Alabama Kinship Care Checklist — Forms and Documents You Need

The Paperwork Stack for Alabama Kinship Caregivers

Every institution wants different documents, and none of them tell you what the other one needs. A school registrar asks for residency proof. A pediatrician asks for consent authority. A benefits office asks for both plus income verification. The result is that kinship caregivers end up making three or four trips to the same building because they didn't bring the right combination of papers.

Here's the full checklist, organized by what you're trying to accomplish.

Before Anything Else: Legal Authority Documents

These establish your right to make decisions for the child. Without them, everything else stalls.

• [ ] Parental delegation power of attorney — under Ala. Code § 26-2A-7, signed by the custodial parent, notarized, naming you as attorney-in-fact with specific delegated powers (health, education, maintenance). Usually up to twelve months, with an exception for active-duty deployment. Get at least four certified copies made.
• [ ] Child's birth certificate — original or certified copy. Birth certificates are restricted records; ask the parent or legal guardian to request one from the Alabama Center for Health Statistics ($15) or a county health department.
• [ ] Child's Social Security card — or at minimum, their Social Security number. If the card is lost, contact SSA about who can request a replacement; cards are free. Online requests usually arrive in under two weeks, while mailed applications may take two to four weeks.
• [ ] Your valid photo ID — driver's license or state-issued ID. Schools, medical offices, and benefits offices will photocopy it.

School Enrollment

• [ ] District residency affidavit — your school district's specific form proving the child lives in the attendance zone. Usually requires a joint sworn statement from you and the property owner plus utility bills and government mail at your address. Ask the registrar for their version before you show up.
• [ ] Proof of residence — gather documents showing the child lives in the attendance zone, such as a utility bill, lease or deed, and government mail. Ask the district how many forms it requires and about date limits; Lee County, for example, requires a utility bill under 45 days old.
• [ ] Alabama Certificate of Immunization (COI / Blue Card) — issued by a county health department or physician. For out-of-state records, take the vaccine record to a county health department or Alabama physician to transfer the doses to an Alabama certificate; ask the provider what to do if records are missing.
• [ ] Previous school records / transcripts — request from the child's prior school. Alabama transcripts are transferred directly from one school official to another when requested.
• [ ] IEP or 504 plan — if the child has one. Give it to the new school. For an IEP transfer within Alabama, the new district must provide comparable services until it adopts the existing IEP or implements a new one.
• [ ] McKinney-Vento — if the child is living doubled-up with you because of financial distress or lack of alternative accommodation, tell the registrar or the school's McKinney-Vento liaison. If eligible, the school must enroll the child immediately without the documents above.

Medical and Dental Care

• [ ] Copy of POA for each provider's file — the doctor, dentist, pharmacy, and mental health provider each need their own copy on record.
• [ ] HIPAA authorization / release form — ask the parent or legal guardian to sign the provider's form allowing specified records to be shared with you. The release gives access as described in the form; treatment consent still depends on a valid delegation or other legal authority.
• [ ] Insurance card — Medicaid (Alabama), ALL Kids, or private insurance. Apply for Medicaid or ALL Kids through the shared Insure Alabama application if the child isn't covered.
• [ ] Immunization records — bring what you have; the provider can pull additional records from ImmPrint (Alabama's immunization registry).
• [ ] Medication list — any prescriptions the child currently takes, including dosages and prescribing doctor.
• [ ] Prior medical records — request from the child's previous pediatrician. The provider may ask for a separate HIPAA release authorizing the transfer in addition to the POA.

Benefits Applications

• [ ] Authorized representative form — signed at the county DHR office, allowing you to apply for benefits on the child's behalf.
• [ ] Income verification — bring the income records requested by each program. SNAP eligibility depends on whether you purchase and prepare meals with the child; for a child-only Family Assistance grant, only the child's income and financial resources are evaluated; Medicaid and ALL Kids use their program-specific family-size and income rules.
• [ ] Proof of child's residence with you — the same utility bills and government mail used for school enrollment.
• [ ] Child's identity documents — birth certificate and Social Security card again.
• [ ] Low Income Kinship Care Program application — available through county DHR for eligible relative caregivers at or below 200% of the federal poverty level whose placements face imminent breakdown. Grants include up to $500 per fiscal year for special needs, $400 for rent, $200 for utilities, and emergency food assistance.

Keeping It Organized

Kinship caregivers interact with multiple systems — schools, doctors, pharmacies, courts, and benefits offices — all of which want overlapping but slightly different combinations of the same documents. Losing one original or letting the POA expire creates a cascade of problems across every institution.

Keep the originals in one place (a fireproof folder or safe). Carry certified copies. And mark the POA's expiration date somewhere you'll see it — a phone reminder at eleven months gives you time to coordinate renewal before you lose authority.

The Alabama School and Medical Consent Guide includes a document readiness checklist with columns for "obtained," "expiration date," and "filed with" — a single page that tracks every document across every institution so nothing falls through the cracks.

See more Alabama guides →