Caregivers
A Foster Care caregiver is licensed by the state to care for children who may or may not be related to them. They receive regular Foster Care payments. For information regarding budgetary units that include foster children, see
CA Adult Only Cases.
A foster child who has their needs met is not eligible for CA Foster Care. Consider a foster child to have their needs met when the foster care payment made on behalf of the foster child is drawn from one of the following foster care funds:
●Federal (Title IV-E)
●State
●Local
The Foster Care child is potentially CA eligible for the month that both of the following occur:
●They enter or leave Foster Care
●A full Foster Care payment is not made
When a child is placed with an unlicensed caregiver that is not related to the child, the following applies:
●When there is a court order permitting the placement, the caregiver may apply for CA benefits for the child only.
●The court order allows the caregiver to apply for CA benefits for the children placed in their physical care, and to be considered the
caretaker relative for CA purposes.
●When a court order is expected, pend the determination awaiting receipt of the court order.
NOTE The caregiver is not included in the case because they are not related to the dependent child.
●When no court order is expected, the unlicensed nonrelated caregiver cannot receive CA benefits for the children.