Parents can receive payment or reimbursement for certain nonrecurring adoption expenses directly related to the finalization of an adoption. Below are the allowed expenses and the limit per child. In all cases, requests for nonrecurring adoption expenses must be made and the agreements completed before the child's adoption is finalized. Payment shall be made after the finalization of the adoption. In addition to monthly payments and health coverage, Massachusetts has indicated that the following services are available for children with special needs.
Families contact the DSS office that covers their city.
If a child is placed out of the home, both the family and the placing workers are expected to inform the subsidy unit. The Department does provide deferred subsidies to a number of families. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts provides a subsidy for children who had been in the custody of the Department and who were placed in a DSS sponsored guardianship. The program was created in the early 1980s and is entirely state funded. The program is administered through the Adoption Subsidy Unit.