North Carolina home care license requirements
Bottom line: Yes — DHSR Home Care Agency license; Home Assistance Services Provider license (companion/sitter only).
- License required?
- Yes
- License / pathway
- DHSR Home Care Agency license; Home Assistance Services Provider license (companion/sitter only)
- Fees (initial / renewal)
- $510 initial; $510 annual
From the 50-state summary. Fees shown as stated in the state entry; see each entry for conditions, conflicts, and sources.
North Carolina requirements, item by item
Bracketed numbers link to the official sources at the bottom of this page.
Not confirmed in official sources — check with the state agency We could not confirm this item on an official state source during our review, so we did not estimate it.
| Item | What the guide found |
|---|---|
| License required? | A license is required. Agencies providing hands-on personal care need a Home Care Agency license. Companion, sitter, respite, and qualifying homemaker services may fall under the separate Home Assistance Services Provider license; that pathway is for services that do not provide health care or hands-on care. [1][2][3][4] |
| License type / name | Home Care Agency license for services involving hands-on personal care. For companion, sitter, respite, and homemaker services provided in combination with those services without health care or hands-on care, the statute establishes a separate Home Assistance Services Provider license. [1][2][3][4] |
| Licensing agency | North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Health Service Regulation (DHSR), Acute and Home Care Licensure and Certification Section, licenses home care agencies. The statutes assign licensing to the Department. [5][6][1] |
| Agency website | https://info.ncdhhs.gov/dhsr/ahc/homecare.html [5] |
| Initial application / license fee | $510.00 for an initial Home Care Agency license application. The sources reviewed do not separately identify an initial fee for the Home Assistance Services Provider pathway. [5][7] |
| Renewal fee | $510.00 annually for a Home Care Agency license. The statute also states a nonrefundable annual license fee of $510.00 for the license it addresses; a separate renewal fee for the Home Assistance Services Provider pathway is not specified in the sources reviewed. [5][7][1] |
| Renewal cycle | Home Care Agency licenses renew annually and expire at midnight on December 31. The statute describes an annual license fee, but the sources reviewed do not specify a separate renewal date or cycle for Home Assistance Services Provider licenses. [5][8][1] |
| Typical approval timeline | DHSR states that it cannot establish a specific processing timeframe; timing varies with application completeness, additional information, workload, and resources. Applicants must be able to complete all necessary requirements within 12 months after receipt of the initial application and fee. [5][8] |
| Administrator qualifications | For a Home Care Agency, the Agency Director must meet at least one listed qualification: health care practitioner; at least two years of specified supervisory or management experience; or a bachelor's degree in health, business, or public administration science plus at least one year of relevant supervisory or management experience. Companion, sitter, and respite-only agencies have a separate standard; director qualifications for Home Assistance Services Providers are not stated in the sources reviewed. [5] |
| Caregiver background checks | For Home Care Agency employment, a State or National criminal history record check is required, requested within five business days of a conditional offer. Home Assistance Services Providers must check each state where an employee or contractor lived during the past seven years; the supplied law also bars hiring or contracting with people convicted of a relevant offense or listed on the National Sex Offender Public Website. [5][1][2] |
| Caregiver training hours | No fixed caregiver training-hour total is stated in the FAQ; competencies must be verified by demonstration. The home-aide manual gives recommended—not stated as universally mandatory—training of Level I 21 hours; Level II 38 additional hours (59 cumulative); Level III Personal Care 42 hours total (15-hour core plus 27 hours); Level III Home Management 35 hours total (15-hour core plus 20 hours); and Level IV 14 hours. Level III Personal Care competency/training requirements are to be met within four months. [5][4] |
| Registry checks | Home Care Agencies may not hire a person with a substantiated Health Care Personnel Registry finding. Aides performing Level III Personal Care tasks must be registered as Nurse Aide I on the North Carolina Nurse Aide Registry. [5][4][9] |
| General liability insurance | Home Assistance Services Providers must maintain liability insurance. The sources reviewed do not specify that this must be a particular general-liability policy or state an insurance requirement for Home Care Agencies. [1][2] |
| Workers' compensation | Not confirmed in official sources — check with the state agency |
| Bonding (surety / dishonesty) | Not confirmed in official sources — check with the state agency |
| Rule changes 2025–2026 | No 2025–2026 change identified. Note: the Home Assistance Services Provider license (companion/sitter/respite/homemaker without hands-on care) appears in G.S. 131E-136/-138, whose history note cites S.L. 2023-150 (a 2023 law, outside the 2025–2026 window). [1][10] |
Source notes and conflicts
The facts describe two distinct license pathways, not contradictory requirements: Home Care Agency licensure applies to hands-on personal care, while the 2023 law establishes a Home Assistance Services Provider pathway for specified non-health-care, non-hands-on services. The $510 initial and renewal amounts are stated for Home Care Agency licenses; the statute states a $510 annual fee but does not separately clarify the fee schedule or renewal timing for Home Assistance Services Providers.
Sources
- N.C.G.S. §131E-138 – Licensure requirements
https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_131E/GS_131E-138.html - SL 2023-150 (SB 274)
https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/SessionLaws/HTML/2023-2024/SL2023-150.html - G.S. 131E-136
https://www.ncleg.gov/enactedlegislation/statutes/html/bysection/chapter_131e/gs_131e-136.html - [PDF] In Home Aide Services - NC DHHS
https://www.ncdhhs.gov/documents/files/homeaide-manual/open - [PDF] Frequently Asked Questions - NC DHHS
https://info.ncdhhs.gov/dhsr/ahc/pdf/hcfaq.pdf - NC DHSR AHCLCS: Home Care Licensure Information
https://info.ncdhhs.gov/dhsr/ahc/homecare.html - Fee Schedules - NC DHSR AHCLCS - NC DHHS
https://info.ncdhhs.gov/dhsr/ahc/feeschedule.html - Requirements for Establishing a Home Care Agency
https://info.ncdhhs.gov/dhsr/ahc/flohc.htm - [DOC] In-Home Aide Monitoring Tool FY26.docx - NC DHHS
https://www.ncdhhs.gov/home-aide-monitoring-tool-aaas-fy26/open - N.C.G.S. §131E-136 – Definitions
https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_131E/GS_131E-136.html
Limits: fees and forms change often. Agencies sometimes post conflicting figures (a statute vs. an older form); those conflicts are shown, not resolved by guessing. Confirm the current fee with the agency before filing. This guide is a research reference, not legal advice.
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