How to Adopt an Adult in Texas
Reviewed by DocDraft Legal Team · Texas · Last updated October 7, 2026
Seven short statutes are the whole of adult adoption in Texas, and what they produce is permanent: a court order making one adult the legal son or daughter of another adult for all purposes, including inheritance. Subchapter F of Family Code Chapter 162 asks remarkably little about who the two of you are. Section 162.501 lets the court grant the petition of an adult residing in this state to adopt another adult, and that sentence is the entire eligibility rule. There is no category list, no disability requirement, no former stepchild or foster child requirement, and no test of how long you have known each other. Texas sets no minimum number of years between you either, and reading the subchapter in full shows something stronger: it never says the adult being adopted has to be younger. What Texas does demand is narrow. The adult being adopted must consent in writing, or the court may not grant the adoption (162.504). If the person adopting is married, both spouses must join in the petition (162.503(b)), which is joinder as a co-petitioner rather than a signature on a consent form. The decree still need not run to both, because on the spouses' request the court may grant the adoption to only one of them (162.506(b)). Nothing at all is asked of the adoptee's spouse, and nothing of the birth parents, who get neither consent rights nor notice. You file in the county where you live, attend a hearing, and pay a $350 statewide fee floor. Attorney review of your petition is available through DocDraft.
Find out where you stand in Texas
Who are you hoping to adopt?
DocDraft provides document preparation, not legal advice.
Does Texas require the adult being adopted to be younger than the adopter?
No. Texas sets no minimum age difference and no age order at all. Family Code 162.501 says only that the court may grant the petition of an adult residing in this state to adopt another adult. The words older, younger and age appear nowhere in Subchapter F.
Who has to sign or join an adult adoption petition in Texas?
The adult being adopted must consent in writing, or the court may not grant the adoption (162.504). A married petitioner's spouse must join in the petition as a co-petitioner, not merely consent (162.503(b)). The adoptee's spouse and the birth parents are asked for nothing.
What does it cost to file an adult adoption in Texas?
At least $350 statewide, set by two separate layers of the Local Government Code. The clerk collects a $137 state consolidated civil fee (133.151) plus a $213 local consolidated civil fee (135.101). Citation, service and certified copy charges are set by each county on top.
Which court hears an adult adoption in Texas?
The district court, or a statutory county court granted jurisdiction in family law cases by Chapter 25 of the Government Code, in the county of the petitioner's residence (162.502). Texas does not route adult adoption to a probate court and has no separate family court for it.
Texas adult adoption at a glance
An adult adoption in Texas is a court order under which the adopted adult becomes the son or daughter of the adoptive parents for all purposes, able to inherit from and through them as a biological child would (162.507). Texas gates it with one sentence and no categories: an adult residing in this state may petition to adopt another adult (162.501). No disability, kinship or prior relationship is required, and no number of years has to separate you. Written consent from the adult being adopted is mandatory (162.504), a married petitioner's spouse must join the petition (162.503(b)), and the birth parents are neither asked nor notified. Guardianship, by contrast, grants decision making authority without creating a parent and child relationship.
Adopting an adult who is older than you, in Travis County
Suppose you are 50, living in Austin, and the person you want recorded as your legal child is 53. She grew up alongside you in the same foster placement, has no surviving family, and wants you to be her legal parent and next of kin. Almost every other state would stop this at the age order rule. Texas has none to apply, so the only questions are whether you reside in Texas and whether she consents in writing (162.501, 162.504). She signs the consent. Because you are married, your husband joins the petition as a co-petitioner (162.503(b)), but you both ask the court to grant the adoption to you alone (162.506(b)). You file in Travis County district court and pay $350. Attorney review of the petition and consent is available through DocDraft.
Relevant Laws
Tex. Family Code 162.501 (who may be adopted as an adult)
The entire Texas eligibility rule, in one sentence: the court may grant the petition of an adult residing in this state to adopt another adult. No categories, no disability or kinship gate, no age relationship and no prior relationship requirement are attached to it.
Tex. Family Code 162.503 (requirements of petition; spousal joinder)
Requires the petition to be entitled In the Interest of blank, An Adult, and requires that if the petitioner is married, both spouses must join in the petition for adoption. Joinder makes the spouse a party rather than a consenting non-party.
Tex. Family Code 162.506 (adoption order to one spouse or both)
Directs the court to grant the adoption once the requirements are met, and provides that notwithstanding both spouses joining the petition, the court may grant the adoption to both spouses or, on request of the spouses, to only one spouse.
Tex. Family Code 162.507 (effect of adoption on inheritance)
Makes the adopted adult the son or daughter of the adoptive parents for all purposes with full inheritance from and through them, and severs inheritance with the biological parent in both directions, with no waiver provided.
Tex. Local Government Code 133.151 and 135.101 (filing fees)
Together these set the statewide floor for an adult adoption filing: a $137 state consolidated civil fee on the filing of any civil case, and a $213 local consolidated civil fee on filing any civil case other than a probate, guardianship or mental health case.
Regional Variances
Texas adult adoption rules at a glance
Who may be adopted
Any adult. Texas enumerates no categories, so there is no disability, kinship, former stepchild or former foster child gate and no requirement of a relationship predating the adoptee's eighteenth birthday (162.501).
Who counts as an adult
The age of majority is 18 (Civ. Prac. and Rem. Code 129.001). Family Code 101.003 defines child as a person under 18 who is not and has not been married and whose disabilities of minority are not removed, so a married 17 year old is an adult for this subchapter.
Age differential
None. Texas sets no minimum number of years and no age order, and does not require the adult being adopted to be younger than the adopting adult. The terms older, younger, year and age do not appear in Subchapter F.
Consent of the adoptee
Required in writing, and framed as a limit on the court: a court may not grant an adoption unless the adult consents in writing to be adopted by the petitioner (162.504). No provision lets a court dispense with it.
The adopting person's spouse
Must JOIN the petition as a co-petitioner, not merely consent (162.503(b)). Texas states no separation, incapacity or good cause exception. The decree may still be granted to only one spouse on the spouses' request (162.506(b)).
The adoptee's spouse
Nothing required. Not consent, not joinder, not notice. All five references to a spouse in Subchapter F sit in 162.503(b) and 162.506(b) and address the petitioner's marriage.
Birth parents
No consent and no notice. Subchapter F has no provision reaching them and no termination of parental rights step. Their inheritance relationship with the adoptee is nonetheless severed in both directions (162.507(c)).
Court and venue
District court, or a statutory county court granted jurisdiction in family law cases by Government Code Chapter 25, in the county of the petitioner's residence (162.502). Not a probate court.
Residency
The petitioner must be an adult residing in this state (162.501). No minimum number of months or years is stated anywhere in Subchapter F, and no residency requirement attaches to the adult being adopted.
Filing fee
A $350 statewide floor in two mandatory layers: $137 under Local Government Code 133.151(a)(1) and $213 under 135.101(a)(1). Citation, service and certified copy charges are county set and sit on top.
Home study or investigation
Not required, and not expressly waived either. The adoption evaluation and criminal history provisions are written around a child (107.151, 107.153(b), 162.0085), so they never reach an adult adoption by their own scope.
Hearing attendance
Both the petitioner and the adult to be adopted must attend (162.505). The court may waive attendance only for good cause shown, only by written order, and only where one of them is unable to attend.
Standard the court applies
Requirements met, not best interests. The court shall grant the adoption if it finds the requirements for adoption of an adult are met (162.506(a)). Subchapter F contains no best interest test and no public interest test.
Name change in the decree
TODO(source). Subchapter F never uses the word name, so Texas neither authorizes nor prohibits it, unlike the child provision at 162.016(c). A separate adult name change suit exists under 45.101 and 45.102. Attorney review is available on this point.
Inheritance
The adopted adult is the son or daughter of the adoptive parents for all purposes and inherits from and through them as a biological child would (162.507(a), (b)). Inheritance with the biological parent is cut both ways, with no waiver (162.507(c)).
Statewide forms
None. The Texas Judicial Branch statewide form catalog lists no adoption form across its nine sections, including Family. The statute fixes the caption instead (162.503(a)), so parties draft the petition or use a local district clerk packet.
Suggested Compliance Checklist
Confirm your Texas residence and the right court
Before you draft anything days after startingThe court may grant the petition of an adult residing in this state (162.501). Identify whether your county's adult adoptions go to the district court or to a statutory county court with family law jurisdiction under Government Code Chapter 25 (162.502).
Obtain the adult's written consent
Before the petition is drafted days after startingPrepare and have the adult being adopted sign a written consent to be adopted by you. A court may not grant the adoption without it, and Texas provides no route around it (162.504). Attorney review of the consent is available through DocDraft.
Draft the petition with the statutory caption
With the signed consent days after startingTitle the petition In the Interest of blank, An Adult, as 162.503(a) requires, and join your spouse as a co-petitioner if you are married (162.503(b)). No statewide form exists, so check your district clerk for a local packet.
Put the one spouse or both spouses request in writing
Before the hearing days after startingDecide whether the decree should run to both spouses or to only one. The court may grant the adoption to one spouse on request of the spouses even though both joined the petition (162.506(b)). Include the request in your pleading or proposed order.
Prepare the adoption certificate documentation
Due at filing, not after the decree days after startingFamily Code 162.602 requires completed documentation to be filed at the same time as the petition, so the clerk can prepare the certificate of adoption that must reach the state registrar under Health and Safety Code 192.009. Ask your clerk which form they accept.
File the suit and pay the statewide fee
When the papers are signed days after startingFile in the county of your residence (162.502) and expect at least $350: $137 under Local Government Code 133.151(a)(1) plus $213 under 135.101(a)(1). Citation, service and certified copy charges are set by your county and are additional.
Attend the hearing with the adult being adopted
On your hearing date days after startingBoth of you must attend (162.505). If one of you cannot, move early for a written waiver on good cause. The court shall grant the adoption on finding the requirements for adoption of an adult are met (162.506(a)), with no best interest finding required.
Decide whether a separate name change suit is needed
After the decree days after startingSubchapter F is silent on changing the adopted adult's name in the decree, so do not assume it travels with the adoption. Texas provides a separate verified adult name change petition requiring fingerprints and criminal disclosures (45.101, 45.102).
| Task | Description | Document | Days after starting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Confirm your Texas residence and the right court | The court may grant the petition of an adult residing in this state (162.501). Identify whether your county's adult adoptions go to the district court or to a statutory county court with family law jurisdiction under Government Code Chapter 25 (162.502). | - | Before you draft anything |
| Obtain the adult's written consent | Prepare and have the adult being adopted sign a written consent to be adopted by you. A court may not grant the adoption without it, and Texas provides no route around it (162.504). Attorney review of the consent is available through DocDraft. | - | Before the petition is drafted |
| Draft the petition with the statutory caption | Title the petition In the Interest of blank, An Adult, as 162.503(a) requires, and join your spouse as a co-petitioner if you are married (162.503(b)). No statewide form exists, so check your district clerk for a local packet. | - | With the signed consent |
| Put the one spouse or both spouses request in writing | Decide whether the decree should run to both spouses or to only one. The court may grant the adoption to one spouse on request of the spouses even though both joined the petition (162.506(b)). Include the request in your pleading or proposed order. | - | Before the hearing |
| Prepare the adoption certificate documentation | Family Code 162.602 requires completed documentation to be filed at the same time as the petition, so the clerk can prepare the certificate of adoption that must reach the state registrar under Health and Safety Code 192.009. Ask your clerk which form they accept. | - | Due at filing, not after the decree |
| File the suit and pay the statewide fee | File in the county of your residence (162.502) and expect at least $350: $137 under Local Government Code 133.151(a)(1) plus $213 under 135.101(a)(1). Citation, service and certified copy charges are set by your county and are additional. | - | When the papers are signed |
| Attend the hearing with the adult being adopted | Both of you must attend (162.505). If one of you cannot, move early for a written waiver on good cause. The court shall grant the adoption on finding the requirements for adoption of an adult are met (162.506(a)), with no best interest finding required. | - | On your hearing date |
| Decide whether a separate name change suit is needed | Subchapter F is silent on changing the adopted adult's name in the decree, so do not assume it travels with the adoption. Texas provides a separate verified adult name change petition requiring fingerprints and criminal disclosures (45.101, 45.102). | - | After the decree |
Frequently Asked Questions
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