The I-171H

If you want to read the details of the next document we need to process
for the adoption of our daughter, read on...
The I-171H: “Notice of Favorable Determination Concerning Application
for Advance Processing of an Orphan Petition”
This form is the U.S. Government’s approval for your family to adopt a child internationally. When we filed the I-600A form, we were applying to receive the I-171H. The I-171H is the last document to complete our dossier. Most families receive their I-171H within 90 days of CIS
receiving their I-600A with all supporting documents, fingerprints, and
favorable Home Study report.
The I-171H form will list our names as “Petitioner” and “Petitioner’s
Spouse” and include our address and date of filing and completion. The
I-171H form has an expiration date of 18 months from the time of
completion. We will need the I-171H for our dossier; however we will
not use the original form for our dossier. The original I-171H will be
carried with us to China. To prepare the I-171H for our dossier:
· Make a copy of the original I-171H form.
· Attach a notarial statement to the I-171H, stating that the attached
form is a true copy of the original.
· The notarial statement is the document you are actually having notarized. Take the I-171H with the notarial statement attached to a notary.
· If our fingerprint expiration dates are included on a separate page from the actual I-171H, make a photocopy of the fingerprint page for our dossier. Attach this to the notarial statement and photocopy of the
I-171H.
We must keep the original to take with us to China. The completion date on the I-171H cannot be more than 9 months old when our dossier is sent to China. The I-171H is only good for 18 months from the date of completion. If the I-171H expires before we travel, then we must renew it.