How to Become a Foster Parent in New Hampshire

Every year in New Hampshire, children enter foster care because their families are going through something they can’t handle alone right now. Under RSA 170-E, the state defines a foster family home as a residence providing family care for up to six unrelated children, and the Division for Children, Youth and Families, known as DCYF, oversees the program.

The licensing process has several steps, including an application, background checks, a home study, and required training, but it’s a process that people complete every day. What follows is a plain-language walkthrough of what to expect.

Who can be a foster parent in New Hampshire?

More people qualify to foster than you might think. New Hampshire’s requirements are built around one central question: can you provide a safe, stable, nurturing home for a child? The answer doesn’t depend on whether you’re married, how big your house is, or whether you already have kids of your own.

Age and household makeup

You need to be an adult, but the state doesn’t set a maximum age. New Hampshire administrative code sets 18 as the floor for child care providers, and foster parent licensing follows the same logic. Beyond that, the focus is on your ability to meet a child’s needs, not a number on your driver’s license.

You can be single, married, partnered, divorced, or widowed. There’s no requirement that a household have two adults. Single people foster children in New Hampshire every day.

Your household can already include children. New Hampshire law defines a foster family home as a residence providing care for no more than six children total, which includes both your own kids living with you and any foster children placed in your home. The one exception: if a sibling group would push you past that limit, the state can make an exception to keep siblings together.

Your home itself

Your home doesn’t have to be large or fancy, but it does have to be safe and functional. New Hampshire’s foster home physical requirements are specific about what that means in practice. Each foster child needs:

• A separate bed of their own
• A bedroom separate from adults (for children over one year old)
• A bedroom separate from children of the opposite gender who are over age 5
• Space for their clothing and personal belongings
• Access to a phone for personal calls

The home also needs at least one full bathroom with a toilet, sink, and tub or shower for every eight people in the household, plus basic first aid supplies on hand. If a child in your care has physical or medical needs, the home needs to be barrier-free accessible for them.

You don’t need to own your home. Renters can foster.

Income

You don’t have to be wealthy. What matters is that your income is sufficient to meet your household’s existing needs without depending on foster care payments to cover your basic expenses. Foster care payments are intended to support the child in your home, not to supplement your household budget.

Physical and mental health

You’ll need to show that you’re in good enough health to care for a child. This means completing a health screening as part of the licensing process. The standard isn’t perfection. It’s whether your physical or mental health conditions, if any, would interfere with your ability to provide safe and consistent care. Many people with chronic health conditions, including mental health histories, are licensed foster parents.

What this adds up to

The picture that emerges is a pretty broad one. New Hampshire DCYF’s guidance for foster caregivers makes clear that the state wants children in care to have the most family-like, normal experience possible. That means they need a wide range of families willing to open their doors, not just one particular type.

Requirements vary by county, so check with your licensing agency for specifics on how these standards are applied in your area.

Background check requirements in New Hampshire

Before a child ever sets foot in your home, New Hampshire requires a thorough look at the background of everyone who lives there. Here’s what that means for you in practice.

Who has to complete checks

It’s not just the adults applying to be foster parents. According to federal background check guidance for foster and adoptive caregivers, all adults living in the household are required to complete background checks, not only the primary applicants. If you have a partner, an adult child living at home, or any other adult resident, they’re included. Kinship caregivers, meaning relatives who want to take in a child they know, must meet these same requirements.

What gets checked

Three separate checks are required:

• A state criminal records check
• A fingerprint-based check of national crime information databases
• A check of New Hampshire’s child abuse and neglect registry

That’s not all. If you or any adult in your home has lived in another state within the past five years, the child abuse and neglect registry from that state must be checked as well. The New Hampshire statutes governing foster family home licensing specifically address the state registry and criminal records check requirements at Section 170-E:29.

When checks happen again

Background checks aren’t a one-time event. They’re required before initial licensure, and they can be required again when you renew your license. The federal guidance is clear that repeat checks are part of the ongoing licensing process.

What can disqualify an applicant

Certain criminal history can disqualify an applicant from being licensed. A prior finding on a child abuse and neglect registry, in New Hampshire or another state, is also grounds for disqualification. The purpose of these checks, as federal caregiver background check guidance makes clear, is to screen for any history that would pose a safety risk to children in placement. If you have concerns about something in your past, raise it with your licensing worker early. Some situations have more flexibility than others, and it’s far better to have that conversation upfront than to be surprised later in the process.

Costs and logistics

Requirements vary by county, so check with your agency for specifics on what you’ll pay and how the fingerprinting process works in your area.

What to expect from the home study

You’ve filled out the paperwork, you’ve started gathering documents, and now someone is going to come to your house. The home study is less of an inspection and more of an extended conversation, one that gives a caseworker the chance to understand who you are, how you live, and what kind of home you can offer a child.

What the caseworker is actually looking for

The caseworker isn’t trying to catch you out. They’re trying to build a picture of your household: your relationships, your routines, your reasons for wanting to foster, and whether your home meets the physical requirements that keep children safe. On the physical side, New Hampshire’s foster home physical environment rules are specific about what a home needs. The requirements include:

• A separate bed for each child in care
• A bedroom separate from adults for any child over one year old
• Separate bedroom space from children of the opposite gender who are over age 5
• At least one indoor bathroom for every eight people in the household
• A phone accessible to the child in care for personal calls
• Basic first aid supplies, including bandages and antiseptic cleanser
• A posted emergency evacuation plan, reviewed with all household members
• A posted list of emergency numbers, including poison control

Firearms, weapons, and pools

If anyone in your household owns firearms or other weapons, you’ll need to disclose that at the first home visit. New Hampshire regulations require that all firearms be kept in a locked cabinet or secured with trigger locks, and that ammunition be stored separately. If you have a swimming pool, you’ll need a life-saving device like a ring buoy kept nearby.

The inspections you’ll arrange yourself

Before your home study is complete, you’ll need to schedule two separate inspections: one with your local fire inspector and one with your local health officer. You’re responsible for setting those up. The fire inspector completes Form 1720 (or Form 1720A if you live in a building with three or more units), and the health officer completes Form 1721. Both send their completed forms directly to the DCYF district office. You’ll also submit Form 1723, which certifies that your insurance is current, your vehicles are in safe condition, and your heating system is properly maintained.

The conversation part

Beyond the physical walk-through, the home study involves talking. The caseworker will ask about your background, your family, your support system, your parenting experience or approach, and what you understand about the needs of children who come into foster care. Answer honestly. The goal isn’t to present a perfect household. It’s to give the agency a real sense of who you are so they can match children to your home thoughtfully.

How long it takes

The home study timeline depends on how quickly you can schedule your fire and health inspections, complete your required training, and gather your supporting documents. Requirements vary by county, so check with your agency for specifics on what they expect and how long their process typically runs.

Pre-service training requirements

Before a child ever crosses your threshold, you’ll need to complete a training program.

What the state requires

New Hampshire’s foster care administrative rules establish that foster care programs licensed under RSA 170-E are responsible for recruiting, training, and licensing foster family homes. The training requirement exists at the program level, meaning your licensing agency carries the obligation to ensure you’re trained before placement.

According to the DCYF Reasonable and Prudent Parent Standards guidelines, pre-service training covers at minimum the following core topics:

• Child development
• The effects of childhood trauma
• Grief and loss
• Promoting positive behavior
• The importance of lifelong connections

The Reasonable and Prudent Parent Standard

One topic you’ll spend real time on in training is the Reasonable and Prudent Parent Standard. This is a federal requirement, passed into law under the Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act, and it matters for how you’ll make decisions every single day.

What it means practically: you, as the caregiver, have the authority to make normal, daily parenting decisions for a child in your care, without having to get sign-off from a caseworker or the court every time. Can the child join a soccer team? Go on a sleepover? Get a part-time job? According to the NH DCYF guidelines for this standard, those decisions belong to you, made thoughtfully and with the child’s age, maturity, history, and best interests in mind. He-C 6446, New Hampshire’s foster care licensing rules, specifically requires that you apply this standard.

What counties and agencies may add

Requirements vary by county, check with your agency for specifics.

The state sets a floor for training content, but individual licensing agencies can and do build on it. Some agencies require additional hours or add topics specific to the population of children they serve, such as sibling groups, children with trauma histories, or youth aging toward independence. Your agency will tell you exactly what their program includes and how many hours you’re looking at before you can be licensed.

How training is completed

Training is typically provided directly by your licensing agency, either in person over a series of sessions or through a combination of in-person and online modules. Once you’re connected with a licensed child-placing agency in New Hampshire, they’ll walk you through the schedule and format.

The definitions in RSA 170-E:25 make clear that a child-placing agency’s core function includes recruiting and training foster families. You’ll have support through this part of the process.

License types and renewal in New Hampshire

Before you can welcome a child into your home, New Hampshire will issue you a formal approval, and the type of approval you receive shapes exactly what you’re authorized to do. The state defines several distinct categories, and knowing which one applies to you helps you understand both your responsibilities and your options.

The main approval categories

New Hampshire’s residential care statute defines the core categories of licensed homes. Here’s what each one covers:

• Foster family home: The standard license for providing family care and training on a regular basis for up to six unrelated children in your residence. If you’re already caring for a child and a sibling group needs to stay together, the department may allow an exception to that six-child limit.
• Kinship care home: A foster home license issued specifically to relatives or people with a prior connection to the child or the child’s family. It authorizes care exclusively for kin, with the same six-child maximum and the same sibling exception.
• Group home: A licensed agency setting for between five and twelve children who benefit from residential care, either short-term or long-term. This isn’t a family home license, so it won’t apply to most people reading this guide.

For most families going through the licensing process, the relevant question is whether you’re applying as a general foster family home or as a kinship care home. Your relationship to the child, or to any child you’re likely to be placed with, determines which category fits.

Therapeutic and specialized foster care

Some children have chronic mental, emotional, physical, or behavioral needs that require more intensive support than a standard placement provides. New Hampshire administrative rules define therapeutic foster care as a family-centered program in which experienced foster parents, along with clinical support staff, provide comprehensive and intensive therapeutic services. If you’re interested in therapeutic foster care, you’ll need to meet additional requirements beyond the standard foster home license. Your licensing agency can tell you what those involve.

Permits and provisional status

The statute distinguishes between a full license and a permit. A permit is an issuance that authorizes operation while the full licensing process is still underway or while specific conditions are being resolved. In practice, this means new applicants may receive a provisional approval that allows a placement to move forward before every requirement is fully complete.

How annual renewal works

Your license doesn’t last forever, and that’s by design. RSA 170-E includes specific provisions for license renewal, and background checks may be required again at renewal, not just at initial application. According to federal background check guidance for foster and adoptive caregivers, states commonly require additional background checks when a foster parent renews licensure, and New Hampshire follows that pattern.

Renewal is also a moment to update your household information, confirm that your home still meets physical requirements, and stay current on any training obligations.

Requirements vary by county, so check with your agency for specifics on renewal timelines and what documentation you’ll need to resubmit.

Staying licensed: what’s required after approval

Getting licensed isn’t a finish line. It’s the beginning of an ongoing relationship with your licensing agency, and that relationship comes with real expectations.

Home inspections

Your home doesn’t get a one-time pass after your initial approval. New Hampshire’s foster home physical environment rules set out ongoing standards your home must continue to meet, including requirements around sleeping arrangements, bathroom access, firearms storage, and posted emergency evacuation plans. Your home needs to stay in compliance with those standards throughout your license period.

A few things to keep current:

• Firearms and weapons locked in a secured cabinet, with ammunition stored separately
• A posted emergency evacuation plan reviewed with all household members
• Emergency phone numbers, including poison control, posted visibly in the home
• Valid homeowners or renters insurance and automobile insurance, with no lapse in coverage
• Vehicles kept in safe operating condition, with valid registrations and driver’s licenses

Household changes

If something significant changes in your home, your licensing agency needs to know. RSA 170-E gives the department authority over foster home licensing, which includes evaluating changes that could affect a child’s safety or the home’s compliance. A new adult moving in, a change in your insurance, a firearm added to the household — these are the kinds of changes that affect your license status and need to be reported promptly rather than mentioned at your next annual review.

Reporting obligations

Foster parents are mandatory reporters in New Hampshire. That obligation doesn’t pause because a child is already in your care. State administrative rules also require foster parents to review and comply with confidentiality statutes covering children in care, including rules that govern what information can be shared and with whom.

Annual reevaluations

Your license isn’t permanent. New Hampshire’s child care and residential licensing statute establishes a renewal process for foster family home licenses, meaning your agency will periodically review your household’s continued compliance with licensing standards.

Requirements vary by county, so check with your agency for specifics on how reevaluations are scheduled and what your agency expects you to bring to the process.