Foster parents in Texas are paid a daily reimbursement that depends on the child’s assessed needs, not the family’s income or experience. Under the new Texas Child-Centered Care (T3C) system, the pass-through payment to a foster family runs from $46.90 to $139.58 per day, which works out to roughly $1,407 to $4,187 per month per child.1Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. Texas Child-Centered Care (T3C): Foster Care Methodological Rates Some parts of the state still operate under older rates that start at $27.07 per day for basic care. These payments are not taxable income.
How the Payment Reaches You
Most Texas foster parents are verified through a licensed child-placing agency (CPA) rather than contracting directly with the state. The Department of Family and Protective Services pays the CPA a daily rate for each child. The CPA keeps a portion for its administrative and support costs and passes the rest through to the foster family.1Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. Texas Child-Centered Care (T3C): Foster Care Methodological Rates That pass-through amount is what you actually receive.
The dollar amount is tied to the child. DFPS assesses each child’s needs and assigns a service package (under T3C) or service level (under the legacy system), and that classification sets the daily rate. A child with complex medical or behavioral health needs generates a higher rate than a child needing only basic support.2Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. 1540 Foster Care Assistance Eligibility Requirements for Children and Youth Formerly in DFPS Conservatorship DFPS pays for each calendar day the child is in your home starting on the placement date, but not for the day the child is discharged.
Current T3C Daily Rates
Texas began rolling out T3C in January 2025 and expects full statewide implementation by September 2027.3Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. Texas Child-Centered Care (T3C): Transitioning These are the pass-through amounts a foster family home receives under T3C:
- Basic Foster Family Home Support: $46.90 per day (about $1,407 per month)
- Substance Use Support: $59.57 per day (about $1,787 per month)
- Mental and Behavioral Health Support: $59.57 per day (about $1,787 per month)
- Short-Term Assessment Support: $73.18 per day (about $2,195 per month)
- Sexual Aggression/Sex Offender Support: $90.78 per day (about $2,723 per month)
- Intellectual or Developmental Disability/Autism Spectrum Disorder Support: $90.78 per day (about $2,723 per month)
- Complex Medical Needs or Medically Fragile Support: $93.27 per day (about $2,798 per month)
- Human Trafficking Victim/Survivor Support: $100.21 per day (about $3,006 per month)
- Treatment Foster Family Care Support: $139.58 per day (about $4,187 per month)
These are what the foster family gets after the CPA takes its share. The total rate DFPS pays the CPA is higher. For the Basic package, DFPS pays $83.29 per day; $46.90 goes to the foster home and $36.39 stays with the agency.1Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. Texas Child-Centered Care (T3C): Foster Care Methodological Rates Monthly figures above assume 30 days. Payments are calculated daily, so a 31-day month pays slightly more.
Add-On Payments
T3C layers extra daily payments on top of the primary service package when the child qualifies and the CPA is credentialed for the service:
- Transition Support for Youth and Young Adults: an additional $26.12 per day
- Pregnant and Parenting Youth or Young Adult Support: an additional $26.28 per day
- Kinship Caregiver Support: an additional $38.22 per day
A foster family caring for a teenager aging out of care who also has behavioral health needs could receive the Mental and Behavioral Health rate of $59.57 plus the $26.12 Transition Support add-on, for $85.69 per day.1Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. Texas Child-Centered Care (T3C): Foster Care Methodological Rates
Legacy Rates in Regions Not Yet on T3C
Through August 2027, several funding structures run simultaneously across the state, and not every area has moved to T3C.3Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. Texas Child-Centered Care (T3C): Transitioning If your area is still on the legacy service level system, the minimum pass-through rates for foster homes are:
- Basic: $27.07 per day (about $812 per month)
- Moderate: $47.37 per day (about $1,421 per month)
- Specialized: $57.86 per day (about $1,736 per month)
- Intense: $92.43 per day (about $2,773 per month)
These rates took effect September 1, 2017, and are the minimum a CPA must pass through.4Cornell Law Institute. 40 Tex Admin Code 700-1753 – What Is the Rate-Setting Methodology for 24-Hour Residential Child-Care Reimbursements Some CPAs pay above the minimum. If you’re considering fostering, ask any CPA you’re talking to what its current pass-through rates are and whether your region has moved to T3C yet.
The Payment Is Not Taxable
Federal law excludes qualified foster care payments from gross income. That covers both the daily reimbursement for a child in your home and any additional difficulty-of-care payments for a child with physical, mental, or emotional needs, as long as the payments come from a state, local government, or qualified foster care placement agency.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 131 – Certain Foster Care Payments
There is a cap. The tax-free treatment phases out if you receive payments for more than ten qualified foster individuals under 19, or more than five who are 19 or older.6Internal Revenue Service. Publication 525 (2025), Taxable and Nontaxable Income For most families caring for one to three children, that ceiling never comes into play.
Claiming the Child as a Dependent
You may be able to claim a foster child as a dependent, which can unlock the Child Tax Credit. The child has to be placed with you by a state agency, tribal government, tax-exempt licensed organization, or court order; must live in your home more than half the year; must be under 19 (or under 24 if a full-time student); and must not have provided more than half of their own support. Foster care payments count as support provided by the agency, not by the child, so they don’t disqualify you.7Internal Revenue Service. Publication 501 (2025), Dependents, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information
Earned Income Tax Credit
A foster child can be a qualifying child for the Earned Income Tax Credit if the child meets the relationship, age, and residency tests, has a valid Social Security number, and lived with you in the United States more than half the year.8Internal Revenue Service. Qualifying Child Rules Because foster care payments themselves are excluded from gross income, you need other earned income to claim the EITC.
What the Payment Doesn’t Have to Cover
Every child in Texas foster care is enrolled in Medicaid through the STAR Health managed care program at no cost to the foster family. STAR Health covers doctor visits, dental care, prescriptions, vaccines, hospital stays, vision and hearing, lab work, mental health services, and treatment for pre-existing conditions.9Texas Health and Human Services. STAR Health Coverage runs through age 18 in DFPS conservatorship, up to 21 in voluntary extended foster care, and up to 20 for former foster care children.
The Texas Workforce Commission’s Child Care Services program can help pay for daycare through federally funded scholarships. Children needing protective services child care sit at the top of the program’s second priority group.10Texas Workforce Commission. Child Care Services Guide Availability depends on local funding, so check with your local workforce development board.11Texas Workforce Commission. Child Care and Early Learning Program The daily rate is meant to cover basic clothing costs, and some CPAs provide an added clothing allowance when a child arrives with very little.
Payments After Adoption or Kinship Permanency
If you adopt a child from Texas foster care, the daily foster payment ends when the adoption is finalized. Ongoing adoption assistance is available but pays substantially less: up to $400 per month for a child at the basic service level, or up to $545 per month for moderate, specialized, or intense levels. DFPS also reimburses up to $1,200 per child in one-time adoption costs, including court and attorney fees.12Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. Adoption Assistance
Kinship caregivers who become a child’s permanent managing conservator may qualify for Permanency Care Assistance, which pays $400 to $545 per month depending on the child’s needs.13Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. Permanency Care Assistance (PCA) Both programs are worth factoring into any decision about pursuing permanency for a child in your care, since the monthly figures are well below the foster care daily rate multiplied out.