Does Temporary Care Assistance Expire in Ontario?

A relative told you TCA only lasts a year, or maybe a caseworker mentioned it in passing at your intake appointment. It is one of the most common misunderstandings about Temporary Care Assistance in Ontario — and it is wrong.

There Is No 12-Month Limit

Ontario Works Policy Directive 3.10 does not impose a one-year maximum on Temporary Care Assistance. The word "temporary" in the name refers to the nature of the care arrangement, not a countdown clock. As long as the child is living with you, the child remains in financial need, and the biological parents are not in a position to resume care, TCA can continue until the child turns 18.

The confusion likely comes from a combination of sources: the word "temporary" itself, historical policy proposals that were never enacted, and intake staff who process far more standard OW cases (which do have activity and review timelines) than TCA cases.

The 24-Month Review

What does exist is a mandatory eligibility review at least once every 24 months. At this review, your local OW office confirms that:

• The child still lives with you
• The care arrangement remains temporary (meaning the child has not been formally adopted or integrated as a permanent family member through "settled intent")
• The child is still in financial need (non-exempt assets no more than $500 and non-exempt income within the applicable budgetary requirements)
• The biological parents are still unable to resume care

This is a continuation check, not an expiry. If nothing has changed, the benefit continues without interruption.

What Could End TCA

TCA does stop under specific circumstances:

• The child returns to a biological parent — if the parent resumes full-time care, the temporary arrangement ends
• You become a licensed foster parent — CAS foster per diem payments replace TCA; you cannot receive both
• The child turns 18 — TCA eligibility is for children under 18
• Settled intent is established — if the OW office determines you have demonstrated a settled intent to treat the child as your own (for example, through a formal adoption process), you gain a legal obligation to support the child, which disqualifies TCA
• The child's assets exceed $500 — if the child receives an inheritance or trust payout that pushes liquid assets above the threshold

None of these are time limits. They are changes in circumstance.

What to Do at the 24-Month Review

Prepare the same documentation you brought to the original application: proof that the child still lives with you (a current school report or doctor's letter), the child's bank statements showing assets no more than $500, and a brief update on the biological parents' situation. If nothing has changed, the review is straightforward.

If a caseworker tells you that TCA is ending because the one-year mark has passed, ask them to point you to the specific section of Directive 3.10 that imposes a time limit. It does not exist. If they insist, you have 30 calendar days from receiving the notice to request an Internal Review of the decision, and community legal clinics offer free representation for Ontario Works appeals.

Our Ontario Kinship Financial Help guide includes a 24-month review preparation checklist and a template for responding to incorrect termination notices, alongside the full TCA application process and every other benefit available to relatives raising a child in Ontario.

See more Ontario guides →