South Korea
* Please note- South Korea is currently enacting some changes to their adoption legislation. If you are interested in adoption from South Korea, check in with us and we will let you know the status.
South Korea is a not a Hague Convention country and the Government has the following requirements. Please note: These policies do not reflect the opinions or views of Bal Jagat - Children's World Agency).
- Couples should be married for three years.
- They should be under age 41.5 years at the time of dossier submission.
- Wife should not be more than 7 years older than the husband or husband no more than 10 years older than wife.
- This program is for couples only, singles may not adopt.
- Both must have a minimum education level of a high school graduate.
- Adoptive parents must not have medical illness or conditions and must have a BMI under 30.
- Strict mental health requirements: No mental health problems are acceptable, no psychiatric illness in the past or present. No medication for mental illness taken in the past or present. A Psychological Evaluation will be required during the homestudy process.
- The financial stability of the adoptive family will be reviewed by the Government
- No more than 5 children in the home, including adopted child under the age of 18.
- No more than one child from another country other than Korea.
- All children in the home must be physically and emotionally healthy.
CHILDREN:
Children are placed in the orphanages due to cultural, social and economic challenges. Infants spend a few months of their lives in excellent institutional settings. Then they are raised in foster care when they are ready to travel to the US for adoption. There are more boys than girls waiting to be adopted, like any other country. Families must be open to minor-moderate medical issues. Please discuss this with us if you have concerns. Older children and sibling groups are not available. Children at the time of arrival are about 15 months old.
Bal Jagat- Children's World Inc. is not the Primary Provider. We work in partnership with another Hague Accredited Agency.
For more information, please refer to the US State Department's website:
Please contact us for a personal Orientation appointment to learn more and see if Korea is the right country for you.
"Adoption is a gift of life." Hemlata Momaya, MSW, Founder, &
2016 Congressional "Angels in Adoption" Award Recipient
"Really wonderful agency! Hemlata and Mausami are incredibly warm and helpful people and guided my wife and I through the daunting process of international adoption. With their help and partnership with another agency (Children’s Home Society & Lutheran Social Services - Minnesota) specializing in Korean adoptions, we now have a little boy who is 21 months as of writing this!
In addition, our social worker from Bal Jagat who did our home study and will do our post custody reports (Post Adoption Reporting), Katy, is the best! We were so discouraged with the adoption process before we found Bal Jagat, but now we finally have our son and we are just thrilled!- Hiro H. (Adoptive father of a son from Korea. Posted on Google)
"We were referred to Hemlata & Bal Jagat in the early stages of adopting our now 12 year old daughter from China. Hemlata was so warm & welcoming & spoke in such an intelligent & heartfelt way about the adoption process. We knew we were in good hands. We systematically got through the domestic portion of the process -led by Hemlata, we didn't freak out with all the paperwork, we just did it. She was always there to answer questions & offer guidance in the process. The social worker assigned to us through Bal Jagat, for the home study portion, was lovely. So kind yet very professional too. For the international portion, Hemlata had us work with Norman Niu of US Asian Affairs, & the China part went smoothly too. When we got home from China in Jan.2003 with our beautiful 9 month old baby girl, we knew that this whole process wouldn't have been possible without the first step-meeting with Hemlata, the Angel! 12 years later, we are forever grateful and appreciative of all you do. Thank you! Love,"- Courtney C (Adoptive parents of a daughter from China)
"Really wonderful agency! Hemlata and Mausami are incredibly warm and helpful people and guided my wife and I through the daunting process of international adoption. With their help and partnership with another agency specializing in Korean adoptions, we now have a little boy who is 21 months as of writing this! In addition, our social worker from Bal Jagat who did our home study and will do our post custody reports, Katy, is the best! We were so discouraged with the adoption process before we found Bal Jagat, but now we finally have our son and we are just thrilled!"- Hiro & Jenn posted on Google (adoptive parents of a son from Korea).
"I want to thank Bal Jagat Children's World Inc for their help and support. They were friendly and informative. They walked me through all the process. The Mausami and Hemlata were genuine and honest. Fees were reasonable and they took time to explain everything in detail."- Herb
"Bal Jagat is one of those places that deserves an exemption from Yelp to be able to have a 6th star. My wife and I have been looking for an adoption agency, and we felt completely overwhelmed by the amount of information we could find online. It's easy to find hundreds of agencies, but it's tough to get firm details about what is involved with the adoption process. Yesterday, we had the honor of spending a few hours with Hemlata and Mausami. It was evident in the first few minutes how much these two wonderful ladies cared about all the children and prospective parents. Bal Jagat is a Hindi phrase meaning "Children's World". They chose that name to represent their dedication to uniting to uniting the children of the world with loving parents in permanent homes in the United States. Based on our circumstances, there are certain countries that we are unable to adopt from. Hemlata and Mausami were very transparent and didn't pressure us in any certain direction. They simply want what is best for each prospective parent and have a genuine care to help all the children. As an adoption agency that has been helping children since 1983, their office is literally covered in the most adorable photos you can imagine. They've helped thousands of kids through the years, and it's inspiring to see all the happy faces in their office. I was especially touched by seeing graduation announcements and wedding invitations from children that have stayed in touch through the years and still treat Bal Jagat as a part of their family. Hemlata and Mausami -- Thank you for your guidance along our adoption journey." - Josh H
"We feel truly blessed that we found Bal Jagat to complete our family. Thanks so much, Hemlata and Mausami for your tireless work to ensure every child has a home! " Hep. J. (Adoptive mother of a son from Japan).