The KIND Act and Relative Caregiver Certification

Governor JB Pritzker signed the Kinship in Demand (KIND) Act into law on February 5, 2025. The law, developed through a partnership between Illinois DCFS and the ACLU of Illinois, took effect July 1, giving Illinois the ability to create separate standards for relatives to be certified to care for related children and youth in DCFS care.

This law represents a major step forward for child welfare in Illinois and requires close coordination across systems, policies and day‑to‑day processes. DCFS has adopted Rules 415 to guide implementation, and appreciates the community’s patience as we move toward a system that better supports children, youth and families.

What does the KIND Act mean for families?

The KIND Act helps keep children and youth connected to the people who know and love them by:

Ensuring Illinois DCFS works to identify relatives as placement and visitation options for youth in care.
Creating standards for certifying relative caregivers.
Ensuring children, youth, and families have a stronger voice in decisions about permanency.
Increasing financial support for relative caregivers.
Treating adoption and guardianship as equal permanency options if reunification is not possible.
Establishing separate, more appropriate certification standards for relatives rather than requiring them to meet traditional foster licensing requirements.
Making certified relative caregivers eligible for subsidized guardianship.

Interested in becoming a certified relative caregiver for your related youth in care?

Please contact your youth in care’s caseworker to learn more about the certification process, including the steps and forms for certification.

Comparing Certification to unlicensed/uncertified status

This chart provides an overview of the similarities and differences between a relative caregiver who is certified vs. a relative caregiver who is not certified and unlicensed: Full-color version Grayscale version

Relative Caregiver Certification Orientation video series

This video series is an orientation for relative caregivers of youth in DCFS care in Illinois. It covers key information, resources, responsibilities and support available to family members and fictive kin caring for youth placed in their home by DCFS and contracted agency workers.

Caregivers will learn about paperwork, legal rights, medical insurance, background checks, visitation, funding, discipline policies and where to find help and training. The goal is to guide and empower caregivers and enable them to best support youth in their care.

Watch the full video: English Spanish

Choose individual videos from the playlist: English Spanish

Helpful brochures for relative caregivers

Advocacy Office for Children and Family Services: English Spanish Chinese
Foster Parent Rights and Responsibilities: English Spanish Polish
Foster Parent Support Specialists: English Spanish Polish
Grandparents and Other Relatives Raising Children: English Spanish
Guardianship is a Path to Permanency: English Spanish Polish
Making the Adoption-Guardianship Decision: English Spanish Polish
Normalcy Policy: English Spanish
Office of the Inspector General: English Spanish
Preparing Children to Stay Alone: English Spanish Haitian Creole French
Service Appeal Process: English Spanish Polish French Hakka Chinese
SPIDER (Service Provider IDentification and Exploration Resource): English Spanish Polish
What You Need to Know About Being a Relative Caregiver: English Spanish Polish
Youth in Care Damage Reimbursement Program: English Spanish Polish