Who Can Care for Your Child
Step 1: Decide Who Can Care for Your Child if You Are Unable and Talk with That Person
Identify a responsible adult that you trust and that your child knows and is comfortable around, Ideally, the person you designate to care for your child is someone with lawful immigration status. Talk to this person in detail about your desires for your child and expectations for the care they will provide.
Make sure the person knows they will be listed as an emergency contact and knows how to access all of your important documents and information.
Memorize this person’s phone number and have your child memorize it too.
Step 2: Put a Child Care Plan in Place
Once you have identified and come to an agreement with the person who will care for your child if you are unable to, you can begin to put a plan in place. The CAA: The Caregivers Authorization Affidavit (“CAA”) is a very important document in California that will allow another person to care for and make basic decisions about your child in your absence without impacting your rights as a parent.
In California, the CAA will allow your designated caregiver to make certain school and medical decisions on behalf of your child. The CAA can be given to your child’s school or health care provider without affecting your custody and control of your child. More information about the CAA and a form you can use are included at the end of this packet. Please note: the CAA is for use in California only.
For most situations, the Caregiver’s Authorization Affidavit is sufficient, and it is not necessary to fill out any additional legal documents. If your situation is more complicated, for example, if you are involved in a custody dispute with your child’s other parent, you have a child with significant medical needs, or you are planning for your child to remain in the United States longterm with a non-parent caregiver, you should speak with an attorney, and may wish to consider nominating a guardian for your child.
Guardianship: Guardianship is a formal legal arrangement that can only be put in place by a court. If a court appoints a guardian for your child, the guardian has full legal and physical custody of the child. A guardianship does not terminate parental rights, but it does suspend them while the guardianship is in place and only a court can decide whether or not to terminate the guardianship in order to get your parental rights back.
Again, for most families, the CAA is the best first step and will provide sufficient protections, and they can later choose to pursue a guardianship should it be necessary. For a sample form nominating a guardian and additional information about guardianships, see Bet Tzedek Legal Service’s “Family Preparedness Toolkit.” Nominating someone else to be a guardian and have legal custody of your child is a serious decision; you should talk to an attorney before taking this step.
A Note About Power of Attorney:
A power of attorney is a written document that you can sign to grant another person the authority to act on your behalf in specified ways. For example, a power of attorney may be used to designate another person to handle your finances, make business decisions, or use your money to pay your rent or mortgage.
In California, we do not recommend that a power of attorney be used as a way to designate another person to care for your child. If, however, you wish to give someone else the authority to access and use your finances in order to care for your child, you may wish to use a power of attorney. This is a very serious decision that you should discuss with an attorney.
Step 3: Create a File of Important Documents
Gather into one file the important documents that your designated caregiver would need to care for your child in your absence. Include information about your child’s school, medical history, and contact information. Suggested documents to include, as well as a useful template to gather your child’s information, are listed at the end of this packet. Be sure your designated caregiver knows where this file is in case they need access to it.
Step 4: Talk to Your Child About Your Plan
In an age-appropriate way and without worrying them, let your child know who will pick them up and care for them if you are unable to for some reason. Assure your child that they will be taken care of, even for a short period of time, until you are able to do so again.
Step 5: Update Emergency Contact Information at Your Child’s School
Once you have made a plan for your child’s care, be sure to provide your designated caregiver’s contact information at your child’s school or daycare provider. This will ensure that if the school is ever unable to reach you, they will call this person. If your designated caregiver ever changes their phone number, be sure to update their contact information.