Guatemala Adoption Factsheet, Page 8

Once DHS has approved the I-600A, it will notify the prospective parents with form I-171H and will notify the designated embassy with a cable called a Visas 37. Please note that I-600A approvals are valid for 18 months, and the fingerprint records clearance validity is only 15 months after they are taken (I-171H forms now note when that 15-month period expires). Both the I-600A approval and the fingerprint clearance must be valid when parents submit petitions on behalf of the potential adoptee. If prospective adoptive parents are not able to file their I-600 within the validity periods, they should have their fingerprints retaken before traveling (see DHS website for instructions.) Note: Adoptive parents who travel to Guatemala to file I-600s at the Embassy outside the fingerprint validity period without getting their fingerprints rechecked will have to pay a fee to have their fingerprints retaken and checked before the I-600 is approved and immigrant visa issued. Adoptive parents can expect to wait two to three weeks in Guatemala for the fingerprint results to be returned.

With the I-600A approval (or while the I-600A is being processed), the next step in the process involves identifying the particular child the prospective parents would like to adopt. As parents work with local authorities to match a child to the family, it is important to note that any identified child will need to match the definition of a “child” or “orphan” (see below) to be able to immigrate to the United States. Evidence that the child meets these definitions will be reviewed when parents submit an I-600 petition on the child to DHS. Parents traveling to Guatemala to receive the child will submit the I-600 petition to the [ICE] office in Guatemala City. If the parents will not travel to Guatemala to receive the child and an escort will bring the child to the U.S., the final processing of the I-600 must be performed in the U.S. by the DHS office having jurisdiction over the parents' place of residence.

The I-600 must be approved (and, if such approval is done in the U.S., notice of the approval must be sent to the Embassy in Guatemala) before the parents (or escorts) can apply for an immigrant visa for the child. [See also Escort Cases below] Please check with the Consular Section to confirm that the appropriate notice has been received before making plans to travel to Guatemala to complete the visa application. Children adopted overseas must have an immigrant visa in order to enter the United States.

Credits: U.S. Department of State