If you’re a prospective birth parent, you may ask, “If my child is adopted, do I still have to pay child support?”

Then answer to this question is no. When your child is adopted, it’s a permanent decision that involves the termination of your parental rights and responsibilities — and, therefore, any obligation you have to pay child support. Whether your child is being adopted as an infant or when they’re older, if you give consent to have your parental rights terminated, you will not have any legal parental obligations to them.

If you’re asking, “If my child is adopted, do I still have to pay child support?” or have questions about your legal rights during the adoption process and what will be expected of you after the adoption is complete, you can always talk to an adoption counselor at A Child’s Hope. We can explain what the adoption process is like and what is legally required of you, whether you’re a prospective birth mother or father.

Generally, when parents ask us this question, it’s in regard to two kinds of adoption:

Private Domestic Infant Adoption

When an infant is placed for adoption with an adoptive family, both the birth mother and father’s parental rights are terminated. That means, once you sign your consent to the adoption, you will have no rights or responsibilities to your baby, including any obligation to pay child support.

In addition, when you place a child for adoption through A Child’s Hope, you can be assured that any adoptive family is financially prepared to complete the adoption process and raise your child in a financially stable and supportive home.

Stepparent Adoption

The other situation when biological parents wonder about child support payments is in a stepparent adoption. Usually, the parent who is voluntarily terminating their rights so their child’s stepparent can adopt them is the one who is curious about this. The answer is the same in this case; once your parental rights are terminated, you will have no obligation to pay child support. However, if you have outstanding child support payments at the time of the adoption, you may still be obligated to pay these.

Before you cease paying your child support obligations, make sure you talk to an attorney and the North Carolina Child Support Enforcement office. They can best answer any questions you have about your current child support obligations and any payments that you may owe after your child’s adoption is complete. The counselors at A Child’s Hope can also refer you to the correct professional or attorney for your situation.

In addition to the referrals, our counselors can help you better understand your legal rights and responsibilities during the adoption process, how the adoption process works and what financial resources are available if you’re considering adoption. If you’re asking, “If my child is adopted, do I still have to pay child support?” please call our Pregnancy Hotline: (919) 971-4396, or Text: Pregnant to (919) 971-4396, or email ach@localhost.

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