Children Waiting for Adoption in Illinois: Who They Are
- Foster Parent Education
- November 9, 2026
Picture a 7-year-old living with an aunt while a court case stays open, a 15-year-old whose parents’ rights ended two years ago, and three brothers hoping to stay together. Everyday language calls them all children waiting for adoption, as if they stood in one line.
They do not. This article explains the term for Illinois readers. It is not a listing of children; their narratives live on the Heart Gallery of Illinois.
For a child in care, the goal is to return home, and foster parents support that goal by facilitating visits with family members, including siblings. If returning home is not possible and circumstances allow, you may be asked to become their permanent family.
Let It Be Us helps families get ready, preparing and guiding them before and through the licensing process. Complete this form to get started today. To register for a live webinar with Let It Be Us to learn about foster care and adoption parenting opportunities, please visit www.letitbeus.org/events.
What "Waiting for Adoption" Actually Means
"Waiting for adoption" is everyday language. The federal Children’s Bureau, which collects national foster care data, says it is not an official designation [1]. The bureau reports two separate measures instead:
- Children with a permanency plan of adoption. A permanency plan is the long-term goal set for each child in care. For these children, that goal is adoption.
- Children who are legally awaiting adoption. Parental rights have been terminated for all of the child’s parents, whatever the child’s plan says.
The two groups overlap, but they are different groups. The plan can point to adoption while a court case is still moving. A child can also be legally free while the plan points somewhere else.
The federal count of children whose plan is adoption stood at 70,421 on September 30, 2024, and 49,994 children were legally free on that date [2]. Those figures are preliminary for federal fiscal year 2024 and exclude Washington and Wyoming. They show the scale of the system, and neither one counts children ready to join a family tomorrow.
We still say "children waiting" because the words keep attention on a child who needs a family. When a number is attached to the phrase, it helps to ask which of these two groups it describes.
Who the Children Are
The phrase can call up an image of babies. National data points somewhere else. Only a small share of children with an adoption plan are infants, about four in ten are ages 1 to 5, and more than half are 6 or older. Race and ethnicity vary as well, with white, Black, Hispanic, and multiracial children all represented nationally [3].
These shares describe the country and should not be read as a portrait of Illinois. The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) describes waiting children here in broader terms: they come from all across the state, from all ages and backgrounds [4].
Some children tend to wait longer for a family to step forward:
- Teens, especially as they get closer to adulthood
- Brothers and sisters who hope to stay together
- Children with more significant medical, emotional, or developmental needs
None of those labels tells you who a child is. Every child featured on the Heart Gallery of Illinois entered foster care through no fault of their own, and our own description of them is a better starting point: artists, dreamers, builders, athletes, and leaders.
How a Child Comes to Be Waiting for a Family
For a child in care, the first goal is to return home. Many birth parents work hard toward that outcome alongside their caseworkers, and the reunification process exists to give them a real chance at it.
When returning home is not possible
Adoption becomes the plan only when a return home is not possible. DCFS explains that adoption can happen only when birth parents voluntarily give up their rights or a court terminates them. Our guide to termination of parental rights explains how that legal step works.
Plans and legal status can move at different speeds. Nationally, more than half of children with an adoption plan had not yet completed termination of parental rights [3]. So a plan of adoption does not mean a child is ready to be adopted tomorrow, and the legal steps that remain may take time.
Where children live in the meantime
DCFS says most children waiting to be adopted are living temporarily with relatives or other foster families, and some live in larger, professionally staffed group settings. That detail shapes what comes next. A relative or current foster family may hope to become a child’s permanent family, while another child may still need a family to be found.
Adoption Is One Path to Permanency
Adoption is one way a child reaches a permanent family, and guardianship is another. In guardianship, a court appoints a legal guardian, birth parents’ rights do not have to be terminated, and the arrangement lasts until the child reaches 18. DCFS notes that it is frequently used by relative caregivers and lifetime family friends. Adoption, by contrast, is permanent and lifelong [4].
For a child living with a grandparent and keeping close ties to a birth parent, guardianship may be the better fit. Our comparison of guardianship and adoption in Illinois sets the two side by side.
How to Meet Children Waiting in Illinois
If you came here hoping to see children, the Heart Gallery of Illinois is the place to go. It shares narratives about children and teens in Illinois foster care, and the DCFS adoption page points to it as its online listing. Behind it sits the Adoption Listing Service of Illinois, which we operate under our contract with DCFS.
What a listing is and what it is not
A listing like this is a recruitment tool. Its job is to help a child be seen by a family who might be the right fit, so it should never be read as a catalog. Each narrative introduces a child while respecting that child’s right to privacy, which means it leaves a great deal out.
Here is what happens if a narrative stays with you. You submit an inquiry from the child’s profile, which connects you with our team. You will not receive additional details unless you register with the service and the team determines your family is a potential match. Across listings, families generally register and are connected through caseworkers, and no one contacts a child directly. Our article on how Illinois foster care adoption photolisting works covers who answers an inquiry and why the format has drawn debate.
Ways to learn about children waiting
Several kinds of sites appear when you search this phrase, and they do different jobs.
| Where to look | Where it is | Who it serves | What you can see | How you connect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heart Gallery of Illinois with the Adoption Listing Service of Illinois | Online, on our website | Children and teens in Illinois foster care, and the licensed foster and prospective adoptive families who may become their families | A narrative and image for each child; more only after you register and are identified as a potential match | Inquire from a child’s profile, then work with our Adoption Listing Service team |
| AdoptUSKids national photolisting | Online, national | Families searching across states, including Illinois [5] | Search results by age, gender, number of children, race, state, and whether a video is available [5] | Through its national search tool |
| State exchange listings in other states (for example, Texas and Kansas) | Online, state by state | Families looking at that state’s listing | Varies by state; Texas requires an account and family profile to view full profiles [6] | Varies by state; Texas families inquire after completing that profile [6] |
National and out-of-state tools can be useful if you are open to adopting across state lines. If you live in Illinois and hope to adopt a child in Illinois care, the state’s own listing is the more direct route. There are no fees for working with our listing service, and our Adoption Recruiter, Bree, can guide you from registering to understanding licensing with DCFS.
If you are an Illinois licensed home and want to work with our adoption program, please complete this form.
What Children Waiting for Adoption Need From a Family
Every child’s narrative is different, and the right family for one child may not be the right family for another. A few needs still come up often.
Staying connected to brothers and sisters
DCFS says many waiting children need a loving home for themselves and for a brother or sister too. A family who can welcome more than one child may keep those relationships under one roof. Where siblings live apart, ongoing contact may still matter a great deal to each of them.
Commitment over perfection
Many of these children have experienced loss and trauma, and they may need additional support to feel safe and secure. What helps is an adult who stays steady through the hard stretches, asks for help, and keeps showing up. No parent has every answer on the first day, and no one is asking for that.
If you are quietly wondering whether your particular situation disqualifies you, it very likely does not. Being a single parent or renting your home does not rule you out, and we welcome LGBTQIA+ families.
Support that continues after adoption
Adoption changes a child’s legal family, and the need for support can continue well beyond that day. DCFS says it offers special supports to help families care for children with medical difficulties or other needs. Many Illinois adoptive families also ask about the adoption subsidy, the ongoing financial and medical support the state provides. DCFS or your licensing agency can explain what applies to your family.
How to Begin If You Want to Adopt a Child in Illinois
In Illinois, adoption through foster care begins with fostering. Families must be licensed and active foster parents before they may be considered to adopt a child through foster care. You must be at least 21 to adopt this way, there are no fees to become a licensed foster parent, and licensing typically takes up to six months. As a foster parent, you actively support reunification for a child if that is part of the child’s plan.
The steps below move from licensing to our adoption program. If you already hold an Illinois foster care license, you can start at step 2.
- Get licensed. Become a licensed foster parent with our guidance by completing this form, or visit www.letitbeus.org/events to attend a live webinar.
- Complete the Family Registration Form. If you are an Illinois licensed home, please complete this form to join the Adoption Listing Service of Illinois.
- Send your license. Email a copy of your foster care license to adoptionlistingservice@letitbeus.org.
- Talk through opportunities with our team. Once you are registered, we connect you with adoption opportunities that align with your home and preferences.
A child must live in your home for at least six months before you can begin the legal adoption process, and this path is a low- to no-cost process in Illinois. Timelines differ from one child to the next, and our article on how long the adoption process can take walks through what shapes them. DCFS also notes that Governor JB Pritzker proclaimed November 2026 Adoption Awareness Month in Illinois.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are most children waiting for adoption babies?
No. Nationally, only a small share of children with an adoption plan are infants, and more than half are 6 or older. About four in ten are ages 1 to 5. Those shares describe the country, so they should not be read as Illinois’s profile. DCFS says waiting children in Illinois come from all ages and backgrounds.
How many children are waiting for adoption?
No official count answers that question, because "waiting" is not a federal category [1]. The closest national measure is the permanency-plan count described earlier. In Illinois, the number of children in foster care overall is in the 14,000s and steadily falling due to prevention strategies, which is good news. That covers all children in care, and it is not the number waiting for adoption.
Can I choose which child I adopt?
You can share what your home is ready for and inquire about a specific child through the Heart Gallery of Illinois. A match takes far more care than picking from a list. A child’s legal status, needs, and siblings are all considered, with caseworkers’ input, so an inquiry opens a conversation and does not guarantee a placement.
Do I need to be a licensed foster parent first?
Yes. Families must be licensed and active foster parents before they may be considered to adopt a child through foster care in Illinois. Licensed families register through the licensed family registration form. If you are not licensed yet, our foster parent form is the place to start. To ask questions at a live webinar first, join Let It Be Us.
Can I adopt siblings together?
Many waiting children need exactly that. DCFS says many are in need of a home for a brother or sister too, and keeping siblings together is a priority when it is safe and possible. Our guide to sibling adoption explains what preparing for more than one child may involve.
Taking Your Next Step Toward Foster Care and/or Adoption in Illinois
Behind the phrase "children waiting" is a young person with a history, a personality, and people who matter to them. Learning who they are is a reasonable place for you to begin.
Your foster care and/or foster care adoption journey can start today. Ready to take the first step? Visit our foster parent form to get started. Explore all further educational opportunities through Let It Be Us at www.letitbeus.org/events.
References
[1] U.S. Administration for Children and Families, Children’s Bureau. "Data and Statistics: AFCARS." acf.gov, data as of May 1, 2025. https://acf.gov/cb/research-data/statistics-research/afcars
[2] U.S. Administration for Children and Families, Children’s Bureau. "The AFCARS Dashboard (FFY2024 printable), Preliminary FFY2024 Estimates as of September 5, 2025, No. 32." acf.gov, September 5, 2025. https://acf.gov/sites/default/files/documents/cb/2024-afcars-dashboard-printable.pdf
[3] Nicole Davi. "Foster Care and Adoption Statistics – AFCARS 2025 Update." National Council For Adoption, September 30, 2025. https://adoptioncouncil.org/article/foster-care-and-adoption-statistics/
[4] Illinois Department of Children and Family Services. "Adoption and Guardianship." dcfs.illinois.gov, undated, accessed November 5, 2026. https://dcfs.illinois.gov/loving-homes/adoption.html
[5] AdoptUSKids. "Search AdoptUSKids photolisting." adoptuskids.org, undated, accessed November 5, 2026. https://adoptuskids.org/meet-the-children/search-for-children/search
[6] Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. "Search for Children Waiting For Adoption (Texas Adoption Resource Exchange)." dfps.texas.gov, undated, accessed November 5, 2026. https://www.dfps.texas.gov/application/tare/search.aspx/children
