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Virginia · License fees and time frames · 12VAC5-381-40, -70
The Virginia OLC charges $1,500 for a home care organization license that lasts three years, and the same again to renew. Apply at least 60 days before you plan to open. Here is every OLC fee, the costs the rules require without setting a price, and each deadline from application to renewal.
Quick answer
Cost: the Virginia Department of Health’s Office of Licensure and Certification (OLC) charges $1,500 for each initial or renewal license application, and a home care organization (HCO) license lasts three years. The fee is paid with the application and is not refundable. Renewing late adds $50.
Time: submit a complete application at least 60 days before your planned opening date. The OLC arranges a prelicensure consultation once a complete application is on file, may inspect, and issues the license when it finds you comply. Until then you cannot serve clients. After that: inspections at least every two years and renewal every three.
The rules also require costs the OLC does not price: insurance with set minimums, reserve funds for your first three months, and a CPA audit at least every three years.
Every amount below is a state fee paid to the OLC, set by 12VAC5-381-70. These are the OLC’s fees, not CareRulebook prices.
| What for | OLC fee | Notes | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial license application | $1,500 | Covers a license that lasts three years. Paid with the application. | 12VAC5-381-70 A |
| Renewal application, every three years | $1,500 | The same fee as the initial license. | 12VAC5-381-70 A; -40 E |
| Late renewal fee | + $50 | On top of the renewal fee, if the renewal application is not filed by the date specified. | 12VAC5-381-70 B |
| Reissued or replacement license | $250 | For example after a change of operator, name or address. Sent with the application for reissue or replacement. | 12VAC5-381-70 C; -60 B |
| Exemption from licensure | $75 | A one-time processing fee, sent with the exemption application. | 12VAC5-381-70 D |
Simple arithmetic, not an OLC figure
$1,500 ÷ 3 years = $500 a year. That is only a way to budget for it. The OLC does not bill yearly: the full $1,500 goes with the application, "The OLC shall collect a fee of $1,500 for each initial and renewal license application. Fees shall accompany the licensure application and are not refundable." 12VAC5-381-70 A
VDH’s licensing page confirms that from May 22, 2025 the triennial fee for every HCO license is $1,500. VDH OLC Branch offices run under the main license and need no license of their own. Va. Code § 32.1-162.9 C
The rules require each of these, but the price is up to whoever provides them. We do not quote typical prices, because they vary and no official source publishes them.
At least $1 million comprehensive general liability per occurrence; third-party crime insurance or a blanket fidelity bond of at least $50,000; and malpractice insurance consistent with Va. Code § 8.01-581.15 (the regulation gives no amount of its own). Kept at all times. VDH says umbrella and excess liability insurance may count toward the minimums.
Your initial application includes a detailed operating budget for the three months after licensing, and proof of reserve operating funds to cover them: cash, cash equivalents, or borrowed funds or a line of credit that is immediately available. The proof is a current balance sheet, a letter from your bank, or a letter of credit from a lender.
Keep financial records under generally accepted accounting principles and have them audited by an independent certified public accountant at least every three years, or as otherwise provided by law. You also need a working budget and documented controls against theft or embezzlement.
Within 30 days of employment, the organization obtains a Virginia State Police criminal record report for each paid employee, and every applicant for employment gives a sworn disclosure statement. The statute and the regulation put the duty to obtain the report on the organization; neither sets a fee for it.
12VAC5-381-110; § 32.1-162.9:1Background checks in Virginia →
An administrator with at least a year of health care experience and a year of supervisory experience in the last five, and a registered nurse designated to supervise personal care. What you pay them is up to you.
Policies approved by your governing body on every topic 12VAC5-381-180 lists, reviewed every year. The OLC checks them against the regulation.
At renewal, the statute limits the paperwork: "Upon renewal of a license, the Department shall not require a home care organization to submit financial documents other than those required for initial licensure." Va. Code § 32.1-162.9 H
CareRulebook
Answer a few questions and CareRulebook writes the Virginia policies the OLC checks, with your organization's details filled in and the rule quoted under every policy.
$199CareRulebook founding price for the first 50 Virginia organizations, then $249. Not an OLC fee.
The rules set your deadlines but give the OLC no fixed processing time, so the 60 days before opening are a minimum. Tick steps off as you go; progress is saved in this browser only.
Appoint an administrator with the required experience and designate a registered nurse to supervise personal care. Put the insurance in place, write a three-month operating budget, line up the reserve funds and the proof of them, and have your governing body approve your written policies.
Submit a complete application through the VDH OLC Portal with the OLC’s $1,500 fee (how to apply). The 60 days are there to allow the OLC time to process it.
An application is complete once all the requested information and the fee are in. If anything is missing, the OLC tells you in writing. An incomplete application becomes inactive six months after the OLC receives it, and you would then reapply with a new fee.
Once a complete application is on file, the OLC arranges a consultation to explain the regulation and the survey process. It is a good time to ask anything you are unsure of.
Applicants are subject to OLC inspection, and the license is issued once the OLC finds you comply with the law and the regulation. Wait for it before serving anyone: operating an unlicensed home care organization is a Class 6 felony.
Your reserve operating funds are meant to keep the organization running for the three months after the license is issued. The rule sets no dollar amount; your own budget shows what that is.
Unannounced, as often as the OLC needs and at least every two years. If deficiencies are found, send an acceptable plan of correction within 15 working days of receiving the report, and finish the corrections within 45 working days of the last day of the inspection (Virginia inspections).
The license expires on the third anniversary of its issue or renewal. The OLC makes the renewal application available at least 60 days before then. File a complete renewal on time, with the $1,500 fee, and your current license stays in effect until the new one is issued. Your financial records also need an independent CPA audit at least every three years.
It becomes inactive six months after the OLC receives it, and you reapply with a completed application and a new fee.
12VAC5-381-40 DYou can withdraw an application at any time, but license fees are not refundable.
12VAC5-381-40 D; -70 AAn extra $50 on top of the $1,500 renewal fee. Filing a complete renewal on time also keeps your current license in effect until the new one arrives, and making sure that happens is your responsibility.
12VAC5-381-40 F; -70 BThese need a reissued license, with the OLC’s $250 fee. Give written notice 30 working days in advance.
12VAC5-381-60 B; -70 CThe statute says failing to keep the required liability and crime cover results in revocation of the license.
Va. Code § 32.1-162.11A license cannot be transferred or assigned, so a new owner applies for its own license, with the $1,500 initial fee.
12VAC5-381-20 ENo. Licenses are renewed every three years, at $1,500 per renewal application. The statute says each license expires on the third anniversary of its issue or renewal.
"Every such license shall expire on the third anniversary of its issuance or renewal."
No. You need malpractice insurance, at least $1 million per occurrence of general liability, and crime insurance or a fidelity bond of at least $50,000, at all times. VDH accepts umbrella and excess liability policies toward the minimums. Letting cover lapse results in revocation of the license.
"Failure to maintain these requirements shall result in revocation of the home care organization's license."
No. Running an unlicensed home care organization is a Class 6 felony. Apply at least 60 days before your planned opening; the Commissioner issues the license only after finding you comply, and applicants are subject to OLC inspection.
"A completed application for initial licensure must be submitted at least 60 days prior to the organization's planned opening date to allow the OLC time to process the application."
No. Branch offices operate under the main license. Send OLC the branch address and it issues an updated license within 10 business days. A drop site used as a business office is different: it counts as a separate organization and needs its own license.
"Branch offices shall be operated under the initial license issued to the home care organization and shall not be required to obtain an additional license."
The OLC charges $1,500 for each initial or renewal home care organization license application, and a license lasts three years. Spread over three years that works out at $500 a year, but the full $1,500 is paid with the application. The fee is not refundable. These are the OLC’s fees, not CareRulebook prices.
Submit a complete application at least 60 days before your planned opening date, to allow the OLC time to process it. The regulation does not give the OLC a fixed processing deadline. Once a complete application is on file the OLC arranges a prelicensure consultation, applicants are subject to inspection, and the license is issued when the OLC finds you comply.
No. Fees go with the application and are not refundable. You can withdraw an application at any time. If an application stays incomplete, it becomes inactive six months after the OLC receives it, and you would reapply with a new application fee.
The OLC collects an extra $50 if the renewal application is not filed by the date specified. The OLC makes renewal applications available at least 60 days before your license expires, and if you file a complete and accurate renewal on time, your current license stays in effect until the new one is issued.
The regulation sets no dollar figure. Your initial application includes a detailed operating budget for the three months after the license is issued, and proof of reserve operating funds enough to run the organization for those three months. The funds can be cash, cash equivalents, borrowed funds or a line of credit that is immediately available.
At least $1 million per occurrence of comprehensive general liability, third-party crime insurance or a blanket fidelity bond of at least $50,000, and malpractice insurance consistent with Va. Code § 8.01-581.15, kept at all times. VDH says umbrella and excess liability insurance may be used to meet the minimums. Letting the cover lapse results in revocation of the license.
The OLC makes unannounced on-site inspections as often as it needs to, and at least every two years. After an inspection with deficiencies, the administrator sends an acceptable plan of correction within 15 working days of receiving the report, and corrections are completed within 45 working days of the last day of the inspection.
VDH has two amendments to 12VAC5-381 in progress, neither in force yet. Leave your email and we will tell you when either moves forward and what it changes for your organization.
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