Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, you can take your child in care on a trip under the following guidelines:

If you are traveling within Arizona or another state for more than 2 days but less than 7 days, you must notify the child’s DCS case manager and your licensing agency of the dates of travel, destination, and your contact telephone number.

DCS must authorize any trips within Arizona or another state that are 7 or more days long.

A court order is required if the trip is out of state and is for 30 or more days.

Traveling outside of the country requires a court order, passport, and any necessary immunizations. Discuss your travel request with the child’s DCS case manager and your licensing agency as early as possible to allow the child’s DCS case manager to request the court’s permission for the trip. You will need to get a passport for the child after obtaining a copy of the child’s birth certificate from the DCS case manager or Vital Records (if the child was born in Arizona; you will need a court order stating the child is in your custody). To apply for a passport for a foster child who is under 16, you will need a notarized document from DCS stating that you (the foster parents) are allowed to apply for a passport for the child and are permitted to take the child out of the county in addition to other required documents and fees.

If the trip will interfere with parental visitation, the DCS case manager may deny permission for the trip and/or require make-up visits for any missed visits. Also, the child’s parents may refuse to give permission for their child to go on the trip.

When you are traveling with a child in care, be sure to take the following: a copy of the court order placing the child in out of home care; the child’s Notice to Provider; a copy of the child’s birth certificate; the child’s passport (if traveling outside of the country); any available photo ID for the child (for example, school ID); the child’s CMDP card; all medications in their original bottles and placed in a locked container; and contact information for your DCS case manager and licensing agency.

Yes, Reasonable and Prudent Parenting Standards (RPPS) discuss careful and sensible parental decisions that maintain the health, safety, and best interests of a child while at the same time encouraging the emotional and developmental growth of the child. Click here for a RPPS manual. Click here to view a summary table covering different categories of activities.

DCS follows a 6 stage process:
Intake
Screening the Report
Investigation/Assessment
Case Decision and Disposition
Treatment/Case Management
Case Closure

The Department is committed to providing the records as quickly as possible. Individual cases will vary, depending on the case circumstances. State law requires that the Department coordinate with the appropriate prosecuting agency before records on specific cases can be released. It also requires that the Department take appropriate steps to protect the privacy of crime victims, sources of DCS reports, and innocent parties in a case (such as siblings, grandparents, etc.) before the DCS records can be released.

The Records Coordinator will provide periodic updates to requestors letting them know the status of their request.

Law enforcement agencies statewide are critical partners in protecting children; they ensure that perpetrators of child abuse or neglect are held accountable for the harm they cause to children.

State law requires that the prosecuting agency be given the opportunity to review DCS records that may be released in order to determine whether the release of the records would cause “specific, material harm” to the criminal investigation.

If any person believes that a prosecuting agency has failed to demonstrate that the release of DCS records would cause a specific material harm to the criminal investigation, that person may file an action in Superior Court and ask the court to review the DCS records and tell the Department which records can be released.

Law enforcement agencies statewide are critical partners in protecting children; they ensure that perpetrators of child abuse or neglect are held accountable for the harm they cause to children.

State law requires that the prosecuting agency be given the opportunity to review DCS records that may be released in order to determine whether the release of the records would cause “specific material harm” to the criminal investigation.