Kinship Care vs Foster Care Ontario: What Changes Financially
Ontario uses three terms that sound interchangeable but carry very different financial consequences: informal kinship care, kinship service, and kinship care (formal foster). Understanding which one applies to your situation determines whether you receive TCA, CAS per diems, or the Canada Child Benefit directly.
The Three Categories
Informal Kinship Care
You took the child in through a private family agreement. There is no court order and no CAS involvement. This is the most common arrangement for grandparents and relatives.
Financial access: You can apply for Temporary Care Assistance ($274/month first child in southern Ontario), the Canada Child Benefit, and the Ontario Child Benefit. Your personal income is ignored for TCA. You claim CCB and OCB directly through CRA Form RC66.
Kinship Service
A Children's Aid Society has assessed your home and placed a child with you under the Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017. You are not a licensed foster parent. The child may remain in the parent's legal custody or the CAS may hold an interim order.
Financial access: You keep TCA and CCB/OCB eligibility. On top of that, the CAS may provide discretionary funds — start-up money for furniture, car seats, or emergency supplies. These CAS payments are explicitly exempt as income under OW rules, so they do not reduce your TCA. If the CAS closes the file later, your TCA and CCB continue without interruption.
Kinship Care (Formal Foster)
You have completed the full SAFE home study and PRIDE training (27 hours) and are licensed as a foster parent through a CAS. The child is placed in the legal care or custody of the society.
Financial access: You receive the CAS foster care per diem — approximately $900 or more per month. However, you lose TCA eligibility entirely. The child's portion of the Canada Child Benefit is paid as a Children's Special Allowance to the CAS, not to you.
The Key Financial Trade-Off
| Informal / Kinship Service | Formal Foster | |
|---|---|---|
| TCA | Eligible ($274+/month) | Not eligible |
| CCB/OCB | Paid directly to you | Paid to CAS as Children's Special Allowance |
| CAS per diem | No (discretionary support may be available) | Yes (~$900+/month) |
| Health benefits | TCA mandatory coverage | CAS coverage |
| Participation Agreement | Exempt | N/A (not on OW) |
| Your income assessed? | No (TCA ignores it) | No (foster per diem is flat) |
With formal foster care, TCA is unavailable and the child's CCB is paid to the CAS as a Children's Special Allowance. Compare the local foster per diem with the amounts available under your current arrangement before changing categories.
When the Category Changes
A common scenario: a CAS places a child with you under kinship service, and later offers you the option to become a licensed foster parent. Before accepting, understand that the switch terminates your TCA and redirects the CCB. If the CAS later closes the file or the child leaves care, you would need to reapply for TCA and CCB from scratch.
Conversely, if you start as a kinship service caregiver and the CAS closes its file, your TCA and federal benefits continue seamlessly. The CAS discretionary payments stop, but the core funding streams remain.
If you are trying to figure out which path makes the most financial sense for your family, our Ontario Kinship Financial Help guide maps every benefit against every care arrangement — informal, kinship service, formal foster, and customary care — with worked dollar amounts so you can compare before making a decision.
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