Notarization explanation...

There isn't really any news, we are waiting on a few documents before we can move forward.


I am a pretty organized person, and count it an honor and a blessing to already have had several opportunities to help other newbie adoptive parents with their paper chase questions. On several occasions these last few weeks I have been asked how to keep it straight which forms and documents need to be notarized in what way. I decided to post my answer here, hoping it will help other adoptive parents in the future.

We were blessed not to have to pay for notarization because a wonderful woman at our church did it for free. I am also told that some banks have notaries on staff who will help for free. Just make sure their commission/stamp doesn't expire for at least a year.

With as many forms and documents as we have to collect, it's easy to loose track of what is what and which form needs what kind of stamp. I sorted everything into piles, and then gave each pile a slot in my accordion folder. Here's the breakdown for all the docs:

Certified copies (that's what you call it when you request them, and they certify them in the office they make them at):
-Birth Certificates for you and your husband
-Marriage certificate

Color copy:
- you passports. This was tricky, since Kinkos etc is not legally able to make a color copy. We scanned ours at a friend's house and then made a color print.

Notarized Copy of Original (see the form for that in your packet):
-of your insurance cards
-of your I-171H form (since you travel with your original)

Notarized and signed by wife + hubby (This means you wait to sign until you are in front of the notary. The notary stamp must be good for 12 months. Make sure the notary's date matches yours.):
-Dossier cover sheet (later gets authenticated too)
-Application letter (to MOWCYA)
-Financial Statement
-Power of Attorney (later gets state certified)
-Letter of non-employment (if you stay at home with the kids... there's a template in the Dossier Guidelines)

Notarized and signed by others:
-Physical exam forms
-Doctors letters (see template in Dossier Guidelines)
-Proof of Medical insurance (e.g. a letter by your or your husband's employer that states that as of the adoption being finalized, your adopted child will be covered by medical insurance etc... there's a template in the Dossier Guidelines file)
-Letter of Employment (see template in Dossier Guidelines)
-Letters of Reference (Dossier) ...the reference forms for the HS do not need to be notarized
-Police reports (every State handles this differently, your SW will tell you how to get yours. We had to do an online check through the police department, then fax them a form with our credit card info, and they then sent us a notarized letter stating that there is no record of any unlawful activity etc)
-Proof of life insurance. We had to call our company to request a letter that states our proof of life insurance, and then had to actually re-request them, because the stamp on the first set of letters only lasted until this May!


"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
Philippians 4:6-7