The Annie E. Casey Foundation
Locations
United States

Location

Choose location type
  • Choose locations
  • Choose locations
Choose location comparison

  • Choose time frames
    To view all years at one time, download raw data.
Choose data types
The Annie E. Casey Foundation
Learn More >

Change Indicator

Children ages birth to 17 entering foster care in United States

  • Detailed
  • Sort / Rank
loading...

Definition and Source

PROVIDER

Definition

The number and rate per 1,000 of children under age 18 entering the foster care system. Some states allow children to remain in the foster care system until their 18th birthday while other states have age limits that extend a few years beyond this. To allow for comparison across states, this indicator includes the population under age 18 in foster care. Children are categorized as entering foster care if they have a valid date for entry into care during a particular fiscal year. Rates are based on Census Bureau estimates of the population of children ages 0 to 17 in each state, as of July 1st of the respective year. National estimates do not include Puerto Rico.

Data Source

Child Trends analysis of data from the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS), made available through the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect. Population data: U.S. Census Bureau. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population by Single Year of Age and Sex for the United States, States, and Puerto Rico Commonwealth.

Starting with data from FY2022, files released by the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect (NDACAN) are now referred to as “AB” files as opposed to annual files. The new AB file format produces slightly different estimates than the old annual file format (used for and prior to FY2021), which limits comparability across years. Furthermore, the data presented here will not match the ACF Dashboards because the Dashboards use files that are different than the AB files. 

Notes

N.A. or NA - Data not available.

Last Updated

August 2025