, we can provide primary provider services. 

PLEASE NOTE – Immigration has been extremely strict with cases from Nigeria with the great majority of cases being denied due to allegations of fraud and corruption. Please visit https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/News/Intercountry-Adoption-News/ongoing-concerns-related-to-intercountry-adoptions-from-nigeria.html for more information.  If you have any reason to believe there was fraud involved in your adoption case, we will be unable to serve as the Primary Provider.

ACI as your Primary Provider – Nigeria

Adoption Center of Illinois (registered as Family Resource Center) may be able to serve as the Primary Provider for your international adoption in the cases of parent-initiated and relative adoptions. ACI has been Hague-accredited since 2008. This accreditation allows us to act as an accredited Adoption Service Provider (ASP) for international adoptions. 

We do not have a Nigeria adoption program. Families that have not completed an adoption are asked to contact an agency that offers placing services to identify and adopt a child from Nigeria. Our services support families that have finalized a parent-identified or relative adoption and require the services of a Primary Provider to oversee the home study and immigration process.

Immigration Process

The immigration process to bring your adopted child to the US from Nigeria is not a quick process. It will require work, patience and good attention to detail. If you choose our agency as your Primary Provider, we will work with you and support you through the process. We cannot, however, guarantee that a visa for your child will be issued. The ultimate decision is made by the US Consulate in Lagos. It is important for you to be aware of all of the information posted on the State Department Intercountry Adoption page for Nigeria and the US Consulate in Lagos.

After your I600 application is reviewed, the next step is for the U.S. Embassy in Lagos to conduct the I-604 Determination on Child for Adoption (commonly referred to as an orphan determination). For adoptions from Nigeria, this process can be lengthy: 

Due to adoption fraud and child buying concerns, the U.S. Consulate completes the Form I-604, Determination on Child for Adoption, commonly referred to as the orphan determination, to verify the authenticity of the information provided in the adoption decree and with the Form I-600 petition. As a result, investigations and the in-country visa application and approval process can cause adoption processing in Lagos to take up to six months to complete. 

– Excerpt from US Consulate Lagos website

Home Study

In addition to requiring a Primary Provider, families must also work with a qualified Home Study Agency. Illinois residents may utilize ACI’s Primary Provider services and our International Home Study Services. These two services are independent and separate from one another and require separate fees.

ACI can serve as Primary Provider for families residing outside of Illinois. Our non-Illinois families will also need an adoption agency in their state to complete the international home study. ACI can support you in finding a qualified agency in your area.

Fees

The fee for ACI’s Primary Provider Service for the adoption of ONE child is $6,450. This includes a $815 Monitoring and Oversight (M&O) fee paid directly to CEAS, the accrediting entity. Families who adopt more than one child will pay an additional $1,350 fee per child which includes the CEAS fee.

Next Steps

Please review all of the following documents:

  • Documents for Primary Provider Checklist: To serve as PP, it is essential we have all the available information about your process in Nigeria and the child being adopted. Additionally, copies of all receipts and fee documentation must be sent to our agency. If you have not saved receipts, you will be asked to recall all money spent, with fee description, amount and approximate date. If you are still in communication with the party that was paid, please ask for a receipt.

After reviewing all of the above information, please email Jane Turner jturner@adoptillinois.org and Michelle Setka msetka@adoptillinois.org with the following information:

  • Have you previously worked with a Primary Provider that has lost accreditation?
  • Have you previously submitted an I600A or I600 application to immigration?
  • What date was your adoption finalized?
  • Is the child from an orphanage or a relative?
  • If relative, what happened to both child’s biological parents?
  • How old is the child (date of birth)?
  • Were one or both adoptive parents present in court for the foster order or final adoption proceeding?
  • What state in Nigeria did the adoption occur? Note: we cannot work with adoptions originating in Lagos.
  • Have you identified an agency in your state that will conduct the International Home Study?
  • Do you have any information about or reason to believe your adoption was completed fraudulently?  
  • Send clear scanned copies of ALL documents received from Nigeria 

We will contact you once we have reviewed all of your documentation to determine if ACI would be able to support you as the Primary Provider for your international adoption.