Regulation of Private Domestic Adoption Expenses - Kentucky

Birth Parent Expenses Allowed

Citation: Rev. Stat. § 199.590(6)(a)

Payment of the following expenses is permitted:

• Fees for legal services
• Cost of placement services
• Expenses of the birth parents

Birth Parent Expenses Not Allowed

Citation: Rev. Stat. § 199.493

No adoptive parent, agency, or intermediary shall pay the attorney's fees of a birth parent for any purpose related to an adoption action except as approved by the court.

Allowable Payments for Arranging Adoption

Citation: Rev. Stat. § 199.590(3), (5)

No person, association, or organization, other than the cabinet or a child-placing institution or agency shall place a child or act as intermediary in the placement of a child for adoption or otherwise except in the home of a stepparent, grandparent, sister, brother, aunt, or uncle, or upon written approval of the secretary.

A person, organization, group, agency, or any legal entity except a child-placing agency shall not accept any fee for bringing the adoptive parents together with the child to be adopted or the birth parents of the child to be adopted.

Allowable Payments for Relinquishing Child

Citation: Rev. Stat. § 199.590(2)

A person, agency, institution, or intermediary shall not sell or purchase or procure for sale or purchase any child for the purpose of adoption or any other purpose, including termination of parental rights.

Allowable Fees Charged by Department/Agency

Citation: Rev. Stat. §§ 199.590(2); 199.473

A child-placing agency may charge a fee for adoption services.

Except for a child-placing agency or institution, the department, a stepparent, grandparent, or other close relative, any person who wishes to place or receive a child for adoption shall make written application to the secretary for permission. Prior to the approval of an application to place or receive a child, the required fee shall be paid, and a home study shall be completed.

The Cabinet for Health and Family Services shall be paid a nonrefundable fee of $200 upon the filing of the written application for permission to place or receive a child.

Accounting of Expenses Required by Court

Citation: Rev. Stat. § 199.590(6)(a)

In every adoption proceeding, the expenses paid by the prospective adoptive parents, including, but not limited to, any fees for legal services, placement services, and expenses of the birth parent or parents for any purpose related to the adoption shall be submitted to the court and supported by an affidavit that sets forth in detail a listing of expenses for the court's approval or modification.

In the event the court modifies the expense request as it relates to legal fees and legal expenses only, the attorney for the adoptive parents shall not have any claim against the adoptive parents for the amount not approved.