How to Get Legal Guardianship of a Minor in Pennsylvania

To get legal guardianship of a minor in Pennsylvania, you file a petition in the Orphans’ Court Division of the Court of Common Pleas in the county where the child lives, submit three required background clearances, serve notice on the child’s parents and any existing custodian, and appear at a hearing where a judge decides whether the appointment serves the child’s best interests.¹ The order lasts until the child turns 18 unless the court ends it sooner.

Decide What Kind of Guardianship You Need

Pennsylvania splits guardianship into two roles. A guardian of the person handles daily decisions: where the child lives, which school they attend, what medical care they receive. A guardian of the estate manages any money or property the child owns, such as inherited assets or an insurance settlement. One person can hold both roles, or the court can assign them separately when the finances warrant independent oversight.

You also need to know which duration fits your situation. A permanent guardianship is the long-term arrangement most families are looking for when parents have died, disappeared, or had their rights terminated; it runs until the child reaches 18. A temporary or emergency guardianship addresses an immediate safety problem and typically lasts only until a full hearing can be held. A standby guardianship is different in kind: a parent, legal custodian, or legal guardian names someone in writing to step in later if the parent becomes incapacitated or dies, and the standby’s authority activates only when the triggering event occurs.² Standby is a planning tool for the parent, not a route for a third party to obtain guardianship over an objecting parent.

One boundary worth naming: guardianship is not adoption. The parents keep certain rights, and the arrangement is reversible. If you want a permanent legal-parent relationship, that’s a different proceeding.

Confirm You’re Eligible to Serve

Pennsylvania statute prevents the court from appointing someone as guardian of a minor’s estate if that person has an interest that conflicts with the child’s or is a non-resident of the Commonwealth, unless the court specifically finds the non-resident appointment serves the child’s best interests.³

When more than one qualified person could serve, the court applies preferences. A person who shares the religious background of the child’s parents is preferred as guardian of the person. And a minor who is 14 or older can nominate their own guardian: the statute says that person “shall be preferred” so long as they are qualified and suitable, which is stronger than a mere factor to weigh.³

Grandparents, aunts, uncles, and other relatives commonly petition. Pennsylvania also grants standing to someone who has been functioning as a parent by living with the child, handling school and medical decisions, and providing financial support for a substantial period.⁴ Whoever petitions, the judge assesses whether that person can provide a safe, stable home. Criminal history, living conditions, financial stability, and the existing relationship with the child all matter.

Get the Three Required Background Clearances

Pennsylvania requires three separate clearances before anyone can be appointed guardian of a minor.⁵ Start these early. Processing times vary, and any missing clearance will hold up your case.

Child Abuse History Clearance, submitted online through the Pennsylvania Child Welfare Information Solution (CWIS) system.
Pennsylvania State Police Criminal Record Check, filed through the Pennsylvania Access to Criminal History (PATCH) system at epatch.pa.gov. Results are delivered electronically; PATCH no longer mails responses for online requests, so log back in and print the result yourself.⁶
FBI Criminal History Check, a fingerprint-based federal background check processed through the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services. You submit fingerprints at an approved location, and this one can take several weeks.⁵

All three results go into the filing package you submit to the court.

Prepare and File the Petition

File a separate petition for each child, and specify whether you’re seeking guardianship of the person, the estate, or both. Pennsylvania Orphans’ Court rules set out what the petition must contain.⁷

Your name, address, and relationship to the child.
The child’s name, address, and age.
The parents’ names and addresses if living, and whether they consent.
Why the guardianship is necessary — abandonment, incarceration, incapacity, death, or another ground.
The proposed guardian’s name, age, address, and relationship to the child, along with disclosure of any financial interest that could conflict with the child’s.
If the child is 14 or older, whether the child has expressed a preference for who should serve.⁷
For estate guardianship, an itemized list of the child’s assets, their location, approximate value, and any income they generate.
Confirmation that no guardian is currently appointed, or details about a prior guardian’s death, discharge, or removal.
A signed written consent from the proposed guardian agreeing to serve.

You’ll also want the child’s birth certificate, Social Security number, and residential history. Track down the last known addresses of both parents even if a parent has been absent for years, because you’ll need those addresses to serve notice.

File the petition, the three clearances, and supporting documents with the Clerk of the Orphans’ Court in the county where the child lives. Filing fees are set locally. In York County, the base petition fee is $50 per child, plus roughly $56 in mandatory automation and judicial system surcharges.⁸ Call the Clerk’s office in your county before filing to confirm the current amount. A small number of counties route minor guardianship petitions through the family court division rather than Orphans’ Court, so it’s worth confirming the correct filing location on that same call.

Serve Notice on Parents and Other Interested Parties

After the clerk accepts your documents, you have to serve notice on everyone with a legal stake in the child: both parents, any current legal custodian, and anyone else with legal rights. Service gives them the chance to appear at the hearing and object. Skipping or botching service is one of the most common reasons a petition falls apart, so follow the county’s service rules exactly.

Attend the Hearing

Once service is confirmed, the court sets a hearing before a judge. The judge reviews the clearances, examines the petition, and decides whether the appointment serves the child’s best interests. Expect to testify about your relationship with the child, your ability to provide a stable home, and why the parents can’t fulfill their role.

Judges may ask direct questions about your finances, your housing, and any ongoing contact the child has with the parents. You can bring witnesses — family members, teachers, therapists, or others with firsthand knowledge of the child’s needs and your fitness. If the child is 14 or older, the judge may hear from them directly.

When a parent contests the petition, the hearing turns adversarial. The parent can put on their own evidence and testimony, and the judge weighs both sides under the same best-interests standard.

If the judge grants the petition, the signed decree spells out the scope of your authority and any conditions or reporting obligations. That decree is your proof of authority. Keep copies for schools, doctors, and financial institutions.

Post a Surety Bond if You’ll Manage the Child’s Estate

A guardian of the estate generally must post a surety bond before managing the child’s assets. The court sets the amount based on the value of the personal property you’ll control, and the bond protects the child against mismanagement.³ You buy the bond from a surety company. The annual premium typically runs between one and three percent of the bond amount.

Exceptions exist. No bond is required for a guardian named in a will or other written instrument conveying the property, unless the document itself requires one or the court finds cause to impose one. Corporate guardians, such as banks and trust companies incorporated in Pennsylvania, are also generally exempt. In other cases, the court has discretion to waive the bond if it determines one isn’t necessary, and it can increase or decrease the amount later if the estate’s value changes.³

What You’re Responsible for After the Decree

The decree is the start of an ongoing legal role, not the finish line. As guardian of the person you handle the child’s safety, education, medical care, and general welfare within the limits the order sets. Major decisions outside that scope, such as moving the child out of state or authorizing a serious medical procedure, may require returning to court for approval.

If you’re also guardian of the estate, the financial obligations are more formal. You file an inventory of the child’s assets with the court on the Orphans’ Court standardized form (G-04).⁹ Manage the assets prudently: invest conservatively, keep detailed records of income and expenditures, and avoid any transaction where your interests conflict with the child’s. The court can order periodic accountings, and you’ll file a final accounting when the guardianship ends. A guardian of the estate has statutory power to sell the child’s personal property when necessary, but sales must be in the child’s interest.¹⁰

What Parents Keep, and How the Guardianship Ends

Appointing a guardian does not terminate parental rights. Parents may retain visitation, though the specifics depend on the decree, and the order can range from regular visits to supervised contact to none at all if contact would harm the child. Parents also generally keep the right to petition the court to modify or end the guardianship if their circumstances improve. That’s the core difference from adoption: guardianship is reversible.

The guardianship ends automatically when the child turns 18. Before that, it can end in several ways. A biological parent can petition to terminate by showing a substantial change in circumstances and that returning custody serves the child’s best interests. The court can remove a guardian for cause, such as mismanagement, neglect, abuse, or failure to fulfill the decree’s duties, on petition from any interested party. A guardian can also petition to resign, though the court won’t approve the resignation until a suitable replacement is identified or the child is returned to a parent. If the child dies during the guardianship, the estate guardian files a final accounting, and the court directs distribution of any remaining assets.³

1
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 20 Chapter 7 – Orphans’ Court Divisions
2
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 23 Chapter 56 – Standby and Temporary Guardianship
3
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 20 Chapter 51 – Minors
4
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 23 Section 5324 – Standing for Any Form of Physical Custody or Legal Custody
5
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Child Abuse Clearances
6
Pennsylvania State Police. Pennsylvania Access to Criminal History
7
Cornell Law Institute. Pennsylvania Code 231 Pa. Code r. 5.6 – Appointment of a Guardian for the Estate or Person of a Minor
8
York County Pennsylvania. Fee Bill Clerk of Orphans’ Court Division of the Court of Common Pleas of York County
9
Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania. Orphans’ Court Forms
10
New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. Pennsylvania Code 20 Section 5151 – Power to Sell Personal Property