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Maine Home Care Guideby Silver Linings Agency

Home Care Licensing and Caregiver Training in Maine

Last updated October 2026

Every home care agency in Maine needs a license from the State. This page explains what the license requires, what it does not tell you, how to look one up, and what training and background checks caregivers must have.

What Does a Maine Home Care Agency License Mean?

Since July 1, 2024, a business may not provide home care services in Maine without a license from the Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). The requirement is in Title 22 of the Maine Revised Statutes (MRS), section 1717 (22 MRS §1717). The State calls it a Personal Care Agency license. The Department’s Division of Licensing and Certification issues it under a rule in the Code of Maine Rules (CMR) that took effect on August 20, 2024 (10-144 CMR Chapter 129).

The rule sets minimum standards. A licensed agency must carry general and professional liability insurance and give each client a written contract that states the costs the client will pay, with 30 days’ notice before any price change. Before care starts, it must write a service plan with the client that says which services will be provided and how often, and it must review that plan with the client at least once a year. A supervisor must watch each new caregiver at work in a client’s home at least once every 30 days for their first three months, and review every caregiver’s performance once a year. The agency must report suspected abuse, neglect or misuse of a client’s money or belongings right away to Adult Protective Services and the State, and it must answer a client’s complaint in writing within seven days (Chapter 129).

A new agency starts with a provisional license that lasts 3 to 12 months. A full license lasts up to two years. The State can issue a conditional license, for up to 12 months, when an agency has not complied with the rules, and it sets out what the agency must correct during that time (Chapter 129).

What Doesn’t the License Tell You?

A license is a minimum, not a quality rating. It means the agency met the State’s standards when it was licensed or last inspected, and the State does not rank or recommend agencies. The license says nothing about whether an agency has caregivers free for the hours you need, what it charges, or whether it accepts your way of paying.

A home care agency provides non-medical help, and the rule bars it from advertising home health services or any service that requires a licensed medical professional. Skilled care at home, such as nursing, comes from a home health agency, which holds a different license. Some agencies hold both licenses (Chapter 129).

How Do I Check an Agency’s License?

You can use this guide to quickly find licensed agencies that serve your town. Each agency’s page shows its license number and links to the State’s license lookup, where you can verify the license. The lookup shows the license status, the date the agency was first licensed, the expiration date, its office address, and a list of inspections with the date, type and result of each.

An expiration date in the past does not always mean the license has lapsed. When an agency applies to renew on time, its license stays in effect until the State decides, and the lookup says so on the agency’s record (5 MRS §10002).

The State may inspect an agency before licensing it, before renewing the license, after a complaint, or for routine monitoring. When an inspection finds a rule was broken, the State sends the agency a statement of deficiencies, and the agency has ten business days to send back a plan of correction. An agency must tell its clients the outcome of any inspection or investigation if they ask (Chapter 129). For questions to put to an agency about this, see license and inspections in Questions to Ask a Home Care Agency.

Anyone can file a complaint about a licensed agency with the Division of Licensing and Certification, online or at 207-287-9308 (Maine DHHS). The rule bars an agency from retaliating against a client who complains (Chapter 129).

What Training Must Caregivers Have?

Most caregivers at home care agencies hold one of two credentials: Personal Support Specialist (PSS) or certified nursing assistant (CNA). Some have more training, such as a licensed practical nurse (LPN) or registered nurse (RN) license, and the rule allows an LPN or RN to supervise caregivers (Chapter 129). One agency can employ caregivers with different credentials.

A caregiver who gives hands-on help, such as bathing, dressing, eating, using the toilet, or moving from bed to chair, must be a CNA or have finished PSS training or another program the State approves. A new hire without that training can start work if they enroll within 60 days of being hired and finish within nine months. Caregivers whose work is limited to meals, shopping, light housework, managing money and communication do not need this training (Chapter 129, Section 4(A)(2)). Every caregiver goes through the agency’s orientation before working alone with a client, and gets training every year on topics that include reporting abuse and infection control (Chapter 129).

Personal Support Specialist (PSS)

PSS is the State’s entry-level training for caregivers who do non-medical work. Under the MaineCare rule, the course takes at least 50 hours of classroom teaching, demonstration and practice, and ends with an exam of both knowledge and hands-on skills (MaineCare rule, Section 96). The State’s course materials describe a PSS as an unlicensed worker who is not a nursing assistant and works only within the tasks they were trained for (PSS curriculum).

Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA)

A CNA training program in Maine must include at least 130 hours: 70 hours in the classroom, 20 hours of skills practice in a lab, and 40 hours of supervised clinical practice. A registered nurse must be in charge of the program. After finishing the training and passing a competency test, the nursing assistant is listed on the Maine Registry of Certified Nursing Assistants and Direct Care Workers (Board of Nursing rule, Chapter 5).

Do Caregivers Need to Pass Background Checks?

Yes. Every employee of a home care agency, and its owners and administrator, must pass a background check through the Maine Background Check Center before they can work there. That check includes the Maine Registry of Certified Nursing Assistants and Direct Care Workers. The agency must also confirm that each employee has no substantiated finding of abuse, neglect or taking a client’s property from Adult or Child Protective Services (Chapter 129; 22 MRS §1717; Maine Background Check Center).

The registry lists certified nursing assistants and records criminal convictions and substantiated complaints that can bar a person from working as a CNA or direct care worker (Maine DHHS, CNA Registry). Anyone can search it by name on the State’s registry lookup.

Next Step

Search for agencies that serve your town, then look up each one’s license and inspections before you call.

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