Skip to content

How to Adopt an Adult in Arizona

Reviewed by DocDraft Legal Team · Arizona · Last updated October 7, 2026

Arizona's entire body of adult adoption law is one section long, and that section reads as a list of four qualifying relationships rather than as a general permission. What it delivers is a superior court decree declaring that one adult is the child of another adult, a permanent legal parent and child tie that reorders inheritance and next of kin status. A.R.S. 14-8101 allows adopting an adult at least 18 and not more than 21 years old who consents, a current or previous stepchild, a niece, nephew, cousin or grandchild, or, where you were the person's foster parent while they were a juvenile, an adult you have kept a continuous familial relationship with for five or more years. Outside those four routes the statute gives no basis to file, and Arizona has no disability route at all. No minimum age gap applies, and the adoptee need not be younger than you. Consent splits by sentence. A married adopting person who is not legally separated needs their own spouse's consent, though that spouse does not join the petition or become a second parent. A married adult who is not legally separated cannot be adopted without their own spouse's consent. Birth parents consent to nothing. You and the adult file a petition in the county where either of you lives, and the Judicial Branch fee schedule lists an adoption petition at no charge. Before the hearing someone the court designates must file a written report on the welfare, competency and best interests of both of you, and you both appear in person. Attorney review of your documents is available through DocDraft.

Find out where you stand in Arizona

Who are you hoping to adopt?

DocDraft provides document preparation, not legal advice.

Who can be adopted as an adult in Arizona?

A.R.S. 14-8101 lists four routes. An adult at least 18 and not more than 21 years old who consents. A current or previous stepchild. A niece, nephew, cousin or grandchild. Or an adult a foster parent cared for as a juvenile and has kept a continuous familial relationship with for five or more years.

Which spouse has to consent to an adult adoption in Arizona?

Both, under two separate sentences of A.R.S. 14-8101(C). A married adopting person who is not legally separated needs their spouse's consent. A married adult who is not legally separated cannot be adopted without their spouse's consent. Neither spouse joins the petition. Birth parents consent to nothing.

What does it cost to file an adult adoption in Arizona?

The Arizona Judicial Branch superior court fee schedule lists a petition or application for adoption, and a contested adoption, at no charge. That schedule carries the A.R.S. 12-284 fees as raised by the Supreme Court under Judicial Administration Code 3-404. Individual courts may add local fees.

Is an investigation required for an adult adoption in Arizona?

Yes. A.R.S. 14-8101(D) requires a person designated by the court to submit a written report before the hearing, covering the welfare, competency and best interests of the parties and the public. The court may order further investigation. No home study or fingerprint clearance appears in the section.

Arizona adult adoption at a glance

The order at the end of this process declares that one adult is now the child of another, creating a permanent parent and child relationship with every right and duty attached to it (A.R.S. 14-8101(E)). Getting there in Arizona means qualifying under a list, not under a general rule. Four routes qualify: the 18 to 21 age window with the adoptee's consent, a current or previous stepchild, a niece, nephew, cousin or grandchild, and a long term former foster relationship of five or more years. There is no disability route and no catch all. No minimum age gap applies. Both spouses consent and neither joins. The superior court assigns the case to a division, the fee schedule shows no charge to file, and a court designated written report is mandatory before the hearing.

A Pima County aunt adopting the niece she raised alongside her own children

Take an aunt in Tucson whose 34 year old niece wants her recorded as a legal parent. The 18 to 21 window shut thirteen years ago, but niece is its own route in A.R.S. 14-8101(A), so her age no longer matters and no minimum gap applies. The aunt's husband signs a consent without becoming a second parent, and the niece's husband signs his own consent, because both couples are married and not legally separated. They file the agreement and petition in Pima County superior court at no charge, a court designated investigator reports before the hearing, and both appear in person. One thing to weigh first: the niece never lived in the aunt's household as a minor, so A.R.S. 14-2705(B) leaves her outside class gifts written by anyone other than the aunt. Attorney review is available through DocDraft.

Relevant Laws

A.R.S. 14-8101 (the whole of Arizona adult adoption law)

The single section of Title 14 chapter 8. Sets the four routes by which an adult may be adopted, requires a written agreement of adoption, requires consent from the adopting person's spouse and from the adoptee's spouse, dispenses with birth parent consent, prescribes the five petition statements, and mandates a written report before the hearing.

A.R.S. 8-102 (adult adoption sits outside the child adoption chapter)

Provides that except as provided in Title 14 chapter 8, only a child or a qualifying foreign born person 21 or younger who is present in the state when the petition is filed may be adopted. This is the legislature confirming that adult adoption runs through chapter 8 and not through the child adoption chapter.

A.R.S. 14-2705 (adopted persons and class gifts)

Includes an adopted person in class gifts under the intestate succession rules, then provides that in construing a dispositive provision of a transferor who is not the adopting parent, an adopted person is not considered the child of the adopting parent unless that person lived while a minor as a regular member of the adopting parent's household at any time.

A.R.S. 12-601 (change of name is a separate application)

Provides that a person who desires to change their name may file an application in the superior court in the county of residence, and sets out the disclosures required under penalty of perjury. Arizona's adult adoption section confers no name change power, so this is the route to a new surname.

Arizona Judicial Branch superior court filing fee schedule

The current statewide schedule, carrying the A.R.S. 12-284 fees as increased by the Supreme Court under Judicial Administration Code 3-404 effective December 28, 2024. Lists a petition or application for adoption and a contested adoption at no charge, and a petition for change of name at $252 in total.

Regional Variances

Arizona adult adoption rules at a glance

Who may be adopted

Four routes only (A.R.S. 14-8101(A)): an adult at least 18 and not more than 21 who consents; a current or previous stepchild; a niece, nephew, cousin or grandchild; or an adult a foster parent cared for as a juvenile with a continuous familial relationship of five or more years. No general route and no disability route.

Age relationship

No minimum number of years between the parties, and no requirement that the adoptee be younger than the adopting person. The only age limit is a ceiling on one route: the consent based route is capped at an adoptee who is not more than 21 years old (A.R.S. 14-8101(A)).

Consent of the adoptee

Stated expressly for the 18 to 21 route (A.R.S. 14-8101(A)). The adoptee is also a party to the written agreement of adoption, may file the petition jointly, and must appear at the hearing in person (A.R.S. 14-8101(B), (D)).

Consent of the adopting person's spouse

Required where that person is married, not legally separated, and the spouse is capable of giving consent (A.R.S. 14-8101(C)). Consent only. The spouse does not join the petition, which is filed by the adopting person and the adult being adopted, and does not become a second parent.

Consent of the adoptee's spouse

Required under the second sentence of A.R.S. 14-8101(C) where the adult being adopted is married, not legally separated, and that spouse is capable of giving consent. The two sentences read almost alike, so check which spouse each one names.

Birth parents

No consent required. Neither the consent of the natural parents, nor of the Department of Child Safety, nor of any other person is required (A.R.S. 14-8101(C)). The petition must still name any living parents or adult children of the adoptee, and the court may require notice to interested persons who may appear and object.

Court and venue

Superior court. The court assigns the case to a division of the superior court, which fixes the hearing (A.R.S. 14-8101(D)). File in the county where either the adopting person or the adult being adopted resides. No durational residency period applies.

Filing fee

The Judicial Branch superior court fee schedule lists a petition or application for adoption, and a contested adoption, at no charge. The schedule carries the A.R.S. 12-284 fees as raised under Judicial Administration Code 3-404, and notes that individual courts may add local fees.

Investigation

Mandatory, and keyed to adults. A person designated by the court must submit a written report before the hearing on the welfare, competency and best interests of the parties and the public, and the court may order additional investigation (A.R.S. 14-8101(D)). No home study, social study or fingerprint clearance appears in the section.

Name change

Not available in the decree. A.R.S. 14-8101 contains no name change provision, so a surname change is a separate superior court application under A.R.S. 12-601 with its own disclosures and a $252 total filing fee.

Inheritance

The decree declares the adult is your child (A.R.S. 14-8101(E)), and an adopted person is the child of the adopting parent and not of the natural parents for intestate succession (A.R.S. 14-2114(B)). Under A.R.S. 14-2705(B), in a dispositive provision by someone other than the adopting parent, the adoptee counts as that parent's child only if they lived in the household as a minor.

Repeat adoptions

No cap and no waiting interval. A prior adult adoption by the adopting person or that person's spouse must be disclosed in the petition, with the name, date and place, but it is a disclosure item rather than a bar (A.R.S. 14-8101(F)).

Suggested Compliance Checklist

Confirm which of the four Arizona routes you fit

Before you draft anything days after starting

Read A.R.S. 14-8101(A) against your facts and name your route: the 18 to 21 age window with consent, a current or previous stepchild, a niece, nephew, cousin or grandchild, or a five year former foster relationship. There is no general route to fall back on.

Draft the agreement of adoption

First document to prepare days after starting

Prepare the written agreement stating that the parties agree to assume toward each other the legal relation of parent and child, with all of the rights and all of the duties and responsibilities of that relation (A.R.S. 14-8101(B)). Attorney review of the agreement is available through DocDraft.

Draft the petition for a decree of adoption

With the agreement days after starting

Cover all five items A.R.S. 14-8101(F) requires, including the degree of kinship, the names and addresses of any living parents or adult children of the adoptee, and any prior adult adoption by you or your spouse with its date and place.

Obtain the spousal consents that apply

Before filing days after starting

Get a written consent from your spouse if you are married and not legally separated, and a separate written consent from the adoptee's spouse in the same situation (A.R.S. 14-8101(C)). Neither consent makes that spouse a petitioner or a parent.

Weigh the class gift limit before you file

Before filing days after starting

Check whether the adult lived in your household as a minor at any time. Under A.R.S. 14-2705(B) that fact decides whether they count as your child in a will or trust written by anyone other than you, even though A.R.S. 14-2114(B) governs intestate succession.

File in the right county and confirm the fee with the clerk

When the papers are signed days after starting

File with the clerk of the superior court for the county where either of you resides (A.R.S. 14-8101(D)). The Judicial Branch schedule lists an adoption petition at no charge, and also notes that individual courts may add local fees, so confirm before you go.

Respond to the court designated investigator

Between filing and the hearing days after starting

A person the court designates must submit a written report before the hearing on the welfare, competency and best interests of the parties and the public (A.R.S. 14-8101(D)). Expect contact, and expect the court to order more investigation if it wants more information.

Appear in person, then decide about a name change

On your hearing date days after starting

Both of you appear in person unless an attorney appears with written authorization for a party unable to attend (A.R.S. 14-8101(D)). If the adult wants your surname, plan a separate A.R.S. 12-601 application, priced at $252 on the Judicial Branch schedule.

Frequently Asked Questions

Other Arizona guides

Adverse Possession in Arizona: Four Clocks and a 160 Acre Ceiling

Arizona Notice to Vacate: 2026 Landlord Rules & 5-Day Statute

Asset Protection Planning in Arizona (2026)

Dealing With Debt Collectors in Arizona (2026)

Expunging a Criminal Record in Arizona (2026)

Filing a Workplace Harassment Complaint in Arizona

Ready to Draft Your Document?

Get AI-powered legal documents with attorney review included. Plans start at $39.99/mo.

Get Started