Foster Care Agreement (Pakistan)

A Foster Care Agreement in Pakistan records the bargain between the parties, fixing their respective rights, duties and remedies.

The Guardians and Wards Act 1890 (GWA 1890) is the primary statute governing guardianship of minors in Pakistan. Under Section 17 of GWA 1890, the court, in appointing or declaring a guardian, must be guided by what appears to be for the welfare of the minor — taking into account the age, sex, and religion of the minor, the character and capacity of the proposed guardian, the wishes of the minor's parents (if living), and any existing or previous relations of the proposed guardian with the minor or their property. In Islamic personal law applicable to Muslim children under the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance 1961, the mother holds the primary right of hizanat (physical custody) until the child reaches a specified age — seven years for boys and puberty for girls in Hanafi jurisprudence — while the father holds the walayat (guardianship) over the child's person and property.

Foster care in Pakistan is not thoroughly regulated by a dedicated foster care statute, unlike adoption in many Western jurisdictions. The absence of a formal secular adoption law (since Pakistan's legal system does not recognise adoption in the Western sense under Islamic law) means that foster care under the GWA 1890 and the concept of kafala — the Islamic system of non-adoptive child care — serve as the functional equivalents. Kafala is recognised in Article 20 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), to which Pakistan acceded in 1990, as an alternative care arrangement for children deprived of their family environment.

The Punjab Destitute and Neglected Children Act 2004 — applicable in Punjab — establishes the Child Protection and Welfare Bureau (CPWB) as the provincial authority for identifying, rescuing, and placing destitute and neglected children in alternative care arrangements, including foster families, child protection institutions, and government homes. Similar legislation exists in other provinces: the Sindh Child Protection Authority Act 2011 established the Sindh Child Protection Authority (SCPA); Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has the KPK Child Protection and Welfare Act 2010; and Balochistan has the Balochistan Child Protection Act 2016. These provincial child protection authorities are the relevant regulatory bodies for foster care placements involving destitute or neglected children in their respective provinces.

The Foster Care Agreement (Pakistan) must reflect the requirements of both Islamic personal law (where applicable) and the applicable provincial child protection statute, and must prioritise the best interests of the child as required by Article 3 of the UNCRC, implemented in Pakistan's domestic legal framework through provincial child protection legislation and the National Commission on the Rights of Child Act 2017.

A Foster Care Agreement in Pakistan is required across a range of situations involving temporary alternative care arrangements for children.

A Foster Care Agreement is needed when a child's biological parents are temporarily unable to care for the child due to illness, hospitalization, incarceration, economic hardship, or working abroad — and the parents wish to place the child with a trusted family member, close friend, or approved foster family during the period of their incapacity. The agreement protects all parties by documenting the terms of care, financial responsibilities, and the expected duration of the placement.

A Foster Care Agreement is required when a provincial child protection authority — the Child Protection and Welfare Bureau (CPWB) in Punjab, the Sindh Child Protection Authority (SCPA) in Sindh, or equivalent bodies in KPK and Balochistan — places a destitute, neglected, or abused child with an approved foster family. The authority typically requires a written Foster Care Agreement signed by the foster carers, the authority's representative, and (where possible) the biological parents or legal guardian.

A Foster Care Agreement is needed when a non-governmental organisation (NGO) operating a child welfare programme — such as SOS Children's Villages Pakistan, the Edhi Foundation, or the Umang Trust — supports a private foster care placement. The NGO uses the agreement to document the terms of care, safeguarding obligations, and the NGO's ongoing monitoring role.

A Foster Care Agreement is required when an overseas Pakistani family wishes to bring a child from a Pakistani orphanage or child protection institution to their country of residence under a kafala arrangement. Many countries — including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, France, and Belgium — recognise kafala as a form of child care for Muslim children from Muslim-majority countries, and embassies may require a Foster Care Agreement as part of the visa documentation.

A Foster Care Agreement is needed when a Family Court in Pakistan issues an interim custody order pending the determination of a full guardianship or custody case under the Guardians and Wards Act 1890 or the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance 1961, and the child is placed with a third party (grandparents, uncle, aunt, or other) during the proceedings.

A valid Foster Care Agreement in Pakistan under the Guardians and Wards Act 1890 and applicable provincial child protection legislation must contain the following essential elements. Where the child's parents are not traceable, the relevant provincial child protection authority acts as the placing party. Child Details: Full name of the child, date of birth, NADRA birth registration number (issued by the Union Council or NADRA), sex, and a brief health summary including any known medical conditions, disabilities, or special needs. The child's Bayform (birth certificate) number should be referenced. Placement Period: The agreed start date and expected end date (or review date) of the foster care arrangement. A foster care placement should have a fixed review schedule — typically every three months — at which the parties reassess the child's welfare and the biological family's capacity to resume care. Indefinite placements should be avoided; a fixed review date aligns with the GWA 1890 requirement that guardianship arrangements serve the child's welfare on an ongoing basis. Care Obligations: Specific obligations of the foster carers, including providing safe housing, adequate nutrition, age-appropriate clothing, access to healthcare (including registration with a local doctor or Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department facility), and enrollment in school under the Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act (applicable in several provinces). Foster carers must not use corporal punishment, which is prohibited under the provincial child protection Acts. Financial Arrangements: Whether the biological parents, the facilitating authority, or the foster carers will bear the costs of the child's care. Provincial child protection authorities typically provide a foster care allowance to approved foster families covering basic expenses. For private family arrangements, the financial terms should be explicitly stated to avoid disputes. Contact and Visitation Rights: The biological parents' right to maintain contact with the child during the placement — visiting schedule, telephone access, and any restrictions — must be clearly documented. The GWA 1890 and Islamic personal law both prioritise maintaining the child's connection with biological family members where this serves the child's welfare. Safeguarding Obligations: Foster carers must commit to reporting any concerns about the child's safety or welfare to the facilitating authority and to refrain from allowing any third party (other adults in the household) to have unsupervised access to the child without the authority's prior approval. All adults in the foster household should have a police character certificate from the relevant police station confirming no criminal record. Return and Termination Provisions: Conditions under which the child must be returned to the biological parents or legal guardian — including the parents' recovery, changed circumstances, or a court order — and conditions under which the agreement may be terminated by any party on notice. The facilitating authority retains the right to terminate the placement immediately if the child's safety is at risk. Forms-legal.com provides this Foster Care Agreement (Pakistan) template as a structured framework for documenting temporary child care arrangements under the Guardians and Wards Act 1890 and provincial child protection legislation. Parties seeking to formalise foster care arrangements involving orphaned or destitute children should engage with the relevant provincial child protection authority and obtain legal advice from an advocate familiar with Pakistani family law. Under Pakistani law, the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance 1961 governs Muslim marriage (nikah), divorce (talaq), maintenance, and dower (mehr). The Family Courts Act 1964 establishes Family Courts with jurisdiction over matrimonial disputes. The National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) issues CNIC, NICOP, and birth/death certificates. The Guardian and Wards Act 1890 governs child custody. The Federal Shariat Court reviews laws for Islamic compliance.