NOTICE: the case law and rules on adoption timelines are in flux. We try our best to keep this page updated with our best understanding of the law. 

If there is more than one adoptive applicant for a foster child, DCF must comply with strict legal deadlines. 

IMPORTANT: In October of 2025, DCF adopted new rules that comply with legal requirements to process adoptions expeditiously.

The new rules clarify that if you are the caregiver, you may submit your application to adopt, get exempted from the adoption home study requirement, and sign the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), all before parental rights are terminated. If parental rights are terminated, all the paperwork should be ready to go and you just need to file your adoption petition and set if for hearing! If you think you may be eligible for this process, but you are having trouble getting accurate information (DCF is a big bureaucracy and it takes time for employees to learn about the new rules), you may want to set up a consultation with our firm to learn more about what to expect in the process and where to find the right resources and forms.

But for the rest of this post, let’s assume that another person applies before you are able to sign the MOA.

DCF must complete adoption home studies in just 30 days. The foster agency has 14 days after the home study is complete to approve or deny the home study.

If the foster agency has denied a home study, or if the agency has approved two competing home studies, the foster agency must request AARC review. The AARC has 10 days to convene. Within 5 days of the AARC review, the AARC members send their individual recommendations to the AARC Chair. Within 10 days, the Chair sends a recommendation to DCF. DCF then makes a final decision.

10 days after DCF’s final decision is made, the CBC (foster care agency) notifies the approved applicant and DCF notifies the denied applicant.

The denied applicant has 30 business days from the date DCF issues its decision to ask the Court to review DCF’s decision. The court has 30 business days to hold the hearing and 15 business days to issue an order.

DCF “has an affirmative duty to follow the requirements of [the Florida Adoption Act]…which protect[s] and promote[s] the well-being of persons being adopted and their parents and prospective adoptive parents by promoting certainty, finality, and permanency for such persons.”

If DCF is not complying with its duties or is violating the legal deadlines, we can help you take steps to get the adoption process back on track.