Should I Use an Adoption Facilitator?

Is Your Adoption Professional Putting You at Risk?

Choosing the right adoption professional is one of the most important decisions you can make throughout this life-changing process. Whether you are a birth mother considering adoption for your baby or a hopeful adoptive family, the services from your provider need to be trusted, ethical, and legal.

But, is your adoption professional actually putting you at risk?

Here, we explore adoption facilitators vs adoption agencies and the potential risks choosing one over the other can have on your adoption.

Adoption Facilitator vs Adoption Agency: Should I Use an Adoption Facilitator?

The short answer is no. Licensed professionals agree that you should not use an adoption facilitator. They present an increased risk to the safety, success and legal standing of your adoption process. Here is why.

Facilitators: Adoption facilitators are unlicensed and unregulated organizations that primarily offer adoption matching services. Because of their primary focus on matching services, adoption facilitators cannot offer full-scale adoption services and typically have higher costs in relation to the services a family receives. Since a facilitator is only involved in the matching, there are no counseling, legal, or support services available for birth mothers or adoptive families.

Because facilitators are not regulated or reviewed, there is no guarantee that their services comply with your state’s adoption laws or are being completed in a legal and ethical manner.

Agencies: Adoption agencies are licensed and regulated organizations that provide all necessary adoption services to help birth mothers and adoptive families complete a successful adoption. Agencies pride themselves on offering legal and ethical services. The best agencies will offer financial protection programs for families to help avoid any unnecessary costs or financial setbacks in the case of a disruption.

Pre and post-placement counseling services help ensure birth mothers and adoptive families have been educated on all aspects of the adoption process. 

Risks of Unlicensed Adoption Agencies

Working with an adoption facilitator puts birth mothers and adoptive families at a higher risk of disruption or failure, financial loss, scams, and more.  

Disruption or Failure: The lack of social work and counseling services is directly correlated to birth mothers being less supported during the adoption process. Birth mothers working with a facilitator may not understand the emotional aspects of such an important decision, which tends to lessen the strength of their commitment to adoption.

Financial Loss: The higher risk of a disruption leads to potential financial losses for the adoptive family. The majority of facilitators do not offer a refund or protection program. When an adoption disrupts, the family loses the money they spent for that match.

In some situations, facilitators have closed without any indication or warning to families or birth mothers they are working with. This leaves adoptive families and birth mothers scrambling for the resources to complete their adoption or causes them to start the process all over again, wasting time, money, and emotions.

Scams: Some facilitators inflate their placement numbers and minimize their wait times. This misleading practice is a way to obtain more adoptive families and birth parents. Even worse, some make baseless promises or lie about the number of matching opportunities in an attempt to scam adoptive families out of thousands of dollars.

Are Adoption Facilitators Legal? An FTC Warning

While adoption facilitators are still allowed to operate in a small handful states, the majority have either banned them or have heavy regulations.

In late 2024, the FTC sent out a letter with their concerns about facilitators and law centers, stating, “It has come to our attention that companies that provide marketing, advertising, or consulting services in connection with matching prospective adoptive parents with birth parents for private adoptions (“adoption intermediaries”) may be violating the FTC Act or the Consumer Review Fairness Act.”

31 facilitators received the FTC adoption warning. The agencies are subject to continuous monitoring and could face up to $50,000 for each infraction moving forward.

The FTC warns of additional actions as warranted, including permanent closure of facilitators continuing unethical practices.

Adoption Law Changes Coming Soon?

Since November 2023, the federal government has been working to pass “The Adopt Act,” which will bring significant changes to the adoption community and the overall adoption process if passed. The Adopt Act will require adoption professionals to be licensed in each state in which they provide related adoption services.

The goal of this Act is to ensure adoption is being completed ethically and legally and that all parties involved are protected. This ruling could significantly impact facilitators’ ability to continue to offer adoption services.

What Does This Mean for My Adoption?

Working with an adoption facilitator puts you at increased risks for financial loss, lack of support, and a failed adoption. And with changing laws, there is a chance your facilitator is forced to ceased operations at any point – including in the middle of your adoption process. For a safe, ethical and supportive professional, we recommend working with a fully licensed adoption agency.