North Dakota Foster Care Fingerprint and Medical Requirements: What Every Household Member Needs

Two of the most time-sensitive parts of the North Dakota foster care licensing process are fingerprinting and the physical exam. Both must be completed before a license can be issued, and both have logistics that surprise applicants who assume they can be handled quickly at the last minute. Here is what you actually need, who it applies to, and how to schedule it efficiently.

Who Must Be Fingerprinted

North Dakota requires fingerprint-based background checks for every household member age 18 and older — not just the primary applicants. This means a college-aged child living at home, an adult parent living in the house, or any other adult occupant must be fingerprinted and cleared before the license can be issued.

This is a common point where applicants underestimate the scope of the process. You can have a fully prepared application, a passed home inspection, and completed PRIDE training — and still be held at the licensing stage because a household member has not submitted their fingerprints.

What the Background Check Covers

The North Dakota Criminal Background Check Unit (CBCU) in Bismarck manages the background check process through the ND Gateway Portal. A complete background check for foster care applicants involves:

State criminal history — a name-based and fingerprint-based search of the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) records.

National criminal history — an FBI database check based on fingerprints, covering criminal records from any state.

Child Abuse and Neglect Index — a check of the ND DHS Central Registry to identify any prior child abuse or neglect findings.

Sex offender registries — both North Dakota's and the national sex offender registry.

Interstate checks — if you have lived in another state within the last five years, North Dakota must request records from that state's child abuse registry and criminal history system.

All of these checks must clear before a license is issued. There is no option to proceed with a conditional license while checks are pending.

Disqualifying Criminal History

North Dakota law (NDCC 50-11.3-02 and NDAC 75-03-14-04.1) specifies which convictions bar licensing.

Absolute disqualifiers — offenses that permanently bar licensure regardless of how long ago they occurred:

• Child abuse or neglect
• Domestic violence
• Crimes against children (including child pornography)
• Rape, sexual assault, or murder
• Human trafficking

Five-year disqualifiers — convictions within the last five years that bar licensure, but where older convictions are subject to a "sufficient rehabilitation" review:

• Physical assault or battery
• Drug-related offenses
• Attempt or conspiracy to commit any absolute disqualifier offense

If you have any criminal history — including arrests without convictions, old misdemeanors, or DUI charges — disclose it proactively in your application. The BCI will find it regardless. Failing to disclose is a more serious problem than having a history.

Fingerprinting Locations and Process

Fingerprinting is submitted through the ND Gateway Portal. Once the background check request is submitted, you schedule a fingerprint appointment.

State fingerprinting locations — North Dakota HHS operates fingerprinting at the eight Regional Human Service Centers:

• Bismarck, Fargo, Grand Forks, Minot, Jamestown, Dickinson, Devils Lake, Williston

Fingerprinting at an HHS location is typically free for foster care applicants. This is the preferred option.

Alternative locations — local law enforcement agencies and some private vendors also offer fingerprinting using the standard FBI Applicant card (FD-258). If you use one of these, you pay the agency's fee (often $10 to $40) and submit the card through the portal.

Timeline for results — background check results typically return in 15 to 30 days. During this waiting period, you cannot have unsupervised contact with foster children. Plan your timing accordingly — if you want to be licensed by a particular date, submit your fingerprints at least 6 weeks in advance of that target.

The Physical Exam: SFN 974

In addition to the background check, North Dakota requires a physician's health verification for each adult applicant. This is completed using SFN 974 (Physical Exam Verification), which your doctor fills out and signs.

What the physical exam covers: The form asks your physician to verify that you are in good general health, that you do not have any physical or mental health conditions that would impair your ability to care for a child, and — for foster care specifically — that you do not have any conditions that would pose a direct safety risk to children in your home.

What "health" means in this context: North Dakota does not bar people from fostering because of controlled health conditions. A foster parent managing diabetes, depression, or a chronic illness is not automatically disqualified. The state is looking for conditions that would impair direct caregiving capacity or create a safety hazard. If you have a history of mental health treatment, discuss this with your physician before the exam — the licensing specialist's concern is current stability, not past history.

The state policy requires a 12-month period of stability for certain types of documented emotional instability before an application can proceed. If this applies to you, your physician and licensing specialist can clarify the timeline.

Scheduling note: Primary care appointments in North Dakota can book several weeks out. Schedule SFN 974 early in the process — at the same time you submit your fingerprints, not after you receive your fingerprint results.

Children and Other Household Members

Children living in the home do not require fingerprinting or a physical exam. However, they are part of the home study process — the licensing specialist will interview children in the household about the family's plan to foster and their feelings about it. Children 18 and older are treated as household adults and must be fingerprinted.

Adult relatives or household members who are not primary applicants but who will participate in caregiving (a grandmother who lives in the home and will be involved in childcare, for example) must also be fingerprinted. The licensing specialist's assessment of "who participates in caregiving" is broad — when in doubt, include everyone 18+ who lives in the house.

The North Dakota Foster Care Licensing Guide includes a complete household-by-household checklist for background checks and physical exam requirements, along with guidance on how to handle prior criminal history disclosures and what the rehabilitation review process looks like.

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