A Guide to Kinship Foster Care

Kinship foster care is an important way to provide a safe and loving home for children in need while keeping them connected to family members. If you’re considering becoming a kinship foster parent, here’s what you need to know about kinship foster care. 

What is Kinship Care? 
Kinship care is when a child who cannot live with their biological parents remains in the custody of the state but lives with another relative, such as an aunt or grandparent. The relative can be a blood relation or someone related by marriage or adoption. It provides the child with stability, belonging, and consistency while keeping them connected to their extended family. 

What Are the Benefits of Kinship Foster Care? 
Kinship foster care provides several benefits over traditional foster care. For example, it can help maintain connections between the child and their extended family, which can be beneficial for their emotional wellbeing. Additionally, kinship caregivers are often already part of the child’s life—either because they were already involved before or because of existing connections between families—so this can reduce transition times and make it easier for the child to adjust to their new circumstances. 

What Are the Requirements for Being a Kinship Foster Parent? 
Each state will have different requirements for being a kinship foster parent, so it’s important to research your local regulations before making any commitments. Generally speaking though, you must go through all of the usual checks that are required for any other type of foster parent (such as background checks) but you may also have additional obligations depending on your specific situation—for example, if you are not related by blood then there may be certain paperwork that needs to be filled out first.  

How is Kinship Foster Care Similar to Traditional Foster Care? 
Kinship foster parents share much in common with traditional (non-related) foster parents. Kinship Foster Parents should expect: 

• Parenting a Child with Trauma - While kinship foster care is typically easier for the child, trauma is still likely since the child was  uprooted from the daily life and parents the knew. Like traditional foster parents, kinship foster parents should look into the behaviors that kids with trauma have and be prepared to request resources. 
• Visits - Kids in kinship care are likely to have regular visits from CPS, CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate), Guardian Ad Litems (the child's lawyer), and others. The child may also have visits with biological parents or siblings. 
• Doctor Appointments - Kids in foster care typically have certain medical check-ups that must be completed. While this varies from state to state, be prepared for many appointments during the first few weeks after the child is placed with you. 
• Paperwork - Foster parents often have to submit behavioral, school, medical, and/or legal paperwork every month (sometimes more regularly). 
• Added Stress - Unfortunately, serving as a foster parent (kinship or traditional) can bring stress to your life. Be sure to have resources in place to help you manage this added stress. 

What unique challenges do Kinship Foster Parents face? 
Kinship fostering does come with its own set of challenges as well—especially when it comes to financial issues. For example, some states may not provide financial assistance for relatives taking on the role of caregiver even though non-relative caregivers would receive assistance. In some states, this does change if the kinship foster parent because licensed (talk to the child's social worker about that possibility).

Another issue kinship foster parents face is more personal; Because kinship foster parents are known to the child's biological parents, it may  mean resentment and anger amongst family members involved in the case.  These circumstances should be dealt with maturely and delicately to the child doesn't feel they're in the middle of this tension. 


While challenging, kinship fostering can be incredibly rewarding both for the kinship parents and for children in need of a stable home environment. If you you've been asked to serve as a kinship foster placement and think it would suit you and your family, talk to the child's CPS worker to see how to move forward.