Washington Guardianship Background Check Requirements: WSP WATCH and DCYF

Two Separate Checks Before the Court Will Act

Washington law requires two background checks before a judge will sign a final minor guardianship order. Both must clear — or at least be addressed — before your hearing. Skipping either one stalls the case, and the court will not finalize the guardianship until the results are in.

These checks apply to the proposed guardian and other household members. They are designed to confirm that the child is going into a safe home, and the court takes them seriously.

The WSP WATCH Criminal History Check

The Washington State Patrol's WATCH system checks Washington state criminal records. You can request a WATCH check through the WSP website or in person. The results are attached to Form GDN M 407 (Criminal History Cover Sheet) and filed with the court.

Who needs a WATCH check: the proposed guardian and every adult age 18 or older living in the proposed guardian's household.

WATCH provides Washington state criminal-history information only. RCW 11.130.210 requires state and national criminal-identification data from the Washington State Patrol criminal-identification system. A WATCH report alone does not show that the national-data requirement has been met; confirm with the filing court how it wants that information provided.

A private commercial screening report alone is not the data source named in RCW 11.130.210. Do not treat WATCH alone as satisfying the national-data requirement.

The DCYF Child Abuse and Neglect Check

The second check looks at whether anyone in the household has a history of child abuse or neglect findings. This requires a court order — you cannot request this check directly from DCYF.

The process:

1. File Form GDN M 404 (Motion for DCYF Order) with the court
2. Present Form GDN M 405 (Order to DCYF to Release CPS Information) to the judge for signature
3. Once the judge signs, DCYF searches its databases for founded or pending findings going back to October 1, 1998
4. DCYF sends the results directly to the court file under a sealed cover sheet (Form GDN M 406)

Who needs a DCYF check: the proposed guardian and any household member age 16 or older.

The age threshold is different from the WATCH check — 16 for DCYF versus 18 for WSP. This catches older teenagers in the household who might have a CPS history.

Timeline: When to Start Background Checks

Start both checks as early as possible. The DCYF check requires a court order, so you cannot begin it until you have at least filed your case and gotten the judge to sign the GDN M 405 order. The WATCH check can be initiated at any point.

In practice, most petitioners file the GDN M 404/405 motion at the same time as the main petition (GDN M 102). This lets the DCYF check run while you handle service of process and other filing steps.

Processing times vary. Online WSP WATCH requests return results immediately. DCYF may take longer, depending on the volume of requests and the complexity of the search. Counties with pre-hearing checklists — like King County's 60-Day Checklist — set local deadlines for filing documents.

What Happens If a Check Comes Back with Findings

A criminal record or CPS finding does not automatically disqualify you from becoming a guardian. The court evaluates the results in context:

• Nature and seriousness of the offense or finding
• How long ago it occurred
• Relevance to the safety of the child
• Evidence of rehabilitation or changed circumstances

A decades-old misdemeanor is evaluated differently than a recent violent felony or a founded child abuse finding. The judge makes the final determination about whether the results affect the guardianship.

If you know your background check will show something, be upfront about it in your GDN M 103 declaration. The court will find out regardless, and addressing it proactively shows honesty and awareness.

County-Specific Requirements

Some counties layer additional local requirements on top of the statewide checks. King County, for example, requires filing WSP WATCH reports for the proposed guardian and every adult in the household, a motion to release CPS information, and each proposed guardian's disclosure form within one week of filing the petition. Its 60-Day Hearing Checklist must be filed at least 14 days before the review hearing and asks whether the criminal-history and CPS reports are on file.

Check your county's local court rules or ask the court facilitator about any additional requirements when you file.

The Washington Guardianship and Custody Court Process Guide includes tracking worksheets for managing both background check processes from filing through court review.

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