Children can be relinquished for adoption at any age, and even adults can be adopted, although that usually has little to do with parental surrender. In the case of pre-birth matching of adoptive parents and a woman making an adoption plan, the time between birth and legal termination of rights (TPR) for birth parents varies from state to state. A lot of babies are placed for adoption when they are newborns, right at the hospital. Most states have a period of time (for instance, 48 hours) after the birth of the baby in which the birth mother has to wait before she can sign the relinquishment papers. The adoptive parents can then leave the hospital with the baby.