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Maryland · License fees and time frames · COMAR 10.07.05.04
OHCQ’s application says there is no fee to apply for a Maryland Residential Service Agency license, even though COMAR still prints $1,000. No current processing time is published. Here are the state fees that do apply, the other costs with official prices, each step to the license, why we give no date, and what changed for renewal in 2018.
Quick answer
Cost: OHCQ’s application says "There is no fee to apply for a license." (RSA application). COMAR 10.07.05.04A(2)(k) still prints a $1,000 fee for a 3-year license (COMAR), but Chapter 661 of 2018 struck the statutory fee requirement (Chapter 661 of 2018). By our reading you pay OHCQ nothing to apply.
Other state fees: $38 per State criminal history check fingerprinted in person, or $18 by mail-in card (DPSCS), and SDAT’s $20 certificate of good standing, which by our reading is the letter OHCQ asks for (SDAT). These are state fees, not CareRulebook prices.
Time: no current processing time is published. OHCQ’s 2018 instructions, now archived, said 2 to 3 months after all documents arrive (OHCQ instructions, 2018), and in 2020 OHCQ described a 90-day provisional license and a first survey for agencies with nurses and aides (OHCQ slides, 2020). We cannot give you a date, and we do not estimate one.
Every amount below is a state fee: the Maryland Department of Health’s, as its rule and OHCQ’s application state them, or the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services’ for criminal history checks. None of them is a CareRulebook price.
| What for (whose fee) | Amount | Notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| RSA license application (MDH, OHCQ) | $0 | OHCQ’s application (rev. 06.26.2026) says there is no fee to apply for a license. | OHCQ application, Instructions |
| License fee the rule still prints (MDH) | $1,000 (rule text) | For a 3-year license. Chapter 661 of 2018 struck the statutory fee requirement, so by our reading it is no longer charged. See below. | COMAR 10.07.05.04A(2)(k) |
| Extra prelicensure on-site visit (MDH) | $250 each (rule text) | Only when the agency is not compliant and needs more than one visit before licensing; the Department may deny the license instead. We could not confirm it is still charged since 2018. | COMAR 10.07.05.04K |
| Amended license after a name or address change (MDH) | $50 (rule text) | OHCQ now takes these changes on online forms; whether the fee is charged is unconfirmed. | COMAR 10.07.05.05A(3) |
| Renewal (MDH) | None, by our reading | The rule still describes a 3-year license and renewal, but Chapter 661 of 2018 struck renewal from the statute and OHCQ’s RSA page has no renewal process. | Chapter 661 of 2018 |
| State criminal history check, per worker (DPSCS) | $38 in person; $18 by mail-in card | In person includes the $20 CJIS service fee. DPSCS says in-state employment checks use live scan, with ink cards only for a bona fide medical reason. Private fingerprinting providers may add their own fee. | DPSCS fee schedule |
| Becoming an authorized agency for CJIS checks (DPSCS) | No fee | You apply for an authorization number before the first check. | DPSCS, Background Checks |
Sources for the live scan and provider notes: DPSCS, Private Providers. Fees are set by the state, not by CareRulebook.
What the rule says. The application section of COMAR 10.07.05.04 still lists "a nonrefundable license fee of $1,000 made payable to the Department for a 3-year licensing fee" (COMAR 10.07.05.04A(2)(k)), and it sets a term: "A license is valid for 3 years from the date of issuance, unless" one of the events the rule lists occurs (.04H). The chapter was adopted in its current form in 2012 and last amended effective March 13, 2017 (COMAR 10.07.05, history).
What changed in 2018. Chapter 661 of 2018 struck from the statute the requirement that the Secretary charge RSA licensing fees (Chapter 661 of 2018, §19-4A-03(c)) and the words "and the renewal of licenses for a 3–year term" (§19-4A-03(b)). The Department of Legislative Services’ fiscal note says the bill "effectively authorizes OHCQ to issue nonexpiring licenses to specified provider types and eliminate all related licensing fees" (fiscal note, SB 108 (2018)), and that "mandated periodic survey and reporting requirements are unchanged" (same note). Before then, the fee was $1,000 for initial and renewal licenses on a 3-year term, for 1,139 RSAs (fiscal note, Appendix 2).
What OHCQ says now. "There is no fee to apply for a license." (RSA application, rev. 06.26.2026)
Our reading. The statute and OHCQ’s current application agree, and the rule text is older than both, so by our reading you pay no license fee and your license does not expire. The same reasoning leaves the $250 extra-visit fee and the $50 amended license fee in doubt, because the fiscal note speaks of eliminating all related licensing fees; we could not confirm either way. These points are on our list of questions for OHCQ.
Simple arithmetic, not a state figure
Checking 10 caregivers. State-only checks fingerprinted in person: $38 × 10 = $380 in DPSCS fees, before any private provider’s own fee (DPSCS). The agency pays for each check (Health-General §19-1902).
Simple arithmetic, not a state figure
A new LLC and its letter of good standing. $100 + $20 = $120 in SDAT fees, plus $50 if you expedite the filing and SDAT’s 3% fee for paying online (SDAT fee schedule; online fee).
Our reading of the sources
OHCQ’s part. $0 to apply, and no renewal fee, by our reading of OHCQ’s application and Chapter 661 of 2018. The $250 extra-visit charge in the rule text would arise only if an applicant is not compliant and needs a second prelicensure visit (COMAR 10.07.05.04K).
Each card says where the duty comes from. We give a price only where an official source sets one; none of the sources we checked publishes prices for a registered nurse, insurance, training or private background checks.
For clients who need skilled services or help with activities of daily living, the agency must have a registered nurse overseeing the care plan, delegation, supervision and training, with on-site supervision at least every 4 months (3 with help with self-administered medication, 45 days if staff administer). The rules do not say whether the nurse is an employee or a contractor. We found no official price.
The application asks for the declaration page of your workers’ compensation coverage, or a Certificate of Compliance (corporations and LLCs not required to carry it) or a Letter of Exemption (sole proprietors and partnerships with no employees). We found no liability insurance rule for RSAs. We do not quote premiums.
SDAT charges $100 to file Articles of Organization for a Maryland LLC ($50 more to expedite) and $20 for a Certificate of Good Standing, which by our reading is the official letter of good standing the application asks for. Paying online adds a 3% fee. These are SDAT’s fees.
A State check through CJIS, with live scan fingerprints, or a licensed private agency check covering every state the worker lived or worked in during the past 7 years. If your agency is authorized for a full State and FBI check, DPSCS lists $53 in person, and from October 1, 2026 adds $3 for checks that include the federal part. The RSA statute asks for a State check. We found no official price for private agency checks.
Health-General §19-1902DPSCS feesFBI fee riseHow the checks work →
At least 3 hours within 45 days of starting for direct care and supervisory staff, then 2 hours each calendar year, with certificates and records. It may be given by the supervisory staff member who develops plans of care. We found no official price.
Seven topics for anyone giving care in clients’ homes, CPR among them. You may train your own staff; an outside trainer needs OHCQ’s written approval first. We found no official price for either.
The license is displayed at or near the entrance of the agency’s office, and files on current clients and staff are kept on site. We found no zoning or home-office rule in COMAR 10.07.05; ask OHCQ before applying from a home address, and check local zoning.
Required of every applicant, for the initial license and every 3 years after. We found no fee for it in OHCQ’s application or on its RSA page.
Policies for the 23 items in COMAR 10.07.05.08B go in with the application. You can write them yourself or start from a manual; either way the agency develops and implements them.
Fees are set by MDH, DPSCS and SDAT, not by CareRulebook.
CareRulebook
Answer a few questions and CareRulebook writes your Maryland RSA policies and forms, with your agency’s details, the rule quoted under each policy and a Section B index of your page numbers, ready for your registered nurse to read and adopt before you apply. Read every policy before you adopt it.
$199CareRulebook founding price for the first 50 Maryland agencies, then $249. Not an OHCQ fee; OHCQ’s application says there is no fee to apply.
The order follows OHCQ’s application and COMAR 10.07.05; only steps with a time in an official source show one, and the 2020 step is archived guidance. Tick steps off as you go; progress is saved in this browser only.
The application asks for an official letter of good standing from SDAT Business Express. Forming the business can be the first wait: SDAT reviews expedited online filings within 7-10 business days and non-expedited ones within 6-8 weeks (SDAT’s figures).
For clients who need help with activities of daily living the agency must have a registered nurse. The application asks for the workers’ compensation declaration page, or a Certificate of Compliance or Letter of Exemption.
Policies for the 23 items in COMAR 10.07.05.08B go in with the application, indexed by document and page. The 23 items and the index.
A 1-year operating budget, a marketing plan naming the populations you will serve, and a detailed description of services.
Someone with authority over pay or employment practices reads the Attorney General’s guidance and completes OHCQ’s online worker classification certification. Every applicant does this.
Through OHCQ’s “Submit a License Application” form. An application is complete only when OHCQ has every item; OHCQ holds an incomplete one for 180 days from first receipt, then closes it. The application item by item.
OHCQ reviews every application and may inspect the agency on site, announced or unannounced, before approving or denying it. No current processing time is published.
A license is issued once OHCQ decides the applicant complies with all licensure requirements. A denial comes with a letter giving the reasons and appeal rights; a hearing request is due no later than 30 days after you receive notice.
In 2020 OHCQ described a 90-day provisional license for agencies with nurses and aides: admit 3 clients within 45 days, then an unannounced survey, and an acceptable plan of correction for any deficiencies before the license. Archived guidance, not confirmed for 2026. How OHCQ inspects an RSA.
Apply for the criminal history check and request a reference from the most recent employer before work starts; the in-person interview and skills demonstration come before referral to a client; 3 hours of dementia training within 45 days of starting.
OHCQ’s 2020 slides said a regular license, not a provisional one, is needed before applying for Medicaid reimbursement. Medicaid pays an RSA for personal assistance only when an employee provides it.
RN on-site supervision at least every 4 months (3 with self-administration help, 45 days if staff give medication), a governing authority meeting each year, and the worker classification certification every 3 years.
OHCQ’s 2026 application and RSA page publish no processing time, range or average. What the sources do say:
We have no current basis for an estimate, so we do not make one. Our suggestion: when you apply, ask the RSA Team (410-402-8040) what to expect (OHCQ, RSA page).
What you control. A typed application, since handwritten ones are returned (application); every attachment in the first submission, because "An application is not complete until the Department has received all the materials required in this application." (application, Determination); and policies that answer each Section B item, since in 2020 OHCQ said it could deny an application after 3 unacceptable reviews of revised policies (OHCQ slides, 2020). Our suggestion: do not sign client contracts or set a start date until the license is issued, because a person must be licensed before operating an RSA (Health-General §19-4A-04).
Signalled by OHCQ · proposed by the Board of Nursing
OHCQ’s signalled training update. OHCQ’s outside trainer checklist, revised September 24, 2026, marks hands-on CPR every 2 years by a certified instructor, an emergency preparedness plan, and training within 45 days of hire, yearly and before client referral, as a 2026 rule update (OHCQ trainer checklist). The Division of State Documents’ Table of Pending Proposals (as of September 30, 2026) lists no proposed action on COMAR 10.07.05, and the 2026 Maryland Register issues searched (53:5 to 53:20) contain none. (Division of State Documents) By our reading, if adopted, hands-on CPR every 2 years would be the main new training cost; there is no text, date or fee yet.
Board of Nursing: criminal history checks for certificate holders (proposed). The Board of Nursing proposed (and adopted as emergency rules effective August 25, 2026) amendments implementing Chapters 370 and 371 of 2026: criminal history records checks for all professions under the Board’s jurisdiction, including certified medication technicians and nursing assistants, and one fingerprint set instead of two. This changes the Board’s certification process, not the RSA rules; agencies still verify certificates under COMAR 10.07.05.10B(1)(b). Comments to MDH by October 5, 2026. (Maryland Register 53:18, 26-127-P) By our reading this falls on people applying to the Board for certification, not on the RSA’s own State check.
A person may not operate, attempt to operate, or hold themselves out as operating an RSA unless licensed. Operating without a license can bring a civil money penalty of up to $10,000 per violation, and it is a misdemeanor.
Health-General §19-4A-07; COMAR 10.07.05.27The application must be typed; handwritten applications are returned to the applicant.
OHCQ application, InstructionsOHCQ holds an incomplete application for 180 days from first receipt, then closes it; you would start again with a new application.
OHCQ application, DeterminationIf the agency is not compliant and more than one prelicensure visit is needed, the rule text lets the Department charge $250 per extra visit or deny the license.
COMAR 10.07.05.04KFailing to follow the change, sale and closure rules can bring a fine of up to $500 per violation.
COMAR 10.07.05.05EAfter a notice of violation, an acceptable plan of correction is due within 10 calendar days, with a completion date for each deficiency.
COMAR 10.07.05.07EThe Department may pay an RSA for personal assistance services only if an employee provides them.
Health-General §19-4A-10(b)Up to $10,000 per instance or $1,000 per day; other sanctions include limits on clients, a management firm, required staffing and suspension or revocation.
COMAR 10.07.05.20-.22Fees, fines and penalties are set by the state, not by CareRulebook.
No. OHCQ’s application says there is no fee to apply, and Chapter 661 of 2018 struck the statutory fee requirement. COMAR 10.07.05.04 still prints $1,000; the chapter was last amended in March 2017, before that law.
"There is no fee to apply for a license."
It depends. Probably not, but confirm with OHCQ. COMAR still describes a 3-year license and renewal, but Chapter 661 of 2018 struck the renewal language from the statute, and OHCQ’s RSA page has no renewal process. Every 3 years you must still renew the worker classification certification under Health-General §19-4A-11.
"and the renewal of licenses for a 3–year term"
No. The rule text lets the Department charge $250 only for each additional prelicensure on-site visit, when an applicant is not in compliance and needs more than one visit before licensing; it may deny the license instead. We could not confirm it is still charged since Chapter 661 of 2018, whose fiscal note says OHCQ may eliminate all related licensing fees. We found no fee for routine or complaint inspections in COMAR 10.07.05.
"Charge $250 per additional on-site visit; or"
It depends. Nobody can promise a date. The 2-to-3-month figure comes from OHCQ’s 2018 application instructions, now archived, and counted from when all documents arrive. The 2026 application and RSA page give no processing time. If OHCQ still uses the provisional license and first survey it described in 2020, add the time to admit three clients and pass that survey. Ask the RSA Team (410-402-8040) what to expect.
"The total processing time of the application should take 2 to 3 months after all documents are received."
OHCQ’s application says there is no fee to apply for a license. COMAR 10.07.05.04A(2)(k) still prints a nonrefundable $1,000 fee for a 3-year license, but Chapter 661 of 2018 struck the statutory fee requirement, and its fiscal note says the bill lets OHCQ eliminate all related licensing fees. By our reading you pay OHCQ nothing to apply. Other state fees still apply, such as $38 per State criminal history check fingerprinted in person (DPSCS’s fee) and SDAT’s fees for forming the business and the letter of good standing. These are state fees, not CareRulebook prices.
OHCQ does not publish a current processing time for RSAs. Its 2018 application instructions, now archived, said 2 to 3 months after all documents are received. If the 2020 provisional license process still applies to agencies with nurses and aides, add up to 90 days to admit 3 clients and pass an unannounced survey. We cannot give you a date; ask the RSA Team (410-402-8040) what to expect.
By our reading, no, but confirm with OHCQ. COMAR still describes a 3-year license and renewal, but Chapter 661 of 2018 struck renewal and the fee from the statute, the fiscal note says it lets OHCQ issue nonexpiring licenses, and OHCQ’s RSA page has no renewal process. The worker classification certification is still due every 3 years, and the fiscal note says periodic surveys are unchanged.
DPSCS lists $38 for a State-only criminal history check fingerprinted in person, including its $20 service fee, or $18 by mail-in card. DPSCS says in-state employment checks must use live scan fingerprinting, and private fingerprinting providers may charge their own fee on top. The agency pays for each check. Becoming an authorized agency costs nothing. These are DPSCS fees. A licensed private agency check is the other route; we found no official price for it.
We found no fee for it in OHCQ’s application or on its RSA page. It is required of every applicant, for the initial license and every 3 years after.
OHCQ holds an application for 180 days from the date it first receives it. If it is still not complete, it is closed as inactive, and you can reapply with a new application. An application is complete only when OHCQ has received every item the application asks for.
No. A person must be licensed before operating an RSA, and may not hold themselves out as operating one until licensed. Operating without a license can bring a civil money penalty of up to $10,000 per violation, and it is a misdemeanor.
OHCQ has signalled a 2026 update to the RSA training rules, and COMAR 10.07.05.04 still prints a fee the statute no longer requires. Leave your email and we will tell you when a Maryland rule or fee change affects your agency.
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