How to Apply for IHSS in California

This guide is for people who need help at home, and for the family members who are helping them apply. It is not about becoming a paid caregiver; for that, see how to become an IHSS provider. In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) is a California program that pays for help at home so that aged, blind and disabled people can stay safely in their own homes. Each step below comes from the California Department of Social Services (CDSS); the sources are listed at the end.

Who can qualify

CDSS says IHSS serves aged, blind and disabled people. To apply you must:

• Be a California resident.
• Have a Medi-Cal eligibility determination.
• Live at home, or in an “abode of your own choosing.” Acute care hospitals, long-term care facilities and licensed community care facilities do not count as your own home.
• Have a licensed health care professional complete a Health Care Certification (form SOC 873). The county must receive it before it can authorize services.

The SOC 873 form explains what the health care professional is asked to say: that the person cannot independently do one or more everyday activities (such as eating, bathing, dressing, using the toilet or walking) or household tasks, and that without IHSS they would be at risk of being placed in out-of-home care. The form says the county's IHSS worker authorizes services and hours, and treats the certification as one factor among all the relevant documentation.

Children can qualify too. CDSS says IHSS helps children with a disability stay safely at home. A child who receives SSI is automatically eligible; a child whose family income is too high for SSI may qualify with a share of cost. The child must also have a Medi-Cal eligibility determination, live in their own home and have the Health Care Certification (or acceptable alternative documentation). If a child is approved, the parent, as legal guardian, hires the provider and is the employer.

Step 1: Apply through your county IHSS office

You apply by completing the Application for In-Home Supportive Services (form SOC 295) and sending it to your county IHSS office. CDSS publishes the form in English and in Armenian, Cambodian, Chinese, Farsi/Dari, Korean, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog and Vietnamese. The form asks for your personal and household information and your preferred language, and it includes an affirmation that you will cooperate if the information needs to be verified. Keep a copy of your completed application, as the form instructs.

You do not have to apply on paper in person.Since a 2017 state law, counties must accept IHSS applications by telephone, by fax or in person, and a county that is able to must also accept them online, by email or by other electronic means (ACL 18-30). Anyone may apply, or apply through another person on their behalf. The letter adds that an application taken by phone and signed by county staff with your permission does not on its own establish eligibility: the information must be verified, or you must sign the application during a face-to-face contact. When the county receives your application, it must give you a confirmation number, which is your IHSS case number. You get it by phone before the call ends if you applied by phone, or in writing once the application is entered in the county's system (ACL 17-18). Keep it as proof that you applied.

To find your county's IHSS office, use the CDSS list of county IHSS offices, or open your county's page on this site, which lists the office and its phone number.

Step 2: Get the Health Care Certification (SOC 873)

The SOC 873 has three parts. The county fills in your information. You sign a release that lets your health care professional share information about your condition with the IHSS program. Then a licensed health care professional completes the medical section and returns the form to the IHSS worker named on it. The form lists examples of who counts: physicians, physician assistants, regional center clinicians, occupational and physical therapists, psychiatrists, psychologists, optometrists, ophthalmologists and public health nurses. CDSS has since said that nurse practitioners can sign it too (counties have had to accept their signature since February 22, 2024), but registered nurses cannot. The professional's specialty has to fit your condition; for example, an optometrist can certify a vision impairment. CDSS also says a health care provider may not charge you a fee for filling out the SOC 873 (ACL 24-89).

CDSS rules (Manual of Policies and Procedures section 30-754, in effect since October 1, 2016, as explained in All County Letter 16-78) give an applicant 45 calendar days from the date the county asks for the SOC 873 to return it, or to provide acceptable alternative documentation. If the county has temporarily authorized services before it receives the form, you can ask the county for 45 more days if you have good cause, but you must ask before the first 45 days are over (ACL 16-78; ACIN I-58-21). Your county's request will tell you your deadline; ask your IHSS worker if you are unsure.

Step 3: The in-home assessment

CDSS says a county social worker will interview you at your home to decide whether you are eligible and what you need. The social worker looks at your ability to safely do tasks for yourself, and can use information from you and, where appropriate, from family, friends, your physician or another licensed health care professional.

The services IHSS can cover include housework, meal preparation and clean-up, laundry, shopping, personal care (such as bathing, dressing, grooming, help with walking, and bowel and bladder care), paramedical services, and going with you to medical appointments. The SOC 873 also lists protective supervision, meaning watching over a person who cannot safely direct their own care so that they are not injured. IHSS pays only for services your social worker has authorized, and the social worker takes into account what you can safely do for yourself. CDSS says the county sets the services and monthly hours using its Functional Index Rankings, Annotated Assessment Criteria and Hourly Task Guidelines. See the CDSS IHSS Authorized Tasks list for the full list of tasks.

If you think you may need protective supervision, read our guide to Protective Supervision before the visit.

What to expect after the assessment

• A decision. CDSS says you will be told whether IHSS has been approved or denied. If it is denied, you are told the reason. If it is approved, you are told which services and how many hours a month are authorized. This guide does not say how long a county takes, because we did not find an official timeframe on the pages we read; ask your county IHSS office.
• Hiring your provider. On the application you affirm that, as the employer of your IHSS provider, you are responsible for hiring, training, supervising, scheduling and, if needed, firing them, and for making sure the total hours your providers report do not exceed your authorized hours each month. You refer the person you want to hire to the county IHSS office to complete the provider eligibility process, and you tell the county within 10 days when you hire or fire a provider. If you are a parent applying for your child, see our guide to parent and spouse provider rules.
• Reassessments. CDSS says assessments happen at intake and at annual reassessments, and that you can ask for a reassessment at any time if your needs or circumstances change. Our article on preparing for an IHSS annual reassessment can help you get ready.
• If you disagree with a decision. The CDSS rights pamphlet (PUB 13) says you can ask for a state hearing if you disagree with an agency's action on your benefits or services, and that you must ask within 90 days of the date of the agency's notice. If your hours were reduced, see what to do when your IHSS hours are cut.
• Your rights while you apply. The same pamphlet says you have the right to a free interpreter, to ask for a reasonable accommodation if you have a disability, to see your case record, and to get a receipt for documents you hand in.

Next steps

• Parent and spouse provider rules, if a family member will be the caregiver.
• Protective Supervision, if the person needs someone watching over them for their safety.
• Annual reassessment checklist, for the review that follows approval.

This guide is general information from official sources and is not legal advice. IHSS is run by CDSS and your county, and your county IHSS office makes the decisions about your case. We are an independent resource, not affiliated with CDSS or any county.

Sources

All read on October 30, 2026.

• CDSS, In-Home Supportive Services (eligibility, how to apply, the home visit, the decision, reassessment).
• CDSS, IHSS for Children.
• CDSS, Application for In-Home Supportive Services, form SOC 295 (9/18).
• CDSS, IHSS Health Care Certification, form SOC 873 (10/16).
• CDSS, All County Letter 16-78 (September 28, 2016), the Health Care Certification regulations and the 45-day timeframe. It replaced the 2011 letters (ACL 11-55 and 11-76) on that subject.
• CDSS, All County Letter 18-30 (March 16, 2018), counties must accept applications by telephone, fax or in person, and electronically if able.
• CDSS, All County Letter 17-18 (February 16, 2017), the application confirmation number.
• CDSS, All County Letter 24-89 (November 26, 2024), who may sign the SOC 873 and the no-fee rule.
• CDSS, All County Information Notice I-58-21 (June 14, 2021), the good-cause extension.
• CDSS, IHSS Authorized Tasks (November 2020).
• CDSS, Your Rights Under California Public Benefits Programs, PUB 13 (5/22) (state hearing, interpreter, accommodation).