New York Adoption Forms: The Complete Court Filing Checklist
New York Adoption Forms: The Complete Court Filing Checklist
Most New York adoption delays don't happen because families didn't qualify—they happen because a petition package was filed with the wrong form version, missing a document, or submitted to the wrong court. Surrogate's Court clerks in particular enforce strict document-matching standards. A single missing affidavit or an outdated form number pushes a file into a rejected queue, and that resets the scheduling timeline entirely.
This guide breaks down the mandatory forms by phase and explains where each one goes and why it exists.
Two Courts, Two Form Sets
New York adoption filings are routed through one of two courts. Both use standardized forms from the NYS Unified Court System, but they are not always interchangeable.
Family Court handles the majority of public foster care adoptions, county DSS placements, and kinship/stepparent adoptions arising from child protective cases. There are no filing fees in Family Court for adoption proceedings—the state eliminated all adoption filing fees under chapter 626 of the Laws of 1969.
Surrogate's Court handles private-placement (independent) adoptions, stepparent adoptions initiated outside child welfare proceedings, and adult adoptions. Despite Surrogate's Court being primarily an estate and probate court, it has concurrent jurisdiction over adoption. Its clerks are experienced with the financial disclosure requirements unique to private placements and tend to operate on more predictable scheduling calendars than the heavily congested Family Court dockets in NYC.
Phase 1: Pre-Placement Certification (Private Placement Only)
Before physically taking custody of a child in an independent adoption, prospective parents must obtain certification as a qualified adoptive parent under DRL § 115-d. This certification is not required for agency or foster-to-adopt placements, but it is mandatory for private placements.
| Form | Name | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Form 22 | Petition for Certification as a Qualified Adoptive Parent | Filed in the Surrogate's or Family Court in your county of residence; initiates the pre-placement investigation |
| Form 23 | Pre-Placement Disinterested Person Investigation Report | Prepared by the court-appointed disinterested investigator (typically an LMSW or probation officer) |
| Form 24 | Order of Certification as a Qualified Adoptive Parent | Issued by the court; valid for 18 months; required before physical placement can occur |
| Form 26 | Petition for Extension of Expired Certification | Filed if the 18-month window expires before placement is completed |
| Form 26-A | Disinterested Person Update Report for Extension | Accompanies Form 26 |
Emergency placements may use a provisional conditional order valid for up to 180 days, pending completion of fingerprint clearances.
Phase 2: The Main Petition Filing (All Pathways)
This is the core document package filed to commence the adoption proceeding. For agency adoptions, use Form 1-A; for private placements, use Form 1-C.
| Form | Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Form 1-A | Petition for Adoption (Agency) | Used for agency and foster-care placements |
| Form 1-C | Petition for Adoption (Private Placement) | Used for independent and step-parent adoptions |
| Form 1-B | Verified Schedule | Submitted by the placing agency in agency adoptions; details the child's legal background and placement dates |
| Form 1-D / Form 1-E | Child's Medical History | Mandatory disclosure of the child's known medical history and prenatal drug exposure; 1-D for agency, 1-E for private |
| Form 2-A / Form 2-B | Agreement of Adoption and Consent | Signed by the adoptive parents agreeing to raise the child as their own |
| Form 2-F, 2-Fa, 2-G, or 2-Ga | Consent Forms (judicial and extrajudicial) | Executed by the birth or legal parent; judicial consents are immediately irrevocable; extrajudicial consents trigger a 45-day revocation window |
| Form 9-A / Form 9-B | Affidavit of Financial Disclosure | Lists every dollar paid by the petitioners—agency fees, birth parent expenses, attorney fees; the court reviews this to ensure compliance with expense limits |
| Form UCS-836 | Uniform Adoption Attorney's Affidavit | Discloses all legal fees and services rendered by the adoptive parents' attorney |
Supporting documents that must accompany the petition:
- Certified birth certificate of the child (with official registrar seal)
- Certified copy of petitioners' marriage record (if applicable)
- Certified copies of all prior divorce decrees (if applicable)
- Certified copy of the completed home study report (must be within its validity window: 2 years for private/agency, 1 year for public foster-to-adopt)
- ICPC approval document (required for all interstate placements)
- NYS SCR clearance confirmation and fingerprint clearance documentation
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Phase 3: Pre-Hearing Documents
These forms are filed after placement but immediately before the finalization hearing. They update the court on the current status of the household.
| Form | Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Form 10-A / Form 10-B | Supplemental Affidavit of Adoptive Parents | Filed immediately before the hearing to certify no material change of circumstances since the original petition |
| Form 10-C | Affidavit of No Appeal | Agency placements only; certifies that no appeal is pending against the underlying TPR order |
| Form 6-A / Form 6-B | Order of Investigation | Issued by the court appointing the investigator for post-placement supervision |
| Form 7 | Report of Investigation | The post-placement supervision report prepared by the disinterested person; must recommend finalization |
The Finalization Documents
Once the judge signs the final Order of Adoption, two additional documents are generated:
Form 13-A / Form 13-B — Order of Adoption. The binding legal decree. The court seals all adoption records upon signing.
Form 14 — Certificate of Adoption. Issued immediately by the court clerk; serves as legal proof of parental rights until the amended birth certificate arrives.
Form DOH-4455 / DOH-1928 — Report of Adoption. The court clerk transmits this certified report to the NYS Department of Health Bureau of Vital Records (or, for NYC births, to the NYC DOHMH). This is the mechanism that generates the amended post-adoption birth certificate listing the adoptive parents, which typically arrives within 8 to 12 weeks.
Common Filing Errors That Cause Delays
Using the wrong form version. The NYS Unified Court System updates its forms periodically. Always download directly from nycourts.gov—do not use forms saved from a prior case or downloaded from a third-party website.
Missing the attorney's affidavit. Form UCS-836 is a separate document from the petitioner's financial disclosure. Both are required. First-time filers frequently include only one.
Incomplete SCR clearance documentation. The Statewide Central Register check must cover all household members over 18. If anyone in the household lived outside New York State at any time during the previous five years, an out-of-state child abuse registry check is also required. Missing either will result in rejection.
Expired home study. For private agency and independent adoptions, the home study is valid for 2 years. If your placement took longer than expected, verify the study is still within its validity window before filing. An expired study requires an update report before the court will accept the petition.
Wrong court venue. Filing a private-placement adoption in Family Court when it should go to Surrogate's Court—or vice versa—doesn't automatically void the proceeding, but it can cause significant delays if the clerk routes it back for re-filing in the correct venue.
Where to Get the Forms
All adoption forms are available at no charge from the NYS Unified Court System at nycourts.gov. The Surrogate's Court Checklists document (available on the court's forms page) lists the exact package requirements organized by adoption type and can serve as a preliminary checklist before your attorney reviews the complete filing.
For a step-by-step breakdown of how these forms integrate with the full timeline—from pre-placement certification through finalization hearing and amended birth certificate—the New York Adoption Process Guide walks through the complete process with phase-by-phase checklists.
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