The AFCARS Report-Preliminary FY1 2012 Estimates as of July 2013  No. 20

The AFCARS Report-Preliminary FY1
2012 Estimates as of July 2013  No. 20

Preliminary FY1
2012 Estimates as of July 2013  No. 20
SOURCE: Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) FY 2012 data2
Numbers At A Glance
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Number in foster care on September 30 of the FY 463,792 420,415 405,224 397,866 399,546
Number entered foster care during FY 280,423 255,027 255,271 251,403 254,162
Number exited foster care during FY 288,778 278,252 257,514 246,481 241,254
Number waiting to be adopted on September 30 of the FY 125,712 114,711 109,553 106,345 101,719
Number waiting to be adopted whose parental rights (for all 
living parents) were terminated during FY 79,392 71,429 65,750 62,759 58,587
Number adopted with public child welfare agency involvement 
during FY 55,236 57,185 53,525 50,906 52,039
Children in Foster Care on September 30, 2012  N=399,546
Age as of September 30th Years
Mean 9.1
Median 8.5
Age as of September 30th Percent Number
Less than 1 Year 6% 25,379
1 Year 8% 30,546
2 Years 7% 27,624
3 Years 6% 25,540
4 Years 6% 23,756
5 Years 5% 21,237
6 Years 5% 19,480
7 Years 4% 17,663
8 Years 4% 16,125
9 Years 4% 15,092
10 Years 4% 14,313
11 Years 4% 14,238
12 Years 4% 14,854
13 Years 4% 16,356
14 Years 5% 19,539
15 Years 6% 23,548
16 Years 7% 27,356
17 Years 7% 29,306
18 Years 3% 11,273
19 Years 1% 3,578
20 Years 1% 2,451
Sex Percent Number
Male 52% 209,131
Female 48% 190,355
Most Recent Placement Setting Percent Number
Pre-Adoptive Home 4% 14,253
Foster Family Home (Relative) 28% 109,619
Foster Family Home (Non-Relative) 47% 185,257
Group Home 6% 23,776
Institution 9% 34,253
Supervised Independent Living 1% 4,073
Runaway 1% 4,973
Trial Home Visit 6% 22,010
Case Plan Goal Percent Number
Reunify with Parent(s) or Principal 
Caretaker(s) 53% 205,033
Live with Other Relative(s) 3% 13,149
Adoption 24% 93,165
Long Term Foster Care 5% 20,095
Emancipation 5% 20,251
Guardianship 4% 14,829
Case Plan Goal Not Yet Established 5% 18,614
1
 ‘FY’ refers to the Federal Fiscal Year, October 1st through September 30th
. 
2
 Data from both the regular and revised AFCARS file submissions received by July 12, 2013 are included in this report. Missing 
data are excluded from each table. Therefore, the totals within each distribution may not equal the total provided for that 
subpopulation (e.g. number in care on September 30th may not match the sum across ages for that group).2 | P a g e
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, 
Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children's Bureau, www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb 
 Preliminary Estimates for FY 2012 as of July 2013 (20), Page 2
Children Entering Foster Care during FY 2012  N=254,162
Time in Care Months
Mean 22.7
Median 13.0
Time in Care (Months) Percent Number
Less than 1 Month 5% 20,439
1 - 5 Months 22% 88,282
6 - 11 Months 20% 79,779
12 - 17 Months 14% 57,392
18 - 23 Months 9% 37,270
24 - 29 Months 7% 27,504
30 - 35 Months 5% 17,906
3 - 4 Years 9% 36,579
5 Years or More 9% 34,388
Age at Entry Years
Mean 7.6
Median 6.5
Age at Entry Percent Number
Less than 1 Year 16% 41,801
1 Year 7% 18,422
2 Years 7% 16,874
3 Years 6% 15,584
4 Years 6% 14,613
5 Years 5% 13,321
6 Years 5% 12,061
7 Years 4% 10,564
8 Years 4% 9,811
9 Years 3% 8,890
10 Years 3% 8,428
11 Years 3% 8,370
12 Years 4% 8,897
13 Years 4% 10,819
14 Years 5% 12,838
15 Years 6% 15,314
16 Years 6% 15,555
17 Years 4% 10,920
18 Years 0% 782
19 Years 0% 169
20 Years 0% 121
Race/ethnicity Percent Number
American Indian/Alaskan Native 2% 5,461
Asian 1% 1,732
Black or African American 22% 55,442
Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander 0% 617
Hispanic (of any race) 21% 51,833
White 45% 114,762
Unknown/Unable to Determine 4% 9,729
Two or more Races 5% 13,799
NOTE: All races exclude children of Hispanic origin. Children of Hispanic 
ethnicity may be any race.
Race/Ethnicity Percent Number
American Indian/Alaskan Native 2% 8,344
Asian 1% 2,296
Black or African American 26% 101,938
Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander 0% 789
Hispanic (of any race) 21% 84,523
White 42% 166,195
Unknown/Unable to Determine 3% 11,856
Two or more Races 6% 22,942
NOTE: All races exclude children of Hispanic origin. Children of Hispanic 
ethnicity may be any race.3 | P a g e
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, 
Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children's Bureau, www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb 
 Preliminary Estimates for FY 2012 as of July 2013 (20), Page 3
Children Exiting Foster Care during FY 2012  N=241,254
Age at Exit Years
Mean 9.2
Median 8.2
Age at Exit Percent Number
Less than 1 Year 4% 10,402
1 Year 8% 18,257
2 Years 8% 19,179
3 Years 7% 17,268
4 Years 7% 15,608
5 Years 6% 13,834
6 Years 5% 12,110
7 Years 5% 11,047
8 Years 4% 9,975
9 Years 4% 9,223
10 Years 4% 8,490
11 Years 3% 8,176
12 Years 3% 7,699
13 Years 3% 8,244
14 Years 4% 8,987
15 Years 4% 10,698
16 Years 5% 12,475
17 Years 5% 12,833
18 Years 8% 20,254
19 Years 2% 3,889
20 Years 0% 929
Time in Care Months
Mean 20.4
Median 13.4
Time in care Percent Number
Less than 1 Month 12% 27,761
1 - 5 Months 15% 36,213
6 - 11 Months 20% 47,144
12 - 17 Months 16% 37,648
18 - 23 Months 11% 26,830
24 - 29 Months 8% 18,175
30 - 35 Months 5% 11,798
3 - 4 Years 9% 21,522
5 Years or More 6% 14,005
Race/ethnicity Percent Number
American Indian/Alaskan Native 2% 4,849
Asian 1% 1,635
Black or African American 25% 59,334
Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander 0% 543
Hispanic (of any race) 20% 48,754
White 44% 106,650
Unknown/Unable to Determine 2% 5,585
Two or more Races 6% 13,374
NOTE: All races exclude children of Hispanic origin. Children of Hispanic 
ethnicity may be any race.
Reasons for Discharge Percent Number
Reunification with Parent(s) or Primary 
Caretaker(s) 51% 122,401
Living with Other Relative(s) 8% 19,671
Adoption 21% 51,229
Emancipation 10% 23,439
Guardianship 7% 16,424
Transfer to Another Agency 2% 4,256
Runaway 1% 1,216
Death of Child 0% 3284 | P a g e
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, 
Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children's Bureau, www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb 
 Preliminary Estimates for FY 2012 as of July 2013 (20), Page 4
Children Waiting to be Adopted3 on September 30, 2012  N=101,719
Age as of September 30th Years
Mean 7.8
Median 6.9
Age as of September 30th Percent Number
Less than 1 Year 4% 4,055
1 Year 9% 9,170
2 Years 9% 9,158
3 Years 8% 8,411
4 Years 7% 7,582
5 Years 7% 6,641
6 Years 6% 6,055
7 Years 5% 5,422
8 Years 5% 5,163
9 Years 5% 4,759
10 Years 5% 4,594
11 Years 5% 4,594
12 Years 4% 4,562
13 Years 4% 4,560
14 Years 5% 4,645
15 Years 5% 4,814
16 Years 4% 4,260
17 Years 3% 3,274
Placement type Percent Number
Pre-Adoptive Home 13% 12,996
Foster Family Home (Relative) 24% 24,382
Foster Family Home (Non-Relative) 53% 54,043
Group Home 4% 3,668
Institution 5% 5,326
Supervised Independent Living 0% 88
Runaway 0% 366
Trial Home Visit 1% 676
Sex Percent Number
Male 52% 53,301
Female 48% 48,416
Age at Entry into Foster Care Years
Mean 4.9
Median 4.0
Age at Entry into Foster Care Percent Number
Less than 1 Year 25% 25,608
1 Year 9% 9,284
2 Years 8% 8,252
3 Years 7% 7,379
4 Years 7% 6,957
5 Years 6% 6,550
6 Years 6% 6,085
7 Years 5% 5,565
8 Years 5% 5,099
9 Years 5% 4,615
10 Years 4% 4,018
11 Years 3% 3,559
12 Years 3% 2,961
13 Years 2% 2,436
14 Years 2% 1,712
15 Years 1% 1,108
16 Years 0% 449
17 Years 0% 79
Race/ethnicity Percent Number
American Indian/Alaskan Native 2% 1,747
Asian 0% 418
Black or African American 26% 26,117
Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific 
Islander 0% 161
Hispanic (of any race) 23% 23,243
White 41% 41,274
Unknown/Unable to Determine 2% 1,920
Two or more Races 7% 6,784
NOTE: All races exclude children of Hispanic origin. Children of Hispanic 
ethnicity may be any race
3
 Waiting children are identified as children who have a goal of adoption and/or whose parents’ parental rights have been 
terminated. Children 16 years old and older whose parents’ parental rights have been terminated and who have a goal of 
emancipation have been excluded from the estimate. 5 | P a g e
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, 
Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children's Bureau, www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb 
 Preliminary Estimates for FY 2012 as of July 2013 (20), Page 5
Time in Care Months
Mean 34.4
Median 25.5
Time in Care Percent Number
Less than 1 Month 0% 378
1 - 5 Months 4% 4,244
6 - 11 Months 10% 10,243
12 - 17 Months 16% 16,648
18 - 23 Months 15% 15,512
24 - 29 Months 13% 13,358
30 - 35 Months 9% 8,948
3 - 4 Years 18% 17,853
5 Years or More 14% 14,535
Of Children Waiting for Adoption whose Parents’ 
Parental Rights have been Terminated (N=58,587), Time 
elapsed since termination of parental rights as of 
September 30, 2012
Time since TPR Months
Mean 22.2
Median 10.3
Children Adopted with Public Agency Involvement in FY 20124  N=52,039
Age at Adoption Years
Mean 6.3
Median 5.1
Age at Adoption Percent Number
Less than 1 Year 2% 1,113
1 Year 11% 5,936
2 Years 14% 7,385
3 Years 12% 6,006
4 Years 10% 5,037
5 Years 8% 4,274
6 Years 7% 3,455
7 Years 6% 3,004
8 Years 5% 2,640
9 Years 5% 2,415
10 Years 4% 2,092
11 Years 4% 1,841
12 Years 3% 1,610
13 Years 3% 1,373
14 Years 2% 1,198
15 Years 2% 921
16 Years 2% 869
17 Years 1% 690
18 Years 0% 132
19 Years 0% 27
20 Years 0% 16
Time elapsed from Termination of Parental 
Rights to Adoption Months
Mean 13.1
Median 9.2
Time elapsed from Termination of Parental 
Rights to Adoption Percent Number
Less than 1 Month 3% 1,344
1-5 Months 27% 13,975
6-11 Months 34% 17,306
12-17 Months 17% 8,654
18-23 Months 8% 3,942
24-29 Months 4% 2,136
30-35 Months 2% 1,193
3-4 Years 4% 1,963
5 Years or more 2% 841
Race/ethnicity Percent Number
American Indian/Alaskan Native 2% 860
Asian 0% 228
Black or African American 23% 11,961
Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander 0% 102
Hispanic (of any race) 21% 10,782
White 46% 23,827
Unknown/Unable to Determine 1% 571
Two or more Races 7% 3,704
NOTE: All races exclude children of Hispanic origin. Children of Hispanic ethnicity 
may be any race.
4
 Note that the adoption data reported in this section are from the AFCARS Adoption file. Therefore, the number of adoptions 
reported here may not equal the number reported as discharges to adoption from foster care. 6 | P a g e
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, 
Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children's Bureau, www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb 
 Preliminary Estimates for FY 2012 as of July 2013 (20), Page 6