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Services for birth family members If your birth child/relative is under 21 years old If you are a birth parent or other relative, you may want to know about the current well-being of a child placed for adoption through DCFS. Perhaps you received very little information about the family into which the child was placed for adoption and have not had any word of the child’s well-being since the time of the adoption. Or you may want to give medical or other family information that could have great importance to the child. As a birth relative, you are not entitled to receive information from the closed DCFS files; however, there is another way that you may be able to get information about the child placed for adoption or pass on information to him or his adoptive/guardianship family. If you request search service through the DCFS Closed File Information and Search program, we will attempt to locate the adoptee, or his adoptive or guardianship parent if he is still a minor. If the adoptee or parent agrees, information about his current health, education, etc can be obtained for you and you could pass information on to the adoptive/guardianship parent through the MAC caseworker. If your birth child/relative is 21 or older Many birth parents (and other relatives) consider the possibility of searching for the child placed for adoption. You may be concerned about his well-being and/or hope for a connection that could include face-to-face meetings. If the adoption was completed through the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, search service is available to birth parents and other birth relatives for no fee. Your MAC caseworker will try to locate the adoptee and help you connect in whatever way is comfortable for both of you. Some relatives exchange letters through MAC and some have face-to-face contact. In other situations, MAC is not able to find the adoptee or he does not want to have any kind of connection. Click here to request search service through the DCFS Closed File Information and Search program. If your birth child (or relative) was not adopted through DCFS, the Confidential Intermediary program could be an option for you when the adoptee is 21 years of age or older. You will file a petition with the Court for the appointment of a trained, certified Confidential Intermediary. MAC staff can help you with the filing process. Your Intermediary will be given the sealed Court adoption file, other identifying information about the adoption to help locate the adoptee. If and when the adoptee is located, your CI will help you connect in whatever way you both desire. If both of you want direct contact, the CI will arrange for you to exchange names and contact information. There is a fee for service. Click here for more information about the Confidential Intermediary program. Help to know what program is best for you. MAC staff would be glad to talk with you about your situation and your hopes to connect with your birth child or birth relative. Click here to contact us. |