Florida Adult Adoption: Consent, Petition, Hearing, and Effects

Florida adult adoption is a consent-based circuit court process that lets any adult legally adopt another adult, usually finishing in two to three months and creating a full parent-child relationship the moment the judge signs the final judgment. There is no home study, no agency, and no residency requirement. The case rises or falls on written consent from the right people and a correctly prepared petition.

Who Can Adopt and Whose Consent You Need

Florida Statute 63.042 allows any person, minor or adult, to be adopted, and it allows a married couple to adopt jointly, an unmarried adult to adopt alone, or a married person to adopt without their spouse joining in specific situations. If you are married, your spouse typically joins the petition. The main exception is stepparent adoption of an adult stepchild: the spouse who is already the biological parent consents rather than co-petitioning. A court may also excuse a spouse’s failure to join for good cause.¹

Neither you nor the adoptee has to live in Florida for any set period. The petition is filed in the circuit court of the county where the petitioner resides.²

Consent runs the case. The adult being adopted must give written consent, filed with the petition.³ If the adoptee is married, their spouse must also consent, using Florida Supreme Court Form 12.981(c)(2). The adoptee’s own consent uses Form 12.981(a)(2).⁴

Because the adoptee is a legal adult, biological parents’ rights do not need to be terminated in a separate proceeding before you file.²

What the Petition Must Contain

Florida Statute 63.112 sets out what has to be in the petition. It must be signed and verified by the petitioner and include:

The date and place of birth of the person being adopted, if known
The new name the adoptee will take
The petitioner’s full name, age, place of residence, and how long they have lived there
The petitioner’s marital status, including relevant marriage and divorce history
A description and estimated value of any property the adoptee owns
The known address of every person whose consent is required
A statement of the reasons for the adoption

Adult adoptions are exempt from the home study and agency recommendation requirements that apply to child adoptions, unless the court specifically orders one. That is rare.³

Forms, Filing, and Fees

Stepparent adoption of an adult child is the most common scenario. The Florida Supreme Court has approved Form 12.981(c)(1), the Petition for Adoption of Adult by Stepparent, for that purpose, filed together with the adoptee’s consent on Form 12.981(a)(2) and, if applicable, the adoptee’s spouse’s consent on Form 12.981(c)(2).⁴ For non-stepparent adult adoptions, the courts publish a general petition form, 12.981(d)(1). All forms are available through the Florida Courts website or your local Clerk of the Circuit Court. Signatures should be notarized where the form indicates.

Filing fees vary by county, typically in the range of $400 to $465 depending on local surcharges. You may also pay per-page copy fees and summons issuance fees at filing. Florida does not require an attorney for adult adoption, and many people file on their own using the approved forms. Errors can delay the case, and an attorney familiar with the local circuit’s procedures can smooth things out if the paperwork gets complicated.

The Hearing and How Long It Takes

Once the clerk processes the petition, the court sets a hearing under Florida Statute 63.142. Both the petitioner and the adoptee must appear, in person or by phone if the court allows it.⁵

The hearing is usually brief. The judge reviews the file, confirms the required consents, decides the adoption is in the best interest of the person being adopted, and may ask a few questions to verify identities and voluntariness. If everything is in order, the judge signs the final judgment of adoption.⁵ From filing to final judgment, the process generally takes two to three months, depending on the docket in your circuit.

What the Final Judgment Actually Changes

The legal effects are sweeping and immediate. Under Florida Statute 63.172, the adoption creates the same legal relationship between the adoptee and the petitioner that would exist if the adoptee were the petitioner’s biological child born within the marriage, for all legal purposes, including how documents, trusts, and other instruments are interpreted.⁶

At the same time, it terminates all legal relationships between the adoptee and their biological relatives. In the eyes of the law, the adoptee becomes a stranger to the birth family for all purposes. The major exception is stepparent adoption: when a birth parent’s spouse adopts the adult child, the legal relationship between the child and that birth parent remains intact.⁶

Inheritance follows the same pattern under the Florida Probate Code. Section 732.108 treats the adopted person as a descendant of the adopting parent and one of the legal kindred of the adopting parent’s entire family, with the same intestate rights as a biological child. The adoptee is no longer a descendant of the biological parents for inheritance purposes and is no longer kindred of any member of the birth family. If a biological parent later dies without a will, the adopted adult has no claim to that estate. Stepparent adoption again gets special treatment: the adoption does not affect the child’s inheritance relationship with the natural parent whose spouse adopted them, or with that natural parent’s family.⁷

Think through this severance before filing. Once the judgment is entered, existing inheritance expectations from the birth family are gone unless a will says otherwise.

The judgment also handles the name change. The petition includes a field for the new name the adoptee wishes to use, so no separate name-change proceeding is needed. The adoption judgment is the legal document for updating Social Security records, driver’s licenses, and other government identification. After the judgment, the Florida Department of Health’s Bureau of Vital Statistics files a new birth record reflecting the adoptive parent’s name, for a $20 fee that includes one certified copy of the new birth certificate.⁸

What Adult Adoption Will Not Do

It Does Not Confer Immigration Benefits

Federal immigration law does not recognize an adult adoption as creating a qualifying parent-child relationship for visa or green card purposes. Under USCIS policy, the adoption must have occurred before the child’s 16th birthday for the adoptee to qualify as a “child” eligible for a family-based immigration petition. A narrow exception for siblings of a previously adopted child still requires the adoption before the person turns 18.⁹ The adoptive parent also must have had legal custody of and lived with the adoptee for at least two years while the adoptee was under 21. A Florida adult adoption satisfies none of these conditions.¹⁰

Social Security Benefits Require More Than the Adoption

An adopted adult can qualify for Social Security survivor or dependent benefits based on the adoptive parent’s earnings record, but the conditions are strict. If you were adopted after the insured person became entitled to benefits and you were 18 or older when adoption proceedings started, you must show that you were living with the insured or receiving at least half your financial support from them during the year immediately before the adoption was finalized.¹¹ Without that, no benefits flow from the adoption itself.

It Does Not Automatically Make the Adoptee a Tax Dependent

The IRS qualifying-relative test still applies. The adopted adult must have gross income below $5,050 (the 2025 threshold; check for any adjustment in your filing year), and you must provide more than half of their support. Adoption satisfies the family-relationship prong, so the adoptee does not have to live with you all year to qualify.¹² Most working adults earn too much to be claimed.

Adoption does make the adoptee a legal family member for gift and estate purposes. The annual federal gift tax exclusion for 2026 is $19,000 per recipient, and married couples electing gift-splitting can give up to $38,000 per recipient without filing a gift tax return. The dollar amounts are the same for adopted and biological children; what changes is that the adoptee now has intestate inheritance rights, which can simplify estate planning and reduce the need for trust structures to make sure the person you consider your child actually inherits.

1
Florida Senate. Florida Statutes 63.042 – Who May Be Adopted; Who May Adopt
2
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 63.102 – Filing of Petition for Adoption or Declaratory Statement; Venue; Proceeding for Approval of Fees and Costs
3
Florida Senate. Florida Statutes 63.112 – Petition for Adoption; Description; Report or Recommendation, Exceptions; Mailing
4
Florida Courts. Instructions for Supreme Court Approved Family Law Form 12.981(c)(1) Petition for Adoption of Adult by Stepparent
5
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 63.142 – Hearing; Judgment of Adoption
6
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 63.172 – Effect of Judgment of Adoption
7
Florida Senate. Florida Statutes 732.108 – Adopted Persons and Persons Born Out of Wedlock
8
Florida Department of Health. Amendments and Corrections
9
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Policy Manual Volume 5, Part E, Chapter 2 – Eligibility
10
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Family-Based Petition Process
11
Social Security Administration. 20 CFR 404.362 – When a Legally Adopted Child Is Dependent
12
Internal Revenue Service. Dependents