IHSS basics
What In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) Is in California
A plain explanation of California In-Home Supportive Services: who it is for, what it can pay for at home, and how a county case usually starts.
Read the guideResources
Official IHSS and Medi-Cal resources for families
These links go to California Department of Social Services, Department of Health Care Services, BenefitsCal, and other public pages adult children usually need when helping a parent stay home. Guides on this site explain those steps in plain language. Your county IHSS office and Medi-Cal decide eligibility, hours, and who can be paid.
Use these pages to learn and to gather paperwork. A form on California Home Help is a request for follow-up help, not an eligibility determination.
IHSS program pages
Start with the statewide In-Home Supportive Services pages, then the county office that serves the person who needs care.
Medi-Cal and BenefitsCal
IHSS builds on a Medi-Cal determination. If Medi-Cal is still pending, start that application before you expect IHSS to finish.
County offices and Public Authority
Each county runs applications, assessments, and provider enrollment. The local Public Authority helps with orientation, the provider registry, and often EVV setup. There is no single statewide Public Authority website. Use the county office list, then ask that office for the Public Authority number.
Key forms, from the official CDSS PDFs
Download blank forms only from CDSS. Counties may also hand you a local packet. Do not use a rewritten copy from a blog. Send completed pages to the county, not to this website.
SOC 295
IHSS application
Starts the In-Home Supportive Services case for the person who needs care. Send it to the county IHSS office. Pair it with SOC 873 or acceptable alternative documentation.
SOC 873
Health Care Certification
A licensed health professional completes this page, or acceptable alternative documentation. CDSS says it must reach the county before services are authorized.
SOC 426
Provider enrollment form
The person who wants to be paid as the individual provider completes this after or during county orientation. Adult children often use it when they will give the care.
SOC 846
Provider enrollment agreement
Signed at orientation. It is the provider’s agreement to program rules. It does not authorize hours. The Notice of Action does that.
SOC 2298
Live-in self-certification
For some providers who live with the recipient. It changes EVV steps. Living in the home does not, by itself, add authorized hours.
SOC 856
Provider enrollment appeal
Used when the county or Public Authority denies someone as a provider. This is a written CDSS appeal, separate from a recipient hearing on hours.
Browse every CDSS form in the official forms catalog.
Timesheets, EVV, and the Electronic Services Portal
Many providers record authorized time with Electronic Visit Verification. CDSS lists ESP, telephone timesheets, and the EVV app. Ask the county which method you should use before you create a login.
Hearings and appeals
The Notice of Action lists hearing rights and the deadline for that case. CDSS publishes the statewide overview. Provider enrollment denials use a different written appeal.
Adult-child checklist
Work through these in order when you can. Print this page or copy the list. Timing varies by county. Your county office can tell you what is typical locally.
- Confirm your parent lives in California, in their own home. A hospital, nursing facility, or licensed community care facility does not count.
- Check Medi-Cal status. If they already have a case, write down the county and any case number you have. If they do not, apply on BenefitsCal or with the county Medi-Cal office.
- Ask whether a Medi-Cal share of cost applies. Unpaid share of cost can come out of the provider check, and your parent then pays you that part. Your county Medi-Cal office can confirm whether a share of cost applies and the amount.
- Submit the IHSS application (SOC 295) to the county IHSS office. CDSS publishes the form and the county office list.
- Take SOC 873 (Health Care Certification) to a licensed health professional and return it to the county. That is the medical piece they ask for, unless they request a specific extra page.
- Prepare for the in-home visit: a typical day’s help with bathing, dressing, meals, mobility, and household tasks. Describe the help they actually need.
- Choose the provider. Many adult children enroll themselves. A friend, another relative, or someone from the Public Authority list is also possible.
- If you will be the provider, finish county orientation, provider forms (including SOC 426 and the provider agreement), and a DOJ background check where required, before you expect payment.
- Ask whether Electronic Visit Verification (EVV) applies. Live-in providers who self-certify (SOC 2298) have different EVV steps.
- Ask the county how to be listed so they can speak with you about the case. Keep copies of every form you send.
Official California sources
Official program pages: CDSS: In-Home Supportive Services, CDSS: IHSS for children, County IHSS offices, CDSS: IHSS providers, CDSS: provider orientation, CDSS: Electronic Visit Verification, CDSS: Electronic Services Portal, DHCS: Medi-Cal, Apply for Medi-Cal, BenefitsCal, CDSS: hearing requests, CDSS: forms catalog, CDSS: IHSS overtime and workweek, DDS: regional centers.
Guides families read first
Who can be paid
Get Paid to Care for a Parent in California through IHSS
How In-Home Supportive Services can pay an adult child for authorized care so a parent can stay home, after the county and enrollment steps finish.
Read the guideHelping a parent
Helping a Parent Apply for IHSS in California
A practical adult-child path: Medi-Cal status, SOC 295, SOC 873, the home visit, and starting provider enrollment when you will give the care.
Read the guideEligibility
IHSS Eligibility in California, Decided by Your County
The statewide IHSS criteria CDSS publishes, and why a county social worker and Medi-Cal staff still complete the determination for each person.
Read the guideForms
The SOC 295 IHSS Application in California
How to use the statewide IHSS application, where to send it, and what to send with it so the county can file a complete packet.
Read the guideProvider enrollment and EVV
Electronic Visit Verification (EVV) for California IHSS
How California IHSS providers record authorized time with EVV, which methods CDSS lists, and why live-in rules differ.
Read the guide