Living Expenses in Illinois Private Adoption

Last Updated: October 24, 2026

In an Illinois private adoption, 720 ILCS 5/12C-70 allows gifts to a birth parent totaling no more than $200, and an advance of up to $1,000 for reasonable living expenses, without a prior court order. Reasonable and actual medical fees or hospital charges for the birth are a separate payment. Living expenses above $1,000 require leave of court. The parents account for the payments under that section and file the cost affidavit required by 750 ILCS 50/14.

Adoptive parents in private adoptions almost always want to support a birth mother who has chosen them, and Illinois law allows them to, within carefully drawn limits. The boundaries exist to protect against undue influence on the mother’s decision and to keep adoptions from becoming financial transactions. Knowing where the lines are matters.

This post explains what Illinois law allows, what it doesn’t, and how the pre-birth court petition process works when families want to provide more than the automatic limits permit.

This guide is part of our private adoption practice; that page covers the process end to end.

The two automatic ceilings

Without a prior court order, adoptive parents can give gifts totaling no more than $200 and can advance up to $1,000 in reasonable living expenses.

Gifts: up to $200 total

Tokens of appreciation, flowers, a small gift card, a baby-shower contribution. The cap is the total value of the gifts. Those expenditures are included in the final affidavit.

Substantive living expenses: up to $1,000 total without court approval

Lodging, food, clothing, and other reasonable costs of daily living. The period runs from 120 days before the expected delivery date through 60 days after the birth. Lost wages, gifts, and educational expenses fall outside that definition. The advance is capped at $1,000 without a prior court order, and the statute requires a demonstrated need to protect the health of the birth parents or the child. Adoptive parents must keep receipts and present a final accounting to the court.

The $1,000 advance covers small living costs, such as a hotel night, a grocery run, or prenatal vitamins, without a prior court order. Living expenses above that amount require leave of court.

Going above $1,000: the pre-birth petition

When the family wants to pay living expenses above the $1,000 advance, such as rent during the allowed period, the payment waits for leave of court.

The adoptive parents, through counsel, file a petition in the circuit court where the adoption petition will be filed, or where it is already pending. The petition itemizes the proposed expenses, the time period, the manner of payment, and the basis for each amount. The court reviews that request under 720 ILCS 5/12C-70. After the court authorizes the amounts, the family may pay up to those amounts.

Reasonable and actual medical fees or hospital charges for services rendered in connection with the birth may be paid to the physician, the hospital, or the birth mother. That payment stands apart from the living-expense advance. Attorney fees for a birth parent’s lawyer may be paid up to $1,000 without a prior fee petition. A higher fee is paid only after the court reviews a petition and sets the reasonable amount.

720 ILCS 5/12C-70 prohibits compensation for placing a child. It also prohibits offering or co-signing a loan or other credit based on a surrender or placement. A gift above the $200 total falls outside the gift allowance.

Why direct cash is risky

The accounting has to show what was paid, when, and to whom. A cash payment with no receipt is difficult to include. Section 12C-70 permits specified payments to a birth mother, including certain medical charges and authorized living expenses. An unauthorized payment violates that section. A first conviction is a Class 4 felony, and a later conviction is a Class 3 felony.

The firm’s practice is to pay vendors directly or route support through counsel, against invoices for each approved expense.

Reporting at finalization

720 ILCS 5/12C-70 requires a final accounting of all expenses before the adoption judgment, and an accounting within 14 days after the living-expense payments are completed. The accounting includes verified statements from the adoptive parents, each attorney of record, and the birth parent who received the payments. If the court finds an accounting incomplete, deceptive, or unreasonable, it may order a new accounting, repayment of an excessive or unauthorized amount, or another appropriate order. 750 ILCS 50/14 requires a separate affidavit before judgment. The affidavit sets forth the hospital and medical costs, legal fees, counseling fees, and other expenditures paid under section 12C-70.

This is why receipts matter. We provide families with a simple expense log when they retain us and ask them to fill it in as expenses are incurred. The accounting at the end then becomes a copy-paste exercise rather than a forensic reconstruction.

What if the mother asks for more than the law allows?

It happens. A birth mother under financial stress reaches out and asks for $3,000 to cover a security deposit and first month’s rent. The adoptive family wants to help. The request should be measured against a petition for leave of court before any living-expense payment above the $1,000 advance.

If the request is a reasonable living expense within the statute, and there is a demonstrated need to protect the health of the birth parents or the child, we file the petition. Once the court authorizes the payment, the family can pay through the proper channels.

If the request seeks lost wages, educational expenses, a payment for the child, or another amount the statute does not authorize, the payment should not be made. An unauthorized payment can require repayment and can violate section 12C-70.

One more practical note: don’t fund the case until commitment is firm

A separate but related caution. Even before living expenses come up, adoptive parents are sometimes asked to pay attorney retainers, agency fees, and other case-startup costs early in a matching relationship. Match commitments fall through. The mother changes her mind. The pregnancy doesn’t progress.

We tell adoptive families to wait for a clear commitment from the birth mother, even an informal one, before extending serious financial commitments. This is especially true in interstate cases where retainers to sending-state attorneys can run several thousand dollars. There is no need to fund the case until the matching relationship is genuinely solid.

Navigating Living Expenses in an Illinois Adoption?

Parker & Parker handles pre-birth petitions, expense accounting, and the full Illinois adoption process. Call 309-673-0069 or
schedule a consultation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can we pay the birth mother’s rent during the pregnancy?

Rent can be a living expense. An advance that stays within $1,000 can be paid without a prior court order. Above that amount, the family asks the court for leave under 720 ILCS 5/12C-70 before paying. The firm’s practice is to pay the landlord directly.

Can we send the birth mother $20 for groceries?

Within the $1,000 substantive ceiling, yes, but the standard practice is to route the payment through her attorney or pay a grocery store gift card rather than sending cash directly. Document the expense.

What happens if we go over the limit without court approval?

If the accounting is incomplete, deceptive, or includes an unauthorized or unreasonable amount, the court may order a new accounting, repayment, or another order it finds appropriate. An unauthorized payment can also violate section 12C-70. Ask before paying above the $1,000 advance.

Do we have to pay the birth mother’s attorney fees?

720 ILCS 5/12C-70 permits payment of a birth parent’s reasonable attorney fees in the adoption. Fees of $1,000 or less may be paid without a prior fee petition. A higher fee is paid only after the court reviews a petition and sets the reasonable amount.

How long does a pre-birth petition take?

The court sets the schedule after the petition is filed. We file it when the family identifies the expenses and the demonstrated need.

What if the matching relationship falls through after we’ve paid expenses?

If the birth parents decide not to place the child, the adoptive parents have no right to reimbursement of living expenses paid under a court order. A reimbursement claim is available only if the person who accepted the payment knew the birth parent was not pregnant, or accepted living-expense payments from more than one prospective adoptive parent at the same time without disclosure.

Living Expenses in an Illinois Private Adoption, What Adoptive Parents Can Pay For