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If you’re a foster or kinship carer who isn’t a principal carer find out about non principal carer foster and kinship carers.
Foster care
If you’re a registered and active foster carer, you may be exempt from your requirements. This exemption may last for up to 12 months at a time.
Even if you’re not a principal carer, you may be exempt for a period if both of these apply:
- you’re a registered and active foster carer
- you’re providing emergency or respite foster care.
This exemption period may last either:
- during any emergency or respite foster child placement
- for up to 12 weeks after the child has left your care.
This extra 12-week period will depend on your circumstances, including whether you’re waiting for another foster child placement.
You’ll need to provide us with evidence that confirms the care arrangement. This must be from either the relevant:
- state or territory authority
- foster care organisation.
Kinship care
You may be exempt from requirements if you’re a kinship carer. Kinship care is where you care for someone else’s child as a family or community member.
There are 2 types of kinship care you may be able to get an exemption for. These include:
- informal kinship care, where you have kinship care under a formal state or territory Protection Case Plan or Care Plan
- formal kinship care, where you have kinship care under a family law parenting order.
You may be able to get an exemption for either of the following:
- up to 16 weeks for informal kinship care under an arrangement which has state or territory authority support
- up to 12 months for formal kinship care.
You’ll need to provide us with evidence of your care arrangements.
Examples include:
- the original or certified copies of the parenting order or plan
- evidence of your relationship to the child.