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The aging-out toolkit.
How this collection works
Every program below carries a verified date and links to an official source. Where Georgia hasn't published something — or we couldn't confirm it — we say so instead of guessing. Start early: several of these require action before the 18th birthday.
Staying in care past 18: Connected by 21
Georgia's extended foster care program — DFCS calls the policy Extended Youth Support Services (EYSS).
Extended Youth Support Services (EYSS) · "Connected by 21"
GovernmentA voluntary agreement that lets a young person remain in — or return to — foster care from age 18 up to 21, keeping placement support instead of aging out alone at 18. The conditions track the federal Fostering Connections options (per the HHS summary linked below). Under O.C.G.A. §15-11-340(a), the young person must be 18 to 21, sign a voluntary placement agreement with DFCS, and meet DFCS's eligibility criteria, which "shall include one or more of the following requirements":
- Completing secondary education or a program leading to an equivalent credential
- Enrolled in an institution that provides postsecondary or vocational education
- Participating in a program or activity designed to promote or remove barriers to employment
- Employed at least 120 hours a month — or 80 hours a month combined with one of the first three activities above, or if a medical condition limits work to 80 hours
- Incapable of doing any of the above because of a medical condition
Young adults can also re-enter care under EYSS after leaving at 18 — talk to the case manager or a GA RYSE Independent Living Specialist about how.
College money: the waiver and the voucher
Two separate benefits that stack — the state tuition waiver covers the bill, ETV covers the rest of life around it.
Georgia post-secondary tuition waiver
GovernmentUnder SB 107 (2021, O.C.G.A. §20-3-660; amended 2025), Georgia waives tuition and fees at Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) schools for qualifying students (DFCS describes them as under 28 and currently in foster care, having experienced foster care, or placed for adoption by DFCS; the statute's categories are): those in DFCS custody or in the DFCS independent living program, those whose family receives state-funded adoption assistance, and those adopted after DFCS placed them for adoption following their 14th birthday. The statute only urges the Board of Regents to adopt similar programs for University System schools, so ask a USG school's financial aid office what it offers.
- For youth and young adults under 28
- Complete the FAFSA first — DFCS says it must be completed before the waiver application, and the waiver covers costs not met by other aid (§20-3-660(c)(5), (d)); students presumed eligible may participate provisionally for up to 30 days
- Enroll or be accepted within 3 years of finishing high school or a GED
- Keep satisfactory academic progress to stay eligible
- DFCS is required to advertise the waiver and help applicants
Education & Training Voucher (ETV) · Embark Georgia
University-runFederal Chafee money for college and training costs, administered for DFCS by the J.W. Fanning Institute at UGA (Embark Georgia), with designated points of contact on roughly 50 USG and TCSG campuses.
- Up to $5,000 per year (July 1–June 30) for postsecondary costs
- Monthly Chafee stipends of $250 or $500 while in the ETV program
- Eligibility: at least 6 months in foster care (non-consecutive) with at least one day in care on or after the 14th birthday
- Email: [email protected] · campus contacts: embarkgeorgia.org/dpoc
We use this box for something we couldn't confirm with an official source, or that is changing. See it on our list of everything we're still confirming
Embark Georgia's phone number is under verification
The number in circulation for Embark doesn't appear on their current site, so we won't publish it. Use [email protected] or their contact page — we'll list a phone number once a call confirms the right one.
"Medicaid to 26" for former foster youth
We use this box for something we couldn't confirm with an official source, or that is changing. See it on our list of everything we're still confirming
Real federal category — Georgia specifics not yet verified
Federal law created a Medicaid category for young adults who aged out of foster care, running to age 26 — that category exists. What we have not yet verified is how Georgia handles it: enrollment steps, which plan you land on, and who to call when coverage breaks. Rather than publish a guess, this section stays a placeholder until those answers are sourced from Georgia Medicaid.
In the meantime: before the 18th birthday, ask the case manager or a GA RYSE Independent Living Specialist, in writing, how the young person's Medicaid continues after care. If you can confirm Georgia's current process first-hand, tell us.
Update, Oct 18, 2026: Georgia's Medicaid manual rules for this category (no income limit, how to apply) are now quoted on our health insurance page. The enrollment experience itself, such as which number to call when coverage breaks, is still unconfirmed.
Programs that walk alongside
Aging out shouldn't be a solo project. These three are verified and taking Georgia youth now.
GA RYSE · Independent Living Program
GovernmentGeorgia's ILP for youth 14+ with at least 6 months (non-consecutive) in Georgia foster care. Every region has an assigned Independent Living Specialist — the person for ETV questions, grievances, and local resources.
- Find your regional specialist on their site
- Can't reach yours? [email protected]
Wellroot Family Services · ILP / TLP
NonprofitTransitional Living and Independent Living programs for young people leaving care — housing-focused, alongside Wellroot's foster care and family housing work. Based in Tucker (metro Atlanta).
- (404) 327-5820
- 1967 Lakeside Pkwy, Suite 400, Tucker, GA
Orange Duffel Bag Initiative
NonprofitCertified, trauma-informed life coaching — a 12-session program ("7 Rules for the Road") for high school and college students who've experienced foster care or homelessness. 2,100+ graduates since 2010. Based in Marietta.
- Coaching runs in schools and on campuses
Before 18: the paperwork that unlocks a first apartment
Community practice from veteran foster parents and caseworkers — not a policy requirement, just what makes leases, jobs, FAFSA, and benefit applications possible later.
- Certified birth certificate — the real document, not a copy of a copy
- Social Security card
- Current Medicaid card and any medical/immunization records you can gather
- A credit check before 18 — young people in care are frequent identity-theft targets, and a surprise on a credit report is much easier to fix before a landlord sees it
- Proof of time in foster care (placement or court paperwork) — the tuition waiver and ETV both turn on it
This checklist is practical advice, not DFCS policy — your case manager and Independent Living Specialist are the ones who can actually pull these documents together, so start asking at the age-14 transition planning stage, not the month before 18. What DFCS policy itself says you must be given, and how to request the rest of your file, is on How do I get my foster care records?
Sources & verification
- DHS — Connected by 21 (extended care 18–21)dhs.georgia.gov Jul 2, 2026
- DFCS policy manual 13.4 — Transition from Foster Care (Extended Foster Care, VPA-EFC)pamms.dhs.ga.gov Oct 2, 2026
- Official Code of Georgia Annotated (public access for the General Assembly; current through the 2026 Special Session), re-read Oct 18, 2026: §15-11-340 (extended care youth services; amended 2023, HB 460) and §20-3-660 (tuition waiver; amended 2025, SB 154). Search the section number.advance.lexis.com Oct 18, 2026
- HHS Child Welfare Information Gateway — Extension of Foster Care Beyond Age 18: Georgia (O.C.G.A. § 15-11-340)childwelfare.gov Oct 2, 2026
- DFCS — State of Georgia post-secondary tuition waiver (SB 107 / O.C.G.A. §20-3-660)dfcs.georgia.gov Jul 2, 2026
- Embark Georgia — ETV amounts, stipends, eligibility, campus contactsembarkgeorgia.org Jul 2, 2026
- GA RYSE — ILP eligibility, regional specialists, [email protected]garyse-ilp.org Jul 2, 2026
- Wellroot Family Services — ILP/TLP, Tucker office & phonewellroot.org Jul 2, 2026
- Orange Duffel Bag Initiative — coaching program & graduatestheodbi.org Jul 2, 2026
This page summarizes policy in plain language and is not legal advice. Program rules change — if today is well past our verified date, confirm with your case manager or Independent Living Specialist before making plans on it.
Nobody should age out alone.
Every Georgia youth 14+ with six months in care qualifies for Independent Living services — and a regional specialist whose job is exactly these questions. Can't reach yours? GA RYSE answers this inbox.