Adoption in Chile, Part Two

If God opens the doors for us to adopt in Chile, we will be working with SENAME. The reason for this is two-fold: one, we will eventually be living outside of Santiago and they are the only adoption agency outside of Santiago and two, they are the only agency who will work with foreigners without permanent residency. (We are seeking to acquire permanent residency but cannot apply for it until our one-year visa is due to expire. We would like to begin the process to adopt before then if possible, because it is quite a lengthy process.)

These are the preliminary steps to adopt through SENAME, as I currently understand them. Note: Every member of the family over the age of two must meet individually with a secular psychologist. The adults have to do the “blot” test. This is the part of Chilean adoptions that makes me most uncomfortable! I do not have a high regard for secular psychology.

1: Call SENAME to find out the specific day when they will accept registrations for the next orientation meeting.
2: Call on that specific day as early as possible to reserve a spot. Expect to hit re-dial many times.
3: Attend the Friday morning orientation session a few weeks later.
4: Attend the following Monday evening workshop.
5: Attend the following Wednesday evening workshop.
6: Meet as a couple with the social worker.
7: Meet as a couple with the psychologist.
6: Meet individually with the psychologist. (Stephanie)
8: Meet individually with the psychologist. (Pedro)
9: Meet individually with the psychologist. (Eva)
10: Meet individually with the psychologist. (Isabel)
11: Meet individually with the psychologist. (Owen)
12: Meet as a couple with the psychologist to review her findings and see if she “approves” us or recommends counseling.
13: Meet as a couple with the social worker, if approved.

I am not exactly sure of the order of events following this last step, but I do know that it is only after being approved by the psychologist and having our profile reviewed by the social worker and SENAME that we are accepted into the program. We then have home visit(s) and prepare our personal biographies, request letters of recommendation, etc. Once the social worker has written her report and all of the required paperwork has been gathered, we await final approval from the agency and then our name is circulated to the various regions and we await our “match” with our potential child(ren.)