How to Adopt an Adult in Wyoming
Reviewed by DocDraft Legal Team · Wyoming · Last updated November 13, 2026
In Wyoming, the deciding question is not whether the person you hope to adopt agrees, but who you were to them while they were growing up. Adult adoption is a district court proceeding that permanently makes one adult the legal parent of another adult, giving the adopted person the property and inheritance rights of a child and heir at law. W.S. 1-22-102(b) opens that door only to an adopting parent who was a stepparent, grandparent or other blood relative, foster parent or legal guardian and who participated in raising the adult when the adult was a child. A mentor, a godparent or a friend who met the adult later in life does not fit that list, and the chapter adds no broader route. The adult must also file a consent with the court. Under W.S. 1-22-113 the adult is served with the petition and a summons, an objection ends the case by dismissal, and consent leads to a final decree, which may also change the adult's name. The person being adopted can live anywhere, because the statute disregards their residence. You, as the adopting parent, must have lived in Wyoming during the 60 days immediately before filing, and the court must determine that you are fit and competent to be a parent (W.S. 1-22-103). Birth parents sign nothing for an adult, because the chapter's consent section is written for a child, which it defines as a minor. No provision in the chapter requires consent from either spouse. Attorney review of your petition and consent is available through DocDraft.
Find out where you stand in Wyoming
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Who can adopt an adult in Wyoming?
Only an adopting parent who was the adult's stepparent, grandparent or other blood relative, foster parent or legal guardian, and who participated in raising the adult when the adult was a child (W.S. 1-22-102(b)(i)). The adult must also file a consent with the court. Wyoming provides no general route for an unrelated adult.
Does the adult being adopted have to live in Wyoming?
No. W.S. 1-22-102(b) allows an adult to be adopted regardless of residence within or outside Wyoming when the petition is filed. The residence rule falls on the adopting parent instead, who must have lived in Wyoming during the 60 days immediately before filing (W.S. 1-22-103).
What happens if the adult objects to a Wyoming adoption petition?
The petition is dismissed. W.S. 1-22-113 requires a copy of the petition and a summons to be served on the adult, and if the adult objects to adoption by the petitioner, the case ends there. The adult adoption provisions give no one else power to consent in the adult's place.
Do birth parents have to consent to an adult adoption in Wyoming?
No. The consent and relinquishment rules in W.S. 1-22-109 apply to the child to be adopted, and W.S. 1-22-101(a)(ii) defines child as the minor person to be adopted. For an adult, W.S. 1-22-113 requires service only on the adult, not on either birth parent.
Wyoming adult adoption at a glance
Adult adoption in Wyoming is a district court case that makes one adult the permanent legal parent of another, and the adopted person gains the property rights of a child and heir at law (W.S. 1-22-114(b)). The defining feature here is a relationship test rooted in the past. The adopting parent must have been a stepparent, grandparent or other blood relative, foster parent or legal guardian who helped raise the adult during childhood. A close bond formed only after the adult turned 18 does not qualify. Residence is split between the parties: the adult may live anywhere, while the adopting parent needs 60 days in Wyoming before filing. The adult's filed consent drives the outcome, and an objection means dismissal. The decree may change the adult's name, and the chapter sets no minimum age gap.
A Natrona County grandmother, an out of state granddaughter, and a coach who cannot file
The grandmother in this Natrona County scenario took in her granddaughter Tessa at age six and raised her through high school, and Tessa, now 27, works out of state and wants the relationship recorded. A grandparent who participated in raising her as a child fits W.S. 1-22-102(b)(i), and Tessa's address outside Wyoming is irrelevant under the same subsection. The grandmother has lived in Casper for decades, so the 60 day rule in W.S. 1-22-103 is already met. She files in district court and Tessa files her consent. Tessa's longtime softball coach, who also offered to adopt her, cannot petition: he held none of the listed roles while she was a child. Tessa asks for her grandmother's surname, which the decree may grant. Attorney review of the petition is available through DocDraft.
Relevant Laws
W.S. 1-22-102 (persons subject to adoption)
Subsection (b) is Wyoming's adult eligibility rule. An adult may be adopted, wherever the adult lives, only if the adopting parent was a stepparent, grandparent or other blood relative, foster parent or legal guardian who participated in raising the adult as a child, and the adult files a consent.
W.S. 1-22-103 (adopting parties)
Requires the adopting adult to have resided in Wyoming during the 60 days immediately preceding the petition and to be determined by the court to be fit and competent to be a parent.
W.S. 1-22-113 (petition for adoption of an adult)
Requires service of the petition and a summons on the adult, dismisses the petition if the adult objects, provides for a final decree once the adult consents, and allows the decree to change the adopted person's name.
W.S. 1-22-114 and 2-4-107 (effect of adoption and inheritance)
Section 1-22-114(b) gives adopted persons the rights of person and property of children and heirs at law of the adopters. Section 2-4-107(a) makes the adopted person the adopting parent's child for intestate succession, inheriting from and through that parent's relatives.
W.S. 5-3-206 (district court clerk fees)
Sets the $160 original filing fee that the clerk of each district court charges for civil matters filed or commenced, including amounts allocated to court automation and indigent civil legal services.
Regional Variances
Wyoming adult adoption rules at a glance
Who may be adopted
An adult, but only by an adopting parent who was a stepparent, grandparent or other blood relative, foster parent or legal guardian and who participated in raising the adult when the adult was a child (W.S. 1-22-102(b)(i)). No disability route and no general route.
Age of majority
Eighteen. Under W.S. 14-1-101(a), a person becomes an adult upon turning 18, and the adoption chapter defines child as the minor person to be adopted (W.S. 1-22-101(a)(ii)).
Consent of the adult being adopted
Required. The adult files a consent with the court (W.S. 1-22-102(b)(ii)). If the adult objects, the petition is dismissed (W.S. 1-22-113). The adult provisions name no substitute who may consent for the adult.
Consent of the adult's spouse
Not required, and no notice to that spouse. Every use of spouse, husband or wife in the adoption chapter concerns who may file the petition.
Adopting parent's spouse
No consent requirement. W.S. 1-22-104(b) allows a petition by any single adult, jointly by a husband and wife who maintain their home together, or by either spouse if the other spouse is a parent of the child.
Birth parents
No consent and no service. The consent and relinquishment section, W.S. 1-22-109, is written for the child to be adopted, meaning a minor, and W.S. 1-22-113 requires service only on the adult.
Age gap
None. The chapter sets no minimum number of years between the adopting parent and the adult and does not require the adult to be younger.
Court
District court. Adoption proceedings are commenced by a petition filed in district court (W.S. 1-22-104(a)). Hearings are confidential unless the court orders open court (W.S. 1-22-105(a)).
Residency
Adopting parent: 60 days of Wyoming residence immediately before filing (W.S. 1-22-103). Adult being adopted: none, whether living inside or outside Wyoming (W.S. 1-22-102(b)).
Filing fee
District court clerks charge a $160 original filing fee in civil matters (W.S. 5-3-206(a)(i)). The statute has no separate adoption line, so confirm the amount with the clerk of the district court before filing.
Investigation
The department of family services investigation in W.S. 1-22-111(a)(ii) concerns the child and does not appear in the adult provision. The court must still determine the adopting parent fit and competent to be a parent (W.S. 1-22-103).
Waiting period
None for an adult. The six month periods in W.S. 1-22-111(a)(iii) and 1-22-112 run while a child lives in the petitioner's home.
Name change
Available in the same decree. W.S. 1-22-113 provides that the decree may change the name of the adopted person, and W.S. 1-22-114(b) allows the adopted person to assume the adoptive parent's surname.
Inheritance
Same rights of person and property as children and heirs at law of the adopters (W.S. 1-22-114(b)). For intestate succession the adopted person inherits from the adopting parent and that parent's relatives, and they inherit in return (W.S. 2-4-107(a)).
Forms
The Wyoming Judicial Branch states there is no official petition for adoption form. Its adoption page lists the vital records Report of Adoption form, and the petition itself is drafted for the case.
Suggested Compliance Checklist
Document the childhood relationship
Before drafting the petition days after startingGather records showing you were the adult's stepparent, grandparent or other blood relative, foster parent or legal guardian and helped raise them as a child, such as a marriage certificate, guardianship order or foster placement letter (W.S. 1-22-102(b)(i)).
Confirm 60 days of Wyoming residence
Before filing days after startingCheck that the adopting parent has resided in Wyoming during the 60 days immediately before the filing date (W.S. 1-22-103). The adult's own residence does not matter under W.S. 1-22-102(b).
Draft the adult's consent
With the petition days after startingPrepare the consent the adult files with the court (W.S. 1-22-102(b)(ii)). Without it the adoption cannot proceed, and an objection leads to dismissal under W.S. 1-22-113. Attorney review of the consent is available through DocDraft.
Draft the petition to adopt an adult
Before filing days after startingState the qualifying relationship, your residence, facts bearing on fitness under W.S. 1-22-103, and any requested name change under W.S. 1-22-113. Wyoming has no official petition form, so the document is written for your facts.
File in district court and pay the clerk
After the 60 days have run days after startingFile the petition in the district court (W.S. 1-22-104(a)) and pay the filing fee. The general civil fee under W.S. 5-3-206(a)(i) is $160; confirm with the clerk how it applies to an adoption petition.
Serve the petition and summons on the adult
After filing days after startingArrange service of a copy of the petition and a summons issued as in other civil actions on the adult being adopted (W.S. 1-22-113). No service on birth parents or on the adult's spouse is called for.
Update estate documents after the decree
After the final decree days after startingInheritance follows the decree under W.S. 1-22-114(b) and 2-4-107(a). Review wills, trusts and beneficiary designations, and update identity records if the decree changed the adopted person's name.
| Task | Description | Document | Days after starting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Document the childhood relationship | Gather records showing you were the adult's stepparent, grandparent or other blood relative, foster parent or legal guardian and helped raise them as a child, such as a marriage certificate, guardianship order or foster placement letter (W.S. 1-22-102(b)(i)). | - | Before drafting the petition |
| Confirm 60 days of Wyoming residence | Check that the adopting parent has resided in Wyoming during the 60 days immediately before the filing date (W.S. 1-22-103). The adult's own residence does not matter under W.S. 1-22-102(b). | - | Before filing |
| Draft the adult's consent | Prepare the consent the adult files with the court (W.S. 1-22-102(b)(ii)). Without it the adoption cannot proceed, and an objection leads to dismissal under W.S. 1-22-113. Attorney review of the consent is available through DocDraft. | - | With the petition |
| Draft the petition to adopt an adult | State the qualifying relationship, your residence, facts bearing on fitness under W.S. 1-22-103, and any requested name change under W.S. 1-22-113. Wyoming has no official petition form, so the document is written for your facts. | - | Before filing |
| File in district court and pay the clerk | File the petition in the district court (W.S. 1-22-104(a)) and pay the filing fee. The general civil fee under W.S. 5-3-206(a)(i) is $160; confirm with the clerk how it applies to an adoption petition. | - | After the 60 days have run |
| Serve the petition and summons on the adult | Arrange service of a copy of the petition and a summons issued as in other civil actions on the adult being adopted (W.S. 1-22-113). No service on birth parents or on the adult's spouse is called for. | - | After filing |
| Update estate documents after the decree | Inheritance follows the decree under W.S. 1-22-114(b) and 2-4-107(a). Review wills, trusts and beneficiary designations, and update identity records if the decree changed the adopted person's name. | - | After the final decree |
Frequently Asked Questions
Other Wyoming guides
Adult Guardianship in Wyoming
Adverse Possession in Wyoming: One Sentence of Statute and Ten Years
Asset Protection Planning in Wyoming (2026)
Dealing With Debt Collectors in Wyoming (2026)
Delinquent Property Taxes in Wyoming: A Fixed Price, a Certificate of Purchase, and a Deadline Set by an Application
Expunging a Criminal Record in Wyoming (2026)
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