Unaccompanied Children Program Foundational Rule; Sponsor Assessment Update To Include Proof of Identity, Background Check, Placement, and Income Verification Standards

What it does

This notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM, or proposed rule) would establish certain additional requirements for sponsor suitability assessments related to proof of identity, proof of income, and other information required for background checks to promote the safe placement of unaccompanied alien children (UAC). This NPRM proposes acceptable documentation for proof of identity and would require proof of income from potential sponsors of UAC in ORR custody by reason of their immigration status, as described in the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (HSA) and the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 (TVPRA). This NPRM also proposes amendments to background check requirements for sponsor suitability assessments and the conduct of examinations of UAC related to considerations of UAC dangerousness to self or others that align with the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Finally, this NPRM proposes certain administrative updates to align numbering and terminology between proposals and existing regulations. The docket on https://www.regulations.gov will include a plain language summary of the NPRM.

The Children and Families Administration's summary, as published in the Federal Register.

What it would change

1 part of Title 45 of the Code of Federal Regulations:

45 CFR 410

Before this

No earlier Federal Register document under regulation identifier 0970-AD26 since Jan. 1, 2025.

What happens next and when

Consideration will be given to comments on this rulemaking received on or before August 25, 2026.

The agency's dates, word for word.

Check it yourself

• The document in the Federal Register
• Docket ACF-2026-0199 on Regulations.gov
• Title 45 on eCFR

The record as published

Source: the Federal Register (public domain). The document in the Federal Register