Kaylee and James Wilson Adopted Oli in March 2025, and After 14 Months Waiting in Nigeria to Bring Him Home, Officials Say It Could Take 13.5 More

In March 2025, Kaylee and James Wilson of Springfield, Missouri, legally adopted a son named Oli. The family is now 14 months into a wait in Nigeria for the U.S. immigration paperwork that would let him come home, and Kaylee Wilson told KY3 that officials have told them it could take another 13.5 months. That would bring the total to 27.5 months.

A Legal Adoption and a Last Name, but No Visa Yet

KY3 reported that Oli was legally adopted in March 2025. Kaylee Wilson said Oli carries the family’s last name and is their child. The family has adopted children from Africa before, and the station reported that Oli’s process is far longer than the one for the others.

The family’s own website lists two earlier adoptions, one from Ghana in 2016 and one from Nigeria in 2021, along with a child born in Nigeria in 2026. Kaylee Wilson told KY3 she had hoped to give birth in Missouri.

The Wilsons point to two things that have made this wait harder, according to KY3: security concerns in Nigeria, and U.S. visa and entry restrictions on nationals of certain countries, Nigeria among them. The restrictions were announced in December 2025 and took effect Jan. 1, 2026. The State Department’s Nigeria adoption page also refers to Presidential Proclamation 10998, which it says took effect Jan. 1, 2026.

Why a Finished Nigerian Adoption Still Needs a U.S. Petition

An adoption decree in Nigeria does not by itself bring a child into the United States. According to the State Department, Nigeria is not a party to the Hague Adoption Convention, so adoptions there run through the non-Convention “orphan” process, which pairs a suitability approval for the parents with a petition for the child.

The department’s non-Convention adoption page lays out the steps: a family completes the adoption under the foreign country’s laws, then files the orphan petition so USCIS or a consular officer can decide whether the child qualifies as an orphan under U.S. immigration law. The page says a foreign country’s finding is not the same as that status. Officers also review the case to check for fraud or child-buying concerns.

On its intercountry adoption page, USCIS says it is responsible for determining the eligibility and suitability of prospective adoptive parents and the child’s eligibility to immigrate.

Only after that approval does the visa stage begin. The State Department’s visa process page says the National Visa Center assigns the case to a U.S. embassy or consulate, which schedules the child’s interview and, if no ineligibility is found, issues an IR-3 or IR-4 visa.

The State Department’s Nigeria page is blunt about the setting. It says the department advises prospective adoptive parents to “reconsider plans to adopt from Nigeria,” citing fraud, unreliable documents and significant processing delays, and it says the fraud and orphan-status review alone may take up to six months. The page describes the country as a whole and does not mention the Wilsons.

The Denied Expedite Request and Two Senators’ Offices

The Wilsons asked USCIS to speed up Oli’s case, and the request was denied. Kaylee Wilson told KY3 the family “thought for sure” it would be approved.

The family has also asked Missouri Sens. Josh Hawley and Eric Schmitt for help. As of KY3’s report, there was no resolution. Hawley’s office told the station its team is looking into the case. USCIS referred questions to the State Department, and KY3 said it was still waiting for a response from that agency.

A Household in Nigeria That Says It Cannot Work and Will Not Leave Without Oli

The Wilsons say they cannot work while they are in Nigeria. To make ends meet, KY3 reported, they document their experience online and sell goods through their website, delightinthejourney.com.

The family told KY3 it is not asking for special treatment. It wants changes to adoption and immigration processes, saying children often have to stay in orphanages while paperwork moves. James Wilson said the family will not leave without Oli, because that would mean abandoning one of their children.

Another adoption, finalized in a Texas courtroom, is covered on the site in the story of Chris and Latricia Coburn adopting their niece Meadow.

The Wilsons have talked with their children about the cost, KY3 reported. The children were asked whether giving up their home, pets, friends and life in Missouri was worth bringing Oli home, and they said yes. Kaylee Wilson described the situation as a trial and said choosing joy is a daily decision.

Get stories like this by email. Sign up for The Parent Diaries Letter.

This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.

Image: Paulisawoof – Public domain/Wikimedia Commons