Adoption scams happen, and they can be disheartening to even think about.
Often times this underlying fear is the reason families don’t move forward with adopting. However, there are common red flags to look for and questions to ask that will, hopefully, prevent you from ever having to experience a scam.
One important thing to note is that a birth mother choosing to parent her child prior to planned adoption happening is completely different and NOT a scam. Birth mothers have every right to choose to parent, up until the moment that she signs over parental relinquishment to an adoptive family.
An adoption scam happens when a woman decides to prey on vulnerable people. In this case, hopeful parents who would do anything or give everything to finally build the family they’ve always dreamed of.
Separate from an adoption scam, there are also signs you can look out for throughout a match or an expectant mother’s pregnancy that may indicate she will likely choose to parent her child.
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Money
Communication

Prior placements
Gender
If the expectant mother is pregnant with a child of a gender that doesn’t already have, is she going to be okay going through with the adoption? For example, if she has three boys and this time around she’s having a girl, she may want to parent her daughter. In no way is this a scam, but it’s important to ask your agency if a conversation about this has been had.