There are two main types of adoption: closed and open.

In a closed adoption, records are usually sealed. After adoption, birth and adoptive parents do not have contact, and the child or children have no contact with their biological parent(s).

In contrast, the records of an open adoption are left open. Here, families may also agree to communicate or have contact with each other in a Post Adoption Contact Agreement (PACA). This type of agreement will typically provide parameters for the type of communication or contact, as well as the frequency of communication or contact.