Adoption is when the birth parents of a child sever all legal ties to their child, and the parental rights are legally given over to the new adoptive family, who are strangers.

Apart from adopting a child from your own country, intercountry adoption is also available as there are also many children from international countries who need a family.

In the UK and the USA, children are usually given up for adoption because they have been
mistreated; other reasons are due to teenage pregnancy, or because the birth parents are no
longer able to look after the child, or they have given up the child because it isn't the right sex, it has some form of disability, or because they simply don't want a child.

There are many different reasons for wanting to adopt - if couples are unable to conceive, if they want to help others by adopting, and now there are same-sex couples who prefer to adopt.

The adoption process varies from one country to another. The ethics for eligibility can differ in each country which can include the age limit, the requirements for same-sex adoption couples, and whether a single person is able to adopt.

Placing a child into care and up for adoption is free in the United States. Adopting fees for the parents vary in different countries, and even in some, to charge an adoption fee would be illegal. In the United States, for adoptions you are given a $10,000 tax credit.

The new parents face many concerns in adoption. The child's family history and their family medical history may be unknown, or kept secret until the child starts to ask questions about where they come from.

This usually happens when a child is old enough to ask the right questions, or when they feel the need to 'find themselves'. There are always misconceptions about children who have been fostered and this is usually fuelled by the media.

Some children are thought of as not being able to develop properly or will become problem, but that is not always the case, as children can fare well when given a new, loving home and go on to lead successful lives.