General Eligibility and Regulation Requirements

All of the following criteria must be met for both state and federal Kin-GAP programs.

The child must have been removed from their home under a voluntary placement agreement (VPA) or because of a judicial determination, including being adjudged a dependent child of the court under WIC 300 or a ward of the court under WIC Section 601 or 602, to the effect that continuation in the home would be contrary to the welfare of the child.
The child must have lived for at least six consecutive months in the approved caregiver's home while under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court or a voluntary placement agreement(VPA). This six-month period starts on the day the prospective guardian’s home meets the definition of an approved home. The Foster Care Eligibility Worker (FC EW must verify that the child has been placed with the caretaker for six consecutive months.
The caregiver obtained resource family approval (RFA) while caring for the child in the Foster Care case.
The home of the caregiver has been approved as a tribally approved home (TAH).

Exception: A new period of six months in placement with the successor guardian is not required, nor is Resource Family Approval. Refer to Guardians for more information.

The prospective guardian and the county shall enter a written, binding agreement (also called a negotiated agreement) through the State of California (SOC) 369 and 369A forms.
For state-funded Kin-GAP cases, in accordance with WIC Section 11364(a), this agreement must be signed before the initial Kin-GAP payment is made.
For federally-funded Kin-GAP cases, under WIC 11387(a), this agreement must be signed before the establishment of the guardianship.
A kinship guardianship must be established under WIC 360, 366.26, or 728(d) before the child turns 18.
Dependency jurisdiction must be terminated under WIC Section 366.3 or wardship terminated under WIC Section 728(d), concurrently or subsequently to the establishment of the kinship guardianship.

Foster Care Relative Caregiver Documentation Chart

The “Foster Care Relative Caregiver Documentation Chart” (SC 1383-FC) is required in the Kin-GAP case record to establish the relationship between the child and the caregiver. Document the case record with the relationship between the child and the guardian.
For Kin-GAP purposes, relinquishment of parental rights does not affect relatedness. A relative, which falls within the fifth degree of relatedness remains a relative for Kin-GAP, even after parental rights have been terminated and the child is now FREED for Adoption.

Additionally, the assigned Social Worker or Probation Officer (SW/PO must document in the guardianship case study that:

Being returned home or placed for adoption are not appropriate permanency options for the child.
The child demonstrates a strong attachment to the prospective guardian.
The guardian has a strong commitment to caring permanently for the child.
The child who has attained 12 years of age has been consulted regarding the kinship guardianship arrangement.

The Kin-GAP payment will continue if the guardian continues to support the child/youth, even if the guardian moves out of state. However, Kin-GAP payments are not issued outside of the United States:

Support may include any type of financial contribution, such as maintaining a room for the youth, covering the costs for clothing, personal incidentals, tuition, or therapy, or paying for other expenses related to the child’s care.
The county may continue payments if the youth is eligible for, and participates in, the extended Kin-GAP program and moves to attend post-secondary school or otherwise lives independently of the guardian as long as the guardian continues to provide support to the child.
If the child leaves the guardian’s home while still a minor for the above reasons, the payment to the guardian may continue, provided that the county makes a good cause determination for the child’s absence from the guardian’s home. The SW/PO must make the determination.

Outgoing (Moving-Out-of State)

WIC 11364(b)(4) and 11387(b)(4)
Under both state and federally funded Kin-GAP, payments continue regardless of the state of residence of the guardian and child. The rate paid on behalf of an eligible child when a family moves out of state shall not exceed the California foster care rate structure as applicable based on when the guardianship was established and dependency or delinquency jurisdiction was terminated by the juvenile court.

Incoming (Moving Into California)

When a guardian and child move into California from another state, the financial responsibility remains with the state that established the guardianship. If the guardian otherwise meets the eligibility criteria, they may be eligible for the CalWORKs Non-Needy Caregiver funding if they are related to the child.

CalWORKS Requirements

The Kin-GAP program is subject to CalWORKs requirements with the following exceptions:

County of Payment Responsibility:
- The county of payment responsibility will be the county that had the dependency of the Kin-GAP child (placing county) at the time the guardianship was established.
AU:
- Each Kin-GAP child will have their own case file, even if there is a sibling(s) or a needy caregiver living in the same home.
CalWORKs Special Needs
- Kin-GAP children are not eligible for CalWORKs Special Needs (i.e., pregnancy, special diet).
MAP:
- Payment rates for the Kin-GAP program are based on three tiers and are identical to the foster care licensed foster family home (FFH rate payments, including counties with different rates.
Recipients:
- Kin-GAP children will be treated as recipients instead of applicants when transferring to Kin-GAP. Therefore, they will be entitled to the higher CalWORKs income and property limits. This status continues even if the case is discontinued and later reestablished.
Face-to-Face Interviews:
- Guardians of Kin-GAP children are exempt from the face-to-face interview requirements for the Kin-GAP child. This does not exempt the guardian from any other required interview for aid for themselves or other children living in their home.
Court Requirements:
- The child must have been a dependent of the court, and dependency must be dismissed on or after January 1, 2000, and before entering Kin-GAP.
Immediate Need:
- The Kin-GAP eligible child is NOT eligible to receive immediate need payment
Reduced Income Supplemental Payments (RISP:
- The Kin-GAP child is NOT entitled to RISP when income stops or starts.
Cal-Learn EAS 90-110:
- The Kin-GAP child is NOT eligible for CalLearn Services.
Maximum Family Grant (MFG:
- The MFG rule DOES NOT apply to the Kin-GAP program.
Deprivation of Parental Care EAS 41-400:
- Deprivation of parental support or care is a separate and specific eligibility factor for CalWORKs. For Kin-GAP, absent parent deprivation automatically exists for the Kin-GAP child.
Child Care EAS 90-110:
- Kin-GAP child(ren) are NOT eligible for CalWORKs Employment Services Stage One child care services. Only needy caretaker guardians participating in Welfare-to-Work activities are eligible for child care through the CalWORKs program.
Overpayments:
- Effective January 1, 2011, Kin-GAP overpayments no longer follow the same methodology as the CalWORKs program. Overpayments that are exclusively the result of a county administrative error, the guardian did not know and did not contribute to the cause of the overpayment, are not collectible unless the guardian agrees to repay the debt voluntarily.

Reporting Responsibility

The FC EW must inform the guardian of their responsibility to report all facts and to notify the county within five (5) calendar days of all changes that affect the determination of eligibility.

Parent in Home

Under AB 2876, a Kin-GAP case is no longer required to be discontinued if the child’s parent(s) moves into the home of the Kin-GAP caretaker relative. EAS Section 90-105.2 was repealed in 2011.

Social Security Number (SSN)

A Social Security number is required for all children in the Kin-GAP Program.

Client Responsibility

Each recipient member of the AU must, as a condition of eligibility:

Provide their SSN or numbers if more than one, or proof of a “completed” SSN application within 30 days following the date of application.

Note: Aid may be authorized as soon as the SSN has been provided. The client may be allowed up to six weeks to provide verification of the number.

Cooperate in obtaining an SSN. Refer to the process below.
Cooperate in resolving any discrepancies regarding the SSN (such as those arising from a cross-checking agency's SSN files with those of the Social Security Administration). This generally will involve using the “SSA Referral Notice” (MC 194), but other verification from SSA will also be acceptable.

Obtaining an SSN

Cooperation in obtaining an SSN means:

Applying directly to the local Social Security Office using the MC 194,
When applying at the hospital for a newborn's SSN, information is provided for the birth certificate, and you receive the “Information About When You Will Receive Your Baby's Social Security Card” (Form SSA-2853).
Making every effort to obtain required information and submit it to Social Security in cases where Social Security requires additional information or documentation.
Submitting proof of the “completed” SSN application, i.e., for the MC 194, it is within 30 days
1. The SSA-2853, by the last day of the month following release from the hospital, or
2. Any other statement from the Social Security office.
When the SSN card is received, it must be furnished to the EW. The EW must obtain a copy of the card for the case record.

For more detailed information on SSNs, refer to CalWORKs - Social Security Numbers.

School Attendance

EAS 40-105.5, 42-712.421, 42-716.1, 42-719, 45-201.1

Kin-GAP eligible children 16, 17, or 18 years of age must be regularly attending high school or vocational/technical training or be registered with Employment Services, unless exempt. Effective January 1, 2011, the Kin-GAP payment is no longer suspended if a child aged 16 or older fails to meet school attendance requirements.

Rule

All children in the AU for whom school attendance is required (ages 6 through 17) must regularly attend school as defined by the school district. While this is a requirement, youth are not penalized for not attending school.

Definitions

Regular School Attendance
- The local school districts define regular school attendance. Generally, this means that the child attends 90% or more of the time.
School Attendance Review Board (SARB)
- The SARB is the group of individuals who will determine if a student has failed to attend school regularly and if the intervention methods have failed to secure the child’s regular attendance.
Truancy
- A child is considered truant when that child has three unexcused absences and three tardies of more than 30 minutes. If the child has six unexcused absences, that child is considered a habitual truant.

Immunizations

Kin-GAP children under the age of 6 must meet the CalWORKS requirements regarding immunizations. Refer to the Immunization Requirement.

Note: No penalty is applied for a lack of immunizations.

Deferment

A guardian may defer Kin-GAP payments. In this situation, both KG and Medi-Cal would be terminated in CalSAWS. Refer to the Continuous Eligibility For Children (CEC) 7J/7K topic in the Medi-Cal handbook for applicable rules. The worker must enter detailed comments in a CalSAWS Journal and follow the existing process to terminate the case. The KG case may be reinstated later using the original KG application if the guardianship remains intact and the child continues to meet all other eligibility criteria.

Kin-GAP Child/Youth Has Court Dependency Reinstated

MPP 45-607.214

When a Kin-GAP child returns to foster care either through DFCS or JPD and court dependency is reinstated, the child/youth is no longer eligible for Kin-GAP payments the month when court dependency is reinstated, even when the child remains with the same Kin-GAP caregiver.

When the youth is removed from the Kin-GAP caregiver, they may return to the same Kin-GAP caregiver and resume payments as long as the reinstatement and eligibility requirements are met, including the dismissal of dependency.

Note that if the child/youth was initially federally eligible for Kin-GAP and returns to the same guardianship home after dependency is terminated (any time after the initial Kin-GAP determination), they may only be eligible for state-funded Kin-GAP.

Suspension of Payments

MPP 45-607.214

Kin-GAP payments will be suspended due to any of the following reasons:

Court jurisdiction under WIC sections 300, 601, or 602 is restored. Court dependency or wardship cases under the juvenile court are not eligible for Kin-GAP payments. Kin-GAP payments may resume if the child returns to the care of the guardian and all other eligibility conditions are met. (ACL 11-28)
The county is unable to verify continued eligibility, such as failure of the guardian to complete and return the “Statement of Facts Supporting Eligibility for Kin-GAP Program” (KG 2) at the two-year redetermination. By signing the written agreement (SOC 369A), the guardian acknowledged responsibility for reporting changes, including changes in the child's needs or the guardian's circumstances that could affect eligibility.
Situations where an event made the youth ineligible for benefits (such as income, receiving other benefits, etc.).
The youth is no longer meeting one of the extended Kin-GAP participation requirements under MPP Section 45-606.12.

The Kin-GAP payments may resume once the condition resulting in the suspension has been resolved.

Restoring Kin-GAP

The following forms are required when a suspended Kin-GAP case is being reinstated:

Statement of Facts Supporting Eligibility for Kinship Guardianship Assistance Payment Program form (KG 2)
Kinship Guardianship Assistance Payment Program Agreement Amendment form
(SOC 369A)
For non-minors, a Kin-GAP Mutual Agreement for Non-Minor Former Dependents form (KG 3)
Per DFCS/DEBS policy, if the lapse in Kin-GAP payments is over 60 days, a Successor Guardian Assessment form (SCZ 1590) must be received.

Important - Youth participating in Extended Kin-GAP do not need the home or LG to be assessed when restoring benefits. However, the Social Worker must verify that the guardianship is still intact and new KG 2 and KG 3 forms are completed.

Kin-GAP Termination

A child or youth's Kin-GAP benefits will terminate when one of the following occurs. Workers may have to run a manual EDBC when CalSAWS functionality is not automated. Refer to Notices of Action (NOAs) Overview regarding the requirements of timely and adequate noticing.

The child/youth turns 18 and is ineligible or chooses not to participate in extended benefits. The end date is the day before their 18th birthday.
The youth turns 21 upon participating in extended benefits. The end date is the day before the 21st birthday.
Kin-GAP High School Rule: The youth may continue to receive aid up to their 19th birthday if they remain in the same guardian’s home and are attending high school (see full High School Rule description below). If they meet the high school rule, the end date is the date of graduation.
The county determines the guardian is no longer providing support to the child. The end date is the date of the county’s determination.
The guardianship is terminated. The end date is the date the guardianship was terminated.
The child becomes legally emancipated. The end date is the date the child was emancipated.
The youth dies. The end date is the date of death.
The youth enlists in the military. The end date is the date of enlistment.

High School Rule

The high school rule may be applied to youth who meet the following:

Not eligible for extended Kin-GAP because payments began before the youth's 16th birthday.
Does not have a mental or physical disability.
The youth began attending high school (or the equivalent), vocational or technical training on a full-time basis, before age 18.
The youth can reasonably expect to complete the educational or training program before their 19th birthday.
The youth continues to reside in the guardian’s home.