SFN 408: North Dakota Kinship-ND Application Form

What SFN 408 Is

State Form Number 408 — officially titled "Kinship Navigation Services Application" — is the intake form for North Dakota's Kinship-ND program. Filing it connects you with a Kinship Navigator who helps you access expense reimbursements, the guardianship legal fund, and referrals to TANF, SNAP, Medicaid, and other state benefits.

SFN 408 is not an application for cash benefits directly. It opens the door to Kinship-ND's navigation services, and from there your navigator helps you apply for the specific programs you qualify for.

Who Should File SFN 408

Any North Dakota resident who meets these four conditions:

1. You provide full-time care for a child who is not your biological child and lives in your home
2. The child's biological parents do not live in the household
3. You are not a licensed foster parent receiving foster care payments for this child
4. You are a North Dakota resident

That's it. No court order required. Informal caregivers, grandparents with a Power of Attorney, legal guardians, and relatives with a tribal court custody order all qualify.

Why Filing Early Matters

Two practical reasons. First, enrollment in Kinship-ND navigation services is a prerequisite for accessing the $800 lifetime expense reimbursement and the $2,500 guardianship legal fund. You cannot claim either one retroactively for the period before you enrolled. Second, the program accepts receipts for eligible expenses incurred up to two months before your application date — so the sooner you file, the wider your reimbursement window.

How to Submit SFN 408

Download the current form from the North Dakota eForms site, or request it by emailing [email protected] or using the Kinship-ND contact form. Call (701) 328-1453 with questions. Email or mail the completed form to Kinship-ND; after receiving it, staff complete an intake call.

Your local Human Service Zone office can also point you to Kinship-ND, but the program itself is administered centrally through the CFS Division in Bismarck — the zone office doesn't process SFN 408.

What Happens After You File

A Kinship Navigator reviews your application and reaches out to discuss your situation. They'll help identify which programs you're eligible for, walk you through the documentation needed for each, and coordinate referrals. The navigator doesn't make eligibility decisions for TANF or SNAP — those go through your Human Service Zone — but they help you get your paperwork right before you submit.

Filing SFN 408 does not trigger a child welfare investigation. Kinship-ND is a voluntary navigation service, not a child protection program. It does not require opening a child welfare case, and it does not automatically initiate child support enforcement against the child's parents.

For the complete program-by-program walkthrough — what SFN 408 unlocks, how to stack it with TANF and SNAP applications, and a checklist of documents to gather before your first meeting — see the North Dakota Kinship Financial Help guide.

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