Professional Foster Care for Children with Disabilities

Professional foster care places children with disabilities (a physical disability of 67% or more, or a mental, intellectual or developmental disability of 50% or more) in a family environment. The professional foster parent receives from OPEKA a monthly fee of €1,850 gross and, in addition, the child benefit (depending on the income criteria), the child's disability allowance (if the child is entitled to it) and the foster care allowance. Married couples or couples in a civil partnership, single people and relatives of the child can become professional foster parents. Steps: an online application on the Foster Care and Adoption Platform, a social assessment of suitability, training of at least 30 hours, and registration in the Special Register of Professional Foster Parents kept by EKKA (National Centre for Social Solidarity). Application period: no fixed deadline.