Procedure to become a foster family

There are a number of steps and formalities involved in recruiting foster families. A person who would like to become a foster family must, for example:

• Collect the documents required for the review of their file (references, medical certificate, certificate of financial solvency, proof that they do not have a criminal record, etc.).
• Cooperate with the public institution during their assessment (personal skills, abilities and competencies, home assessment, etc.).

If your file meets the requirements, you will sign an agreement with the public institution in your region. This agreement will allow you to foster a child who needs a new living environment. The institution will take the child’s or teenager’s characteristics and your characteristics into account to ensure the best possible match.

Contact the public institution in your region for the recruitment procedure.

To find out more about the agreements, go to the website of the Comité patronal de négociation du secteur de la santé et des services sociaux pour les ressources intermédiaires et les ressources de type familial  (website in French).

A foster family who takes in one or more children is responsible for ensuring the quality of the services provided.

The foster family must, however, cooperate with the institution’s quality control process. The process is intended to ensure that children receive the best services for their needs.

To find out more about the services the foster family must provide to the child, consult the Regulation respecting the classification of services offered by an intermediate resource and a family-type resource .

Foster families receive a monthly remuneration for each young person placed with them. Some expenses may be reimbursed if the foster family obtains prior authorization from the institution and provides supporting documents.

The remuneration and reimbursements are established based on various factors and vary depending on the situation. Part of the remuneration depends on the level of services the foster family must provide for the young person.

The terms of payment and the calculation of the amounts paid are set out in the agreement between the foster family and the institution.

Every foster family can be represented by an association, which, in particular:

• Defends the economic, social, moral and professional interests of the foster families they represent.
• Negotiates and concludes collective agreements.
• Provides support to a foster family in a specific situation related to the content of their agreement.