Pre-service and continuing education rules for licensed foster, resource and kinship caregivers, compiled from state administrative code and agency policy.
Verified as of 5 September 2026 Next review due 1 December 2026
California
Sources conflict — verify
Pre-service
Minimum 12 hours pre-approval training, per applicant; 90 days if a child is placed before approval. No named statewide curriculum.
Ongoing continuing education
Minimum 8 hours annually per statute, which must include the reasonable and prudent parent standard.
Renewal term
Resource Family Approval does not expire; maintained by a periodic update process.
Kinship difference
No difference — RFA unified relative and non-relative approval and only the delivery channel differs; Tribally Approved Homes are exempt from RFA entirely.
Conflict notes
CONFLICT: statute says 8 annual hours, but text extracted from two Written Directives PDFs returned 12, and the current Version 8 could not be read. Also unresolved: update cadence, with 2016 directives saying annual and a current county handbook saying every two years. CPR and first aid certification is separately required within 90 days of approval and does not count toward the 12 hours.