Relative foster care applies when children are officially placed in a home by a social service agency and the children are related to the adults in the home or they have had a significant relationship. Deciding to foster relative or kin is not a decision that should be made lightly and it is important to consider the expectations that come with this commitment.

How is the licensing process different for relatives?

The process to become a foster parent for relatives or kin is similar to that of non-relative foster parents. The biggest difference is that the licensing process for relatives usually begins after a child is placed in the relatives home. Licensing agencies are also expected to help relatives overcome barriers to licensing to support the continued placement of children with relatives or kin.

What if I begin the licensing process for a relative/kin child but don't follow through with the licensing process?

Minnesota DHS provides guidance for counties that relatives should complete the licensing process in about 120 days. A child placed in the home of a relative who is not licenses to provide foster care must be removed from that home if the relative fails to cooperate with the county agency. 

What if I live in one county but another county is making the placement decisions for a relative or kin child?

When children are placed with relatives it is common for the multiple counties to be involved. The county that has made the decision to remove the child from the parents care initiates the licensing process to a relative/kin foster home. Once the child is placed in the relatives home the placing agency has 10 days to send a referral to the county in which the relative lives. Once the referral is received the county in which the relative lives will complete the licenses process. 

Please contact a member of our team if you need further information

Relative Foster Care Process

By accepting relative or kin children in your home either in the short-term or long-term you are agreeing to cooperate with the licensing process. 

Relative Kin Child Foster Care Videos

Below are short videos designed to provide additional information for prospective or current relative kin foster parents. These videos were created through collaboration with Quality Parenting Initiative and Mitchell Hamline School of Law and range from 10-15 minutes. The videos touch on topics that would be helpful early in the process of caring for a relative or kin child involved in out of home placement with a county child welfare agency. There is also a 5 minute video by a relative kin foster parent sharing her perspective.

To be directed to all the videos on Mitchell Hamline's website place click here.