Financial Support Available for Foster Parents
Being a foster parent is a very rewarding experience and a wonderful opportunity to form a loving family. However, it’s also important to remember that being a parent comes with many responsibilities, and foster care can come with unique challenges that you need to be prepared for. This is why you should always carefully consider whether or not becoming a foster parent is right for you, to make sure that you and the children you care for will be happy and safe. One of the main things you might have concerns about is the financial pressures of foster care, but there is support available to foster parents to help with these additional expenses. Below is some information on financial support that you will have access to as a foster parent to help you know a bit more about what to expect.
Foster Parent Allowance
The allowance that you get as a foster parent will depend on varying factors, such as how many children you are fostering, any special needs that any of those children might need, the region you live in, and the kind of fostering that you choose. This money will towards food, clothing, school supplies, travel expenses, savings, etc., to help you provide the right support for the children in your care. You can speak to your foster care agency, such as Foster Care Associates, for tips and advice on how to budget for the children effectively if you would like some guidance.
Obviously, money should not be the reason you decide to foster as the child you care for will need your physical and emotional support; however, your finances should not be a bar to you wanting to help a child in need.
Taxes
All foster parents will be considered self-employed for tax purposes. There are online guides up for foster carers which will calculate your tax based on your household costs and what you get paid as a foster parent allowance. Usually, these costs are below the tax threshold, and so you won’t have to pay tax on them.
Other Benefits for Foster Parents
As well as your allowance, you can find access to other financial perks as a foster parent. Depending on the agency you work with, you might also find that you have access to discounts at retailers to help make providing for your foster children more affordable. You can also find these discounts on dedicated pages for foster carers and find special deals on entries to theme parks or other attractions to take your foster family out for the day, deals on broadband, insurance, and even holidays. These special carer discounts can make spending quality time with your foster children even easier and allow you to bond and make some wonderful memories together.
Being a parent, fostering or not, is expensive. However, you shouldn’t let the costs of fostering put you off if you want to provide a safe and loving home for children as there are options for financial support to help you manage these expenses.
