{"id":351851,"date":"2016-04-04T10:46:06","date_gmt":"2016-04-04T15:46:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/content.findlaw-admin.com\/ability-law\/family\/foster-care\/foster-parent-requirements.html"},"modified":"2025-04-14T13:57:06","modified_gmt":"2025-04-14T18:57:06","slug":"foster-parent-requirements","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.findlaw.com\/family\/foster-care\/foster-parent-requirements.html","title":{"rendered":"Foster Parent Requirements"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Foster Parent Requirements<\/h1>\n
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\n By Susan Buckner, J.D.<\/a> | Legally reviewed by Laura Temme, Esq.<\/a>\n | Last reviewed\n
\n \n <\/i>\n Legally Reviewed\n <\/summary>\n\n
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This article has been written and reviewed for legal accuracy, clarity, and style by FindLaw\u2019s team of legal writers and attorneys<\/a> and in accordance with our editorial standards<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/details>\n\n

\n \n <\/i>\n Fact-Checked\n <\/summary>\n\n
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The last updated date refers to the last time this article was reviewed by FindLaw or one of our contributing authors<\/a>. We make every effort to keep our articles updated. For information regarding a specific legal issue affecting you, please contact an attorney in your area<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/details>\n<\/section>\n

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Foster parenting is a critical and compassionate role that involves providing a temporary, stable, and loving home for children in crisis. The process to become a foster parent includes meeting specific state requirements, undergoing a thorough background check, and participating in a detailed home study to ensure a safe environment for the child. Prospective foster parents must be prepared to support the child’s needs financially and emotionally while cooperating with social services.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n

Foster children enter foster care in a number of ways. Most often, Child Protective Services (CPS) or the state’s equivalent agency removes a child from their home because a child is at risk of harm.<\/p>\r\n

CPS must use the "least restrictive" placement when taking a child from the biological parents. The goal of foster care<\/a> is always reunification between the child and the biological family. Foster care is temporary while the parents resolve the issues that caused the child’s removal.<\/p>\r\n

Foster parents must provide stable, loving homes for children who need them. The parents must also be willing to work with social workers and family courts to return the children to their biological families. The foster care system<\/a> needs special people to become foster parents and uses a strict application process to find the right ones.<\/p>\r\n

How to Become a Foster Parent<\/h2>\r\n

The ideal placement for a foster child is with other close relatives, known as "kinship care." Unfortunately, aunts, uncles, older siblings, and grandparents<\/a> aren’t always available or willing to take children into their homes. They may also not be able to take them on an emergency basis. In those cases, unrelated foster parents are essential.<\/p>\r\n

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services provides funding for state foster care systems, but each state has its own eligibility requirements for foster parents. The state’s Department of Social Services or child welfare agency manages the foster care system requirements.<\/p>\r\n

Those wishing to become a foster parent<\/a> should contact their state’s social services or human services agency for more detailed eligibility requirements and an application. Completing the application and submitting the required documentation can take time.<\/p>\r\n

General Requirements<\/h3>\r\n

In most states, foster parent applicants must be at least 21 years of age, although some states allow you to be 18. You will need to pass an extensive criminal background check. A criminal history will not automatically disqualify you, but some crimes that will disqualify you include:<\/p>\r\n