Kinship Care in Ontario: What You Need to Know Before You Step In

When a child cannot safely remain with their parents, Ontario's child welfare system looks first at family — grandparents, aunts and uncles, older siblings, or trusted community members who know the child. This is kinship care, and it is the placement option the Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017 (CYFSA) explicitly prioritizes before a stranger foster home is ever considered.

If a CAS has approached you about caring for a child in your family or community, or if you've come forward yourself, here is what the process actually involves and what support you can expect.

What Kinship Care Means in Ontario

Kinship care in Ontario refers to the placement of a child in the care of someone with a pre-existing relationship to that child — a relative (blood or legal) or a member of the child's extended community or cultural group. The CYFSA defines this as a "kinship service" or "kinship placement" depending on the legal arrangement in place.

The principle behind kinship priority is that maintaining a child's existing relationships and cultural continuity causes less disruption than a placement with a stranger, even when the family has been under child protection scrutiny. Research consistently supports this: children in kinship placements typically have better emotional outcomes, lower placement disruption rates, and stronger long-term connections to their families of origin.

For Indigenous children specifically, the CYFSA mandates that placements follow the Indigenous Child Welfare Principle, which prioritizes keeping children within their community, First Nation, and cultural framework.

Types of Kinship Arrangements

There are three main structures under which kinship care can operate in Ontario:

1. Voluntary Kinship Service When the CAS is involved with a family but no court order has been made, the Society may arrange a voluntary kinship placement under a Society Agreement. The birth parents retain legal custody, and the kin caregiver is supported by the CAS without the full licensing process applying. This is the least formal arrangement.

2. Licensed Kinship Foster Home When a child has been placed in Extended Society Care or is subject to a child protection order, the kinship caregiver typically must be fully licensed as a foster home. This means completing the SAFE home study and PRIDE training — the same requirements that apply to any stranger foster home. The CAS may offer some flexibility in timelines (particularly for emergency kinship placements), but the requirements are not waived.

3. Customary Care (Indigenous Children) For Indigenous children, "Customary Care" is a culturally specific model where care is provided according to the traditions and customs of the child's First Nation, Inuit, or Métis community. This arrangement can operate outside the standard CAS licensing framework when a recognized Indigenous governing body or agency is involved.

The SAFE and PRIDE Process for Kin Caregivers

A common misconception is that because you already know and love the child, you are automatically approved as a kinship caregiver. That is not how the system works.

If a licensed placement is required, you must complete:

• Vulnerable Sector Check: Every adult 18+ in your household
• SAFE Home Study: The Structured Analysis Family Evaluation, including two to four home visit interviews with all household members
• PRIDE Training: The 27-hour mandatory pre-service training program (nine modules)
• Medical Assessment: Confirming each adult caregiver's physical and mental capacity

The SAFE process does account for your existing relationship with the child. Workers assess your family dynamics with that history in mind. But the safety screening is non-negotiable — kinship does not bypass background checks.

In urgent situations (a child needs to be removed immediately and you are the available kin caregiver), the CAS can place a child with you on an emergency basis while the formal assessment process begins. This is not unusual, and the CAS will work with you to complete requirements in parallel with the placement.

Financial Supports for Kinship Caregivers

Kinship caregivers who are fully licensed as foster homes receive the same financial supports as stranger foster parents:

• Daily per diem: Ranging from $39/day (basic Level 1) to $115/day (Treatment Level 4), based on the child's assessed needs
• Initial placement allowance: A one-time payment for clothing and personal effects
• Annual allowances: Funding for birthdays, holidays, and school supplies
• Medical and dental: Children in care are covered by OHIP; most CASes also have supplementary dental and prescription plans
• Recreational funding: Sports teams, music lessons, and summer camps can often be approved on request

Per diems in Ontario are non-taxable and are not reported to the Canada Revenue Agency as income.

For informal kinship arrangements not tied to a licensed placement, the financial picture is more complicated. Some CASes offer "kinship support payments" or can connect families with the Ontario Works or Ontario Disability Support Program if the caregiver qualifies. However, the supports are less predictable outside the licensed foster care framework.

Your Rights as a Kinship Caregiver

If you have cared for the child continuously for at least six months before a court hearing, Section 79 of the CYFSA entitles you to notice of those proceedings and the right to be present. You can also apply to become a full party to the case — a right that is increasingly recognized by Ontario courts, particularly in kinship and foster-to-adopt situations.

The Ontario Court of Appeal has affirmed that long-term kinship caregivers, especially in "foster-to-adopt" scenarios, should be granted party status when they are in the best position to speak to the child's daily needs and best interests.

If the CAS makes decisions you believe are contrary to the child's interests, you have access to the agency's internal Complaints Review Panel, the Child and Family Services Review Board, and Ombudsman Ontario.

When Kinship Care Leads to Adoption

If a child in your kinship care is placed in Extended Society Care — the permanent order that replaced the old "Crown Ward" designation under the CYFSA 2017 — adoption becomes a legal option. As the child's existing caregiver, you have priority consideration as an adoptive parent. This pathway is discussed in detail in our post on foster-to-adopt in Ontario via CAS.

The Ontario Foster Care Guide covers the full kinship care process in detail, including the agency-by-agency differences in how kinship support payments are administered and how to navigate the SAFE home study when you already have a relationship with the child being assessed.

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