Can you adopt or foster a child with a felony?

The rules

• A felony conviction at any time for child abuse or neglect, spousal abuse, a crime against children (including child pornography), or a crime involving violence such as rape, sexual assault or homicide bars approval as a foster or adoptive parent for a child supported by federal Title IV-E funds.^1,2,3

  42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20)(A)(i) (Social Security Act 471(a)(20)(A)(i)); 45 CFR 1356.30(b). The violent-crime category expressly excludes 'other physical assault or battery', which fall under the 5-year rule instead. The bar applies when 'a court of competent jurisdiction has determined that the felony was committed', so it turns on convictions, not arrests, and only on felonies.

• A felony conviction for physical assault, battery or a drug-related offense bars approval only if the felony was committed within the past 5 years.^1,3,4

  42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20)(A)(ii); 45 CFR 1356.30(c). HHS's Child Welfare Policy Manual (8.4F, Q5, revised September 30, 2026) says alcohol counts as a drug, so an alcohol-related felony, such as a felony DUI, within the last 5 years also bars approval for Title IV-E placements.

• States must run fingerprint-based national criminal checks on prospective foster and adoptive parents they approve before final approval, and check child abuse registries for every adult in the home, whether or not federal payments are involved.^1,4

  42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20)(A) requires the fingerprint check 'regardless of whether foster care maintenance payments or adoption assistance payments are to be made', and 671(a)(20)(B) requires checking the state's child abuse and neglect registry, and those of any state where the prospective parent or another adult in the home lived in the past 5 years. HHS's Child Welfare Policy Manual (8.4F, Q10, updated September 30, 2026) says these checks apply to prospective parents whom the agency or its agents (such as a licensing authority or a contracted agency) will license or approve to care for a child in the state's child welfare (title IV-B/IV-E) program, and that the federal fingerprint requirement doesn't cover other household members over 18; it notes that the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA, section 106(b)(2)(B)(xxii)) separately requires states to have criminal background checks for other adults living in the household.

• The federal bans are tied to federal funding: there are no federal exceptions for rehabilitation, the statute applies them to placements paid for under Title IV-E, and states are free to be stricter.^3,4

  HHS's Child Welfare Policy Manual says there are no exceptions to the federal felony bars once in effect, even if the agency considers the person rehabilitated or thinks the placement would be good for the child; a state 'has the discretion to place the child' in such a home but may not claim Title IV-E foster care or adoption assistance payments (8.4F, Q24). It also says agencies may set more restrictive criteria than federal law (Q15, updated September 30, 2026). The federal regulation is worded more broadly than the manual: 45 CFR 1356.30(b)-(c) says the agency 'may not approve or license any prospective foster or adoptive parent' with these convictions. In practice, whether the federal list is a hard bar for every placement depends on state law, which is why state rules matter (see the state examples).

• The federal Title IV-E bars reach private, independent and international adoptions only when the child will receive Title IV-E adoption assistance; otherwise state home-study law and, for international adoptions, federal immigration rules apply.^4,5,6

  CWPM 8.4F, Q33. For intercountry (Hague Convention) adoptions, 8 CFR 204.311 requires the prospective parent and every adult in the household to disclose any arrest, conviction or other adverse criminal history in the U.S. or abroad, even if it was expunged, sealed or pardoned; the home study must discuss it, and a favorable recommendation based on rehabilitation can't be made while anyone is on probation, parole or supervised release. USCIS's Policy Manual says the home-study preparer may make a favorable finding for a person with a criminal or abuse history only if they have achieved appropriate rehabilitation.

• A U.S. citizen or permanent resident convicted of a 'specified offense against a minor' can't file an adoption-based immigration petition for a child unless USCIS decides, in its sole discretion, that the person poses no risk to the child.^7,8

  8 U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)(A)(viii) and (B)(i), added by the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006; 'specified offense against a minor' is defined in 34 U.S.C. 20911. USCIS's Policy Manual says the bar covers family-based petitions 'including adoption petitions', such as Form I-800.

What can stand in the way

• Other adults in your home are checked too, and in some states their records can block your approval.^9,10

  Federal law requires registry checks for every adult in the home (42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20)(B)). Pennsylvania bars approval if any adult who lives in the home at least 30 days a year has a listed conviction (23 Pa.C.S. 6344(o)-(p)); New York may deny an application based on any household adult's charge or conviction (Social Services Law 378-a(2)(e)(3)(B)).

• A pending charge can put your application on hold.^10,11

  New York holds a final decision in abeyance when a prospective parent has an unresolved charge for a crime on the mandatory list, or a felony conviction that may be one (378-a(2)(e)(2)). California's Department of Social Services says it can investigate arrests to decide whether the underlying conduct is substantiated.

• Expunged or sealed records may still have to be disclosed, especially in international adoptions.⁵

  8 CFR 204.311(d)(1)(ii) requires disclosure of arrests and convictions even if expunged, sealed or pardoned.

• New arrests or convictions after approval must be reported quickly and can end the placement.^9,10

  Pennsylvania requires foster and prospective adoptive parents to give written notice within 72 hours of an arrest or conviction for a disqualifying offense by them or another adult in the home (23 Pa.C.S. 6344(d)(4.1)). New York revokes a foster parent's certification, or an adoptive parent's approval before the adoption is final, on a conviction for a crime on its mandatory list (378-a(2)(e)(5)).

Waivers and exceptions

• Records outside the mandatory lists are usually weighed case by case, and rehabilitation evidence matters.^5,10

  New York decides other convictions under Correction Law Article 23-A, which looks at the relationship to the role, time elapsed and rehabilitation (378-a(2)(e)(3)). For international adoptions, a home-study preparer may make a favorable finding if the person has achieved appropriate rehabilitation (8 CFR 204.311(l)).

• California: if your conviction can be exempted, you can ask for a criminal record exemption and appeal a denial.^11,12,13

  CDSS asks for a written request, three character references on form LIC 301E, proof of classes or treatment, and a detailed statement about each conviction, all within 45 days of its notice letter; a denial can be appealed in writing within 15 days. CDSS says the non-exemptible list differs for Resource Family Approval (foster and adoptive) applicants, and its April 2025 Non-Exemptible Crimes list says that for people connected with a foster family home or certified family home, the federal non-exemptible crimes and the federal 5-year ban list also apply.

• Time-limited bars end: the federal assault, battery and drug-felony bar runs 5 years from when the felony was committed.¹

  42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20)(A)(ii).

• For an adoption-based immigration petition, USCIS can find that a person with a specified offense against a minor poses no risk, at its sole discretion.⁷

  8 U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)(A)(viii)(I).

How states handle it

Federal law sets a floor: fingerprint checks for every prospective foster or adoptive parent and specific felony bars for federally funded placements. States license or approve the homes and decide everything else, including whether the federal list bars every placement, whether misdemeanors or older offenses count, which household members' records matter, and whether exemptions exist. Private agencies apply their state's rules.

• New York

  New York must deny foster or adoptive parent applications for the federal list of felonies (any time for child abuse, spousal abuse, crimes against children and violent crimes; within 5 years for assault, battery or drug felonies, unless the offense is eligible for expungement under Criminal Procedure Law 160.50), holds decisions while such charges are pending, and may deny for other convictions or a household adult's record after weighing them under Correction Law Article 23-A.¹⁰

• Pennsylvania

  Pennsylvania may not approve a foster or prospective adoptive parent if the parent, or an adult living in the home at least 30 days a year, has ever been found guilty of offenses on a list that includes homicide, aggravated assault, stalking, kidnapping, sexual offenses, endangering the welfare of children and corruption of minors (not limited to felonies), or of a felony drug offense in the past 5 years, or is named in a founded child abuse report from the past 5 years.⁹

• California

  California's Department of Social Services says anyone it background-checks for licensed community care with a conviction other than a minor traffic violation, including misdemeanors and old convictions, needs a criminal record exemption, and that 60 crimes, including murder, rape, torture, kidnapping and crimes requiring sex-offender registration, are non-exemptible; a person with a non-exemptible conviction can't work in any licensed facility, and an application will be denied.¹²

What to do next

1. Get your full record (state and FBI) with court dispositions, and note for each felony what it was and when it was committed.
2. Compare your record with the federal lists: child abuse, spousal abuse, crimes against children and violent felonies such as rape, sexual assault or homicide (any time), and assault, battery or drug or alcohol felonies (5 years).
3. Ask the same questions about every adult who lives with you, since their records are checked too.
4. Contact your state or county child welfare agency, or a licensed private agency, and ask for its written criminal-history standards for foster or adoptive parents before you start training.
5. Disclose everything the application asks about, including expunged or sealed records if the form asks for them.
6. If your record isn't on a mandatory list, prepare rehabilitation evidence: completed sentence, treatment or classes, work history, character references and a written explanation.
7. For an international adoption, talk to an accredited adoption service provider about the USCIS home-study rules before you pay fees.

Where to ask

• HHS Child Welfare Policy Manual 8.4F

  The federal government's own answers on the foster and adoptive parent background check rules.

• 42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20) (Social Security Act 471)

  The federal felony bars and check requirements.

• California CDSS: Criminal record exemptions

  How to ask for an exemption in California. Care Provider Management Branch: 1-888-422-5669.

• USCIS Policy Manual: Home studies for intercountry adoption

  What an international adoption home study must say about criminal history.

Felony or misdemeanor?

Some of the rules on this page treat felonies and misdemeanors differently, and each state decides which crimes are which. See how your state grades crimes, or check a specific charge on Is it a felony?.

Could clearing your record help?

In many states a sealed or expunged record no longer shows up on most background checks, though agencies and licensing boards can often still see it. See how record clearing works in your state.