Minnesota care providers face weekend NETStudy outage and new background-check deadlines

Minnesota’s NETStudy 2.0 background-study system is scheduled to be offline from 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 28, through 7 a.m. Monday, Aug. 31, for a system upgrade. People connected to child care, foster care and other covered care programs will not be able to access the system’s Consent and Disclosure process during the maintenance window.

The outage comes as Minnesota Department of Human Services guidance outlines several 2026 changes to background-study requirements. Providers, workers, applicants, household members and some board members face different deadlines depending on the type of program and the status of an existing study.

What happens during the outage

Study subjects cannot access Consent and Disclosure in NETStudy 2.0 while the system is offline. DHS says Saturday, Aug. 29, and Sunday, Aug. 30, the two days when the system will be completely offline, will not count toward the four-day period normally available to complete Consent and Disclosure.

The maintenance window does not cancel other background-study deadlines, and submitting a study does not automatically make every person eligible to work. Providers and study subjects should complete available steps before the outage when possible and review DHS notices after the system returns.

Fingerprint and photo services are scheduled to remain available during the outage. DHS says the maintenance information can change, so providers should check the NETStudy 2.0 maintenance page for updates.

Legacy studies must be replaced by March 1, 2027

Beginning Sept. 1, 2026, people subject to background studies in specified child foster-care, family adult foster-care and family adult day-services settings must have a new study submitted in NETStudy 2.0 if they do not already have a completed NETStudy 2.0 study.

The change ends an exception for some people whose studies were submitted through Minnesota’s original, legacy background-study system before licensing agencies transitioned to NETStudy 2.0 in 2016. Those legacy studies will no longer be valid after March 1, 2027.

The requirement can affect more than direct-care employees. DHS says people subject to study can include household members and staff. Replacement studies include Consent and Disclosure, fingerprinting and a photo. For child foster care, the process also includes consent for a Child Abuse and Neglect Registry check.

The Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families has urged licensing agencies and providers to begin the process early. For a child foster-care application, a license cannot be granted until all affiliated background studies are complete and any disqualifications have been set aside or covered by a variance.

Board members added for personal-care and CFSS providers

Starting Sept. 15, 2026, board members of personal-care provider organizations and Community First Services and Supports providers must undergo DHS background studies.

This requirement is separate from the Sept. 1, 2026, to March 1, 2027, transition away from legacy studies in child foster-care, family adult foster-care and family adult day-services settings. It applies to the board members of the two provider categories identified by DHS.

Some child-care workers face restrictions while studies are pending

Minnesota’s 2026 guidance also clarifies work restrictions for certain child-care study subjects. Some people cannot work while their study is being processed until DHS receives a qualifying result from either the FBI or a Minnesota criminal-background check.

The restriction does not apply identically to every pending study. Workers and providers should follow the specific notice issued by DHS rather than assume that submitting a study alone permits work.

Enhanced child-care studies are used for licensed child-care centers, applicants and current licensees of family child-care programs, legal nonlicensed providers registered to receive Child Care Assistance Program funding, and certified license-exempt centers receiving that funding. The enhanced process can include state and federal criminal-history checks, sex-offender registry searches, and child-abuse and neglect registry checks when applicable.

What providers, workers and applicants should do

• Plan around the NETStudy 2.0 outage from 7 p.m. Aug. 28 to 7 a.m. Aug. 31.
• Complete Consent and Disclosure steps before the outage when possible, while remembering that Aug. 29 and Aug. 30 do not count toward the four-day timeline.
• Check whether people affiliated with a child foster-care, family adult foster-care or family adult day-services program have legacy studies.
• Start replacement studies well before the March 1, 2027, deadline.
• Review DHS notices before allowing a child-care study subject to work.
• Child foster-care applicants and license holders should coordinate with their county licensor about affiliated studies and unresolved determinations.
• Boards of personal-care provider organizations and Community First Services and Supports providers should prepare for the Sept. 15 study requirement.

Questions can be directed to the DHS Background Study Contact Center at 651-431-6620 or dhs.netstudy2@state.mn.us. Providers and study subjects should consult DHS before relying on the posted maintenance schedule or interpreting a pending study’s work status.

Sources

• Minnesota DHS: What's new in Background Studies
• Minnesota DCYF: CFC Licensor Link — August 2026

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