Adult adoption is different from the adoption of a child in two significant ways. One, there is no home study required. The adopting parent avoids both the cost and the delay of doing them. Second, you do not need the consent of the existing parents of the adult being adopted. Why do people do an adult adoption?
According to the Superior Court of California, this is where someone has formed a parent-child relationship with someone other than their existing legal parents. Sometimes there is only one adopting parent, as would be the case if it were a step-parent adoption. Adult adoption not only officially creates the parent-child relationship, but it can also allow the adoptee to legally take the adopting parent’s last name if they wish to do so without having to do a separate legal name change. They can even have a new birth certificate prepared to reflect the name of the new parents. The name change and the new birth certificate are optional.
According to Verywellfamily, adult adoption also creates the right of inheritance and helps prevent any challenge to a will for leaving property to a non-relative. Adult adoption requires that the adoptee be at least 18 years of age, be younger than the adopting parent, and either the adopting parents or the adoptee lives in the county in which they are filing the petition for adoption. International adult adoption requires extra information, including extensive background checks. International adult adoption is usually handled by multiple federal agencies.
Adult adoption is fast and affordable. Typically, cases take 2 to 3 months from start to finish.
