Child Welfare Information Gateway

Children’s Bureau/ACYF/ACF/HHS

1250 Maryland Avenue, SW

Eighth Floor

Washington, DC 20024

800.394.3366

Email: info@childwelfare.gov

https://www.childwelfare.gov

FACTSHEET 

FOR FAMILIES

May 2013

Stepparent Adoption 

Use your smartphone to 

access this factsheet online.

What’s Inside:

• Legal issues

• Steps to take

• Help for parents

Adopting a stepchild is the most common form 

of adoption. A stepparent who adopts agrees to 

become the legal parent and be fully responsible 

for his or her spouse’s child. After the 

stepparent adoption occurs, the noncustodial 

parent (the parent not living with the child) no 

longer has any rights or responsibilities for the 

child, including child support.
Stepparent Adoption https://www.childwelfare.gov

2 This material may be freely reproduced and distributed. However, when doing so, please credit 

Child Welfare Information Gateway. Available online at https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/f_step.cfm

Legal Issues

Stepparent adoption, like all other forms of 

adoption in the United States, is governed 

by State law. Most States make the adoption 

process easier for stepparents. For example, 

your family may not need to be represented 

by a lawyer. You may not be required to 

have a home study, as parents in other 

types of adoption are. However, every 

State is different. For example, many States 

require a criminal background check even 

if a home study is not required. Be sure to 

find out what the laws are in your State. For 

an overview of home study requirements, 

see Home Study Requirements for Prospective 

Parents in Domestic Adoption at https://www.

childwelfare.gov/systemwide/laws_policies/

statutes/homestudyreqs.cfm. 

How long your adoption will take also varies 

by State. Some States will not approve a 

stepparent adoption unless you have been 

married to the child’s parent and living with 

the child for 1 year or longer.

In a few States, adoption by a stepparent has 

no effect on a child’s legal right to inherit 

from either birth parent or other family 

members. In most States, however, since 

the child’s legal ties to the noncustodial 

birth parent are severed by the adoption, 

the child can inherit from the former birth 

parent only when the former parent makes 

provision for the child in his or her written 

will. For more information about how each 

State and territory handles legal inheritance, 

see Intestate Inheritance Rights for Adopted 

Children at https://www.childwelfare.

gov/systemwide/laws_policies/statutes/

inheritance.cfm.

Who Must Consent

If you want to adopt a stepchild, you must 

have the consent (or agreement) of both 

your spouse and the child’s other parent 

(the noncustodial parent) unless that parent 

has abandoned the child. By giving his or 

her consent, the noncustodial parent gives 

up all rights and responsibilities, including 

child support. In addition, in nearly all 

States, an older child must consent to being 

adopted by his or her stepparent. The age 

at which the child must consent varies by 

State, but in general the minimum age at 

which the child’s consent is needed ranges 

from 10 to 14.

The way to obtain consent is different in 

each State. In many States, the noncustodial 

parent can give a written statement. In 

other States, he or she may have to appear 

before a judge or file papers with the court. 

Some States require the parent to receive 

counseling, have the laws and his or her 

rights explained to him or her, or talk to a 

lawyer.

Some State adoption laws do not require the 

other parent’s consent in some situations, 

such as abandonment. However, it is 

important to do everything the law requires 

to obtain proper consent. Some States’ laws 

allow for consent to be revoked, and for an 

adoption to be challenged or overturned, 

if these requirements are not met or fraud 

has occurred. For more information on the 

issue of consent, see Consent to Adoption at 

https://www.childwelfare.gov/systemwide/

laws_policies/statutes/consent.cfm.

Sometimes getting the child’s other 

parent to agree to your adoption can be 

difficult. Some States’ laws allow stepparent 

adoptions to occur even if the noncustodial 
Stepparent Adoption 

3 This material may be freely reproduced and distributed. However, when doing so, please credit 

Child Welfare Information Gateway. Available online at https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/f_step.cfm

https://www.childwelfare.gov

parent objects or contests the adoption. 

For example, this may be allowed if the 

noncustodial parent has not contacted the 

child for a certain period of time. These 

situations may be complicated. You may 

wish to consult with a lawyer. If you cannot 

afford to hire a lawyer, you may be eligible 

for free legal help. In some States, the court 

also will appoint someone to represent your 

child (a guardian ad litem, sometimes called 

a “GAL”).

Resources

The Child Welfare Information Gateway 

State website provides an array of resources 

on the legal issues involved in all types 

of adoptions, including summaries of 

State laws. See the web section, Relevant 

Adoption Laws, Policies, and Legal 

Considerations, at https://www.childwelfare.

gov/adoption/adoptive/considerations.cfm. 

The Family Education Network provides 

information on its website about the issues a 

family should consider when contemplating 

stepparent adoption. See http://life.

familyeducation.com/stepfamilies/

adoption/47620.html. 

Steps to Take

1. Check out your State’s laws on 

stepparent adoptions.

You may begin by reading the laws discussed 

in the previous sections. However, nothing 

can replace the qualified legal advice of 

an adoption lawyer admitted to the Bar in 

your State. Adoption lawyers will know the 

relevant laws and will be able to discuss with 

you your particular situation and provide 

guidance on the adoption process. To locate 

an attorney who specializes in adoption 

law in your State, visit the website of the 

American Academy of Adoption Attorneys 

at http://www.adoptionattorneys.org/. 

2. Contact the court in your county 

that handles adoptions.

An adoption petition must be submitted to 

the appropriate court in your State. In some 

States adoptions are handled in juvenile 

court. In other States the family court or 

surrogacy court handles adoptions. To 

find out which court handles adoptions in 

your area, see Information Gateway’s Court 

Jurisdiction and Venue for Adoption Petitions: 

https://www.childwelfare.gov/systemwide/

laws_policies/statutes/jurisdiction.cfm. 

Ask to speak to the court clerk or another 

staff person who can give you information 

about stepparent adoptions. (Court 

employees may not give legal advice.) Many 

courts have an information packet that can 

be mailed to you. If the court does not have 

a prepared packet, find out during your 

phone call: 

• Whether the court requires you to hire 

a lawyer, or whether you can represent 

yourself

• Where you can find the required legal 

forms (in some States, they will be 

available online)
Stepparent Adoption https://www.childwelfare.gov

4 This material may be freely reproduced and distributed. However, when doing so, please credit 

Child Welfare Information Gateway. Available online at https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/f_step.cfm

3. Find and submit required legal 

forms.

Many States allow certain publishing 

companies to stock and sell legal forms to 

the public for court procedures. In other 

States, they are available online. These forms 

will ask questions about you and the child 

you want to adopt. For example, they may 

ask:

• The child’s current name, and what it will 

be after the adoption

• How long you have been married to the 

child’s parent

• Where the child was born

Typically, you will need to provide some 

proof of this information, such as a child’s 

birth certificate, a marriage license, and a 

copy of the noncustodial parent’s consent. If 

you hire a lawyer, he or she will take care of 

this step for you.

4. Go to the preliminary hearing.

Once your forms have been submitted, a 

preliminary hearing (court) date may be 

assigned. How long it takes to get a hearing 

varies based on where you live and how 

busy the court is. It may be anywhere from 

a few weeks to a few months. You may 

be notified of the date by mail or by your 

lawyer.

You and your child will probably be 

required to go to this hearing. A judge (or 

magistrate) will ask questions of everyone 

involved. In addition, if your child is old 

enough to be required to give consent in 

your State, the judge or magistrate may ask 

the child to confirm that he or she agrees 

to the adoption. Your lawyer can give you 

more information about what happens 

during hearings in your area. At the end of 

this hearing, the judge or magistrate will 

set a date for the adoption to be finalized. 

In stepparent adoptions, this preliminary 

hearing often is waived.

5. Finalize the adoption.

In some States, during the time following 

the first adoption hearing, the court may 

order periodic visits by a social worker to 

verify that all members of the family are 

adjusting well to the adoption. A final 

adoption hearing is then scheduled, and 

that may be a few months (or longer) after 

the first hearing. An adoption Certificate 

and/or Order is issued at this hearing; the 

certificate will list the stepparent as the 

legal parent of the child and the child’s new 

name if the adoption petition requested 

a name change. You may wish to request 

extra copies of this legal document for 

your files. Your lawyer or the court will tell 

you whether or not you need to go to this 

hearing.

6. Apply for a new birth certificate.

When the adoption is final, you can apply 

for a new birth certificate for your child. 

This certificate will have the child’s new 

name, if changed, and list the stepparent as 

his or her parent.
Stepparent Adoption https://www.childwelfare.gov

Help for Parents

Adoption does not end with finalization. It 

is a process rather than a one-time event. 

Your child and family may need time to 

adjust to being a new kind of “blended 

family.” Parenting is a lifelong job. Adoptive 

families, like all families, sometimes 

face challenges. To access a wide range 

of resources addressing these issues, see 

the Child Welfare Information Gateway 

web section Parenting After Adoption at 

https://www.childwelfare.gov/adoption/

adopt_parenting/. 

In addition, Child Welfare Information 

Gateway’s National Foster Care and 

Adoption Directory lists adoption support 

groups in every State. Search it online at 

https://www.childwelfare.gov/nfcad/. 

Suggested citation: Child Welfare 

Information Gateway. (2013). Stepparent 

adoption. Washington, DC: U.S. 

Department of Health and Human 

Services, Children’s Bureau.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Administration for Children and Families

Administration on Children, Youth and Families

Children’s Bureau