In order for a kinship caregiver to serve as a verified foster parent to a child for six consecutive months, all of the following conditions must be met:

  •  The child is placed by DFPS with the verified kinship foster parent. The placement date for the verified foster home begins the mandatory six-month period.

  •  The caregiver must be verified as a kinship foster parent and remain verified as a kinship foster parent to care for the child.

  •  The caregiver has entered into and signed Form 2085FC [sic, intranet link]External Link Placement Authorization Foster Care/Residential Care and the agreement remains in effect.

  •  The child remains in the conservatorship of DFPS throughout the six-month period, until the day before the verified kinship caregiver becomes the child’s permanent managing conservator.

  •  The child’s placement in the home is continuous. That is, the child lives in the home the entire time, with the exception of short absences of no more than 14 days. If a temporary absence exceeds 14 days, the count of the child’s total time in the placement must start over.

If a child and caregiver are not eligible for permanency care assistance, a court may not order that the assistance be provided.

Texas Family Code §264.852(c)External Link