Michigan adult foster care license: family homes, group homes and LARA approval

What Michigan calls adult foster care

Michigan does not use “assisted living” or “residential care home” as license names. The Adult Foster Care Facility Licensing Act (1979 PA 218) covers homes and facilities that provide foster care to adults who are aged, mentally ill, developmentally disabled or physically disabled, and who need supervision on an ongoing basis but do not need continuous nursing care.⁠¹ “Aged” means 60 or older, by birth date or by a physician’s finding of biological age.⁠¹ The Act defines “foster care” as supervision, personal care and protection in addition to room and board, for 24 hours a day, 5 or more days a week, for 2 or more consecutive weeks, for compensation, at a single address; renting a room under a landlord-tenant arrangement does not by itself take you outside the license requirement.⁠¹⁷ So the same license covers a six-bed home for older adults with dementia and a group home for adults with developmental disabilities.

The Act excludes facilities licensed under other laws, including nursing homes, hospitals and homes for the aged.⁠¹ A home for the aged is a Public Health Code license for room, board and supervised personal care to 21 or more unrelated adults aged 55 and older,⁠¹⁶ which you can read about in the Michigan home for the aged license guide. It also excludes a private residence serving 1 to 4 adults who all receive community mental health services, when the local community mental health program monitors the services there.⁠¹

No person, company or government unit may establish or maintain an AFC facility without a LARA license.⁠² If LARA finds an unlicensed home that meets the definition, it notifies the operator; failing to apply within 30 days exposes the operator to a misdemeanor of up to 2 years in prison and/or a $50,000 fine, and a repeat violation is a felony of up to 5 years and/or $75,000.⁠²

The license classes begin at three adults. The Act’s definition of an AFC facility sets no minimum number of residents,⁠¹ and neither the Act nor the 2025 rules say whether a private home caring for only one or two unrelated adults needs a license, apart from the exclusion for 1 to 4 adults who all receive community mental health services and the “foster care” definition above.⁠¹⁠¹⁰⁠¹⁷ If you plan to care for fewer than three people, ask your LARA licensing consultant for a written answer before you take in residents.

Choosing the license class

Your capacity and whether you live in the home decide the class.⁠¹

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

The fee table has applied since January 1, 2022, and it covers both temporary (initial) and renewal applications.⁠³ The Act lists the congregate fee as “renewal only.”⁠³ MCL 400.703 defines a congregate facility as one approved for more than 20 adults,⁠¹ but neither the statute nor the rules say whether LARA accepts new applications for one, and LARA’s online application page lists original applications only for family homes and group homes.⁠¹² Ask LARA before you plan a facility of that size.

The family home is the only class built around the owner living on site.⁠¹ It is also the only class that does not need a separate administrator.⁠¹⁰ An investor who will staff a house with employees applies for a small group home, even at six beds.

Relatives of the licensee and live-in staff do not count toward licensed capacity, but they are “occupants,” and total occupants may not exceed licensed capacity by more than 6.⁠¹⁰ If an occupant later needs foster care and pushes you over capacity, you have 30 days to get back within it.⁠¹⁰ Raising a small group home above 6 residents is treated as a new temporary-license application, with the zoning and fire steps described below.⁠⁷ An AFC family or group home cannot also hold a family or group child care home license.⁠²

Zoning and the six-bed line

Six residents is the most important number in Michigan AFC planning, because both zoning and fire safety change above it.

The Michigan Zoning Enabling Act treats a “state licensed residential facility” as a residential use, permitted in all residential zones and not subject to any special or conditional use permit that other dwellings of the same density do not face.⁠¹⁴ The term covers a structure built for residential purposes, licensed under the AFC Act, serving 6 or fewer people under 24-hour supervision or care.⁠¹⁵ The protection does not apply to AFC facilities that serve people released from or assigned to adult correctional institutions.⁠¹⁴

Above 6 adults, LARA cannot grant a temporary license until you have zoning approval or a special or conditional use permit, if the city, village or township ordinance requires one.⁠⁵ At any size, LARA may not grant a temporary license that would “substantially contribute to an excessive concentration of community residential facilities” in a city, village or township unless the local unit approves.⁠⁵ These siting rules do not apply if you buy a facility that was licensed when you bought it or at any time in the year before your application.⁠⁵

AFC small and large group homes also affect neighbors. A county or township must issue a special use permit to a group child care home that, among other conditions, is at least 1,500 feet from any licensed AFC small or large group home.⁠¹⁴ That is a constraint on child care operators, not on you, but local planners may raise it.

Who can hold the license

The statute sets the baseline. Before issuing or renewing a license, LARA investigates and must be satisfied with the facility’s financial stability, your compliance with the Act and rules, the good moral character of the applicant (or of the owners, partners or directors of an entity), and the physical and emotional ability of the applicant and the person running daily operations.⁠² Owners, partners and directors must be at least 18.⁠² You must disclose everyone with an ownership interest, and if the property is leased, the lessor’s name and any interest you have in the lease besides being the tenant.⁠²

Certain convictions bar a license outright for the applicant, the licensee designee, and any owner, partner or director with regular direct access to residents or on-site operational duties:⁠²

• A felony under the AFC Act or under the Michigan Penal Code’s vulnerable-adult chapter (MCL 750.145m to 750.145r).
• A misdemeanor under either of those laws within the previous 10 years.
• A misdemeanor involving abuse, neglect, assault, battery, criminal sexual conduct, or fraud or theft against a vulnerable adult within the previous 10 years.

LARA may also refuse anyone whose AFC license was revoked, suspended, not renewed or denied in the previous 5 years, and anyone with a relationship to such a person, such as someone who would have a financial interest, work in, or live in the new facility.⁠²

The November 3, 2025 rules add qualifications for both the licensee and the administrator:⁠¹⁰

• A high school diploma, GED or equivalent, and at least 1 year of direct experience working with people who are aged or have a mental illness, developmental disability, physical disability, traumatic brain injury or Alzheimer’s disease. The experience must match the population named in your program statement and admission policy. Family and congregate facilities licensed before the rules and continuously licensed since are exempt from the education requirement.
• Competence in nutrition, first aid, CPR, foster care, safety and fire prevention, financial and administrative management, the needs of your population, resident rights, communicable disease prevention and medication administration.
• The financial and administrative capability to run the facility at the level of care in your program statement.

You, your administrator and your staff may not serve as the legal guardian or conservator of a resident who lives in the facility, unless you are a relative or the arrangement predates April 1, 1989.⁠¹⁰ You must also tell LARA within 48 hours if a volunteer or household member is on court-supervised probation or parole or has a felony conviction.⁠¹⁰

Training and health statements

After licensure, the licensee and the administrator each need 16 hours of LARA-accepted training a year tied to the program statement, or 6 credit hours at an accredited college or university, or a combination.⁠¹⁰ Both must complete LARA’s “AFC New Provider Training” within 6 months of the initial license (or of being hired), unless they have already completed it.⁠¹⁰ Before you apply, LARA offers an online AFC Pre-Licensing Training Course that walks prospective applicants through the process and the initial inspection.⁠¹¹

A physician (or a physician’s designee) must sign a statement about the physical health of the licensee and the administrator no more than 6 months before the temporary license is issued; staff and household members need one within 30 days of starting work or moving in.⁠¹⁰ You must review the health status of staff and household members every year and keep a baseline communicable-disease screening for staff on hire.⁠¹⁰

Staffing and ratios

The rules set a minimum of 1 direct care staff member on duty for every:⁠¹⁰

• 12 residents in family homes and small group homes; and
• 15 residents while awake and 20 while asleep in large group homes and congregate facilities.

Children under 12 who live in the household count as residents for these ratios.⁠¹⁰ Cooks, volunteers and private-duty aides do not count unless they meet direct care qualifications and give care on your behalf.⁠¹⁰ The ratio is a floor; you must staff to meet every resident’s assessment plan and care agreement.⁠¹⁰

Direct care staff must be 18 or older. Workers aged 16 or 17 may count toward the ratio only if an 18-plus trained staff member supervises them on site and they do not drive residents or give medication.⁠¹⁰ Before working alone, staff must be trained and competent in reporting requirements, first aid, CPR with a hands-on demonstration, personal care and protection, resident rights, safety and fire prevention, communicable disease control, food safety, and nutrition and special diets.⁠¹⁰

Before you hire anyone who will have direct access to residents, you must run a criminal history check through the Michigan State Police that includes fingerprints in the state’s automated fingerprint system.⁠⁹ You may employ someone conditionally while results are pending, if you meet the statute’s conditions.⁠⁹ LARA links to its Licensing Record Clearance Request (BCAL-1326A) fingerprint forms from the applicant page.⁠¹¹

The house: space, bedrooms and bathrooms

The 2025 rules set measurable standards that decide how many beds a given house can hold:⁠¹⁰

• Living space: at least 35 square feet of indoor living space per occupant, not counting bathrooms, storage, hallways, kitchens or bedrooms, plus dining space that seats all residents at once.
• Bedrooms: 80 square feet of usable floor space for a single room (65 square feet in a family home) and 65 square feet per bed in shared rooms, with no more than 2 beds per room (4 in facilities licensed on or before May 24, 1994 and continuously licensed) and 3 feet between beds. Usable space must be under a ceiling at least 6 feet 6 inches high.
• Below grade: a room more than half below grade cannot be a resident bedroom, unless it was approved before the 2025 rules.
• Floors: no resident may live above the second floor (facilities licensed on or before May 24, 1994 and continuously licensed since are exempt), and residents with impaired mobility must have their bedroom, bathroom, living and dining areas on the street floor with the required exits.
• Bathrooms: 1 toilet, 1 sink and 1 bathing fixture for every 8 occupants, and at least one of each on every floor with resident bedrooms.
• Doors and beds: bedroom doors must be side-hinged with latching hardware that does not lock against exit; beds must be at least 36 by 72 inches.
• Temperature: resident rooms heated to at least 68°F.

Your application file must include a floor plan of every level and the basement, showing room uses, the number of beds and floor dimensions.⁠¹⁰ Measure before you sign a lease or buy.

Fire safety: two different systems

Six or fewer residents. LARA applies the fire rules in Parts 7 and 8 of the AFC rules.⁠¹⁰ Requirements include drywall-equivalent construction, smoke alarms protecting each sleeping area and every floor, a 5-pound multipurpose extinguisher on each floor and in the basement, two separate exits from the first floor, and a furnace on a resident floor enclosed in a 1-hour fire-rated room with a self-closing solid-core door.⁠¹⁰ For new construction, conversions of a house to AFC use, and changes of license type, smoke alarms must be powered by the building’s electrical system and installed to NFPA 101 (2021 edition) on all levels, audible in every bedroom with doors closed; listed wireless systems are accepted instead.⁠¹⁰ If wheelchair users regularly live there, two first-floor exits need ramps.⁠¹⁰

Seven or more residents. LARA cannot issue any license until the facility has a certificate of approval from the Bureau of Fire Services (BFS).⁠⁸ LARA’s description of the process:⁠¹³

1. LARA sends the fire forms

   After the Licensing Unit receives everything needed for the first step of your application, it sends a Fire Safety Inspection Request (BCAL-1712) and an Application for Fire Safety Plan Examination (BFS-979).

2. You submit sealed plans

   You attach those forms to sealed and signed architectural plans and send them to the BFS Plan Review Division.

3. Certified firms submit shop drawings

   Firms certified under Act 144 submit shop drawings and cut sheets for the hood suppression, fire alarm and sprinkler systems (sprinkler submittals need hydraulic calculations and a water-flow test from the past 12 months), each with its own BFS-979.

4. 12A reviews and fee

   BFS returns a “12A” plan review report; once work is done, each firm signs it and returns it with a $40 processing fee (as published on 2026-10-12).

5. Inspection

   BFS then schedules a field inspection. After licensure, BFS inspects every year.

Every facility needs a written emergency preparedness plan that names where residents will receive care if the building becomes uninhabitable, plus a written fire safety plan, posted evacuation routes, and quarterly staff retraining on the plan, recorded and kept for 2 years.⁠¹⁰

Policies to have ready before the inspection

The rules list documents every applicant or licensee must keep:⁠¹⁰

• Admission policy and program statement (this defines your population and drives the experience requirement above).
• Personnel policies and job descriptions.
• Standard procedures, proposed staffing patterns and an organizational chart.
• Contracts with outside organizations for required care or services.
• The floor plan described above.
• Proof of ownership, lease or right to occupy.
• For corporations: articles and certificate of incorporation, a board letter naming the person authorized to act on licensing matters, and a list of directors.
• An emergency preparedness policy.

Small group, large group and congregate facilities also need written policies on mandatory reporting, prohibited practices, confidentiality, training, resident rights and how staff review the licensing law and rules, given to each staff member and volunteer at hire with signed receipt.⁠¹⁰

LARA may ask for an operating budget, invoices, receipts and similar records at initial licensure to judge whether you can deliver the care you describe.⁠¹⁰

Who you can admit

You may not accept or keep a resident who needs continuous nursing care; a resident who is temporarily ill or is receiving care from a licensed hospice is not counted as needing it.⁠¹⁰ You also may not accept or keep a resident who needs isolation or restraint, apart from permitted crisis intervention.⁠¹⁰ Before admission, you need a written assessment showing the facility can meet the person’s care, supervision and accommodation needs and that the person is compatible with other residents, any roommate and the household; the assessment plan is signed at admission, and then every year, by the resident or representative, any responsible agency and you.⁠¹⁰ A written resident care agreement at admission must state the services, the basic fee, any extra charges, the resident rights policy and the discharge policy.⁠¹⁰

Medications must stay in original labeled containers in a locked cabinet; staff who supervise medications must be trained and keep an individual medication log with dose, time, initials and refusals.⁠¹⁰

Application steps in order

1. Take the pre-licensing course

   LARA’s online AFC Pre-Licensing Training Course explains the process and initial inspection.⁠¹¹

2. Confirm the site

   Check zoning (permitted by right at 6 or fewer; possible special use permit above 6) and the concentration rule with the city, village or township.⁠⁵⁠¹⁴ Measure rooms against the bedroom, bathroom and living-space minimums.⁠¹⁰

3. Apply online

   LARA takes original applications through MiLogin: “Adult Foster Care Family Home - Original” or “Adult Foster Care Group Home - Original.” LARA asks you to read the AFC rules and the Act before submitting.⁠¹² The fee accompanies the application.⁠²⁠³

4. Work with your consultant

   After you submit, a LARA licensing consultant contacts you with further direction.⁠¹¹ If your application is incomplete, LARA must tell you in writing within 30 days.⁠²

5. Fire approval for 7 or more beds

   Complete the BFS plan review and inspection described above; LARA cannot license until BFS approves.⁠⁸⁠¹³

6. On-site evaluation

   LARA inspects the facility before issuing the license; the inspection may be unannounced.⁠² LARA posts practice inspection worksheets on its applicant page.⁠¹¹

7. Temporary license

   LARA issues a temporary license for the first 6 months of operation and may require a plan of correction first.⁠⁴

8. Regular license

   At the end of 6 months LARA issues a regular license, issues a provisional license, or refuses a license.⁠⁴

LARA must issue or deny an initial license within 6 months of a completed application. The clock stops while LARA waits for information you owe or for a corrective action plan to be met. If LARA misses the deadline, it refunds the fee and cuts your next renewal fee by 15%.⁠²

After licensure

A regular license lasts 2 years and is renewed every two years on application; camps renew yearly.⁠⁷ LARA may inspect for renewal any time in the 12 months before expiration.⁠² If you fall out of compliance, LARA can move you to a provisional license of 6 months: renewable up to twice for building deficiencies, but not renewable for quality-of-care deficiencies.⁠⁶

The license names a specific person and location and cannot be transferred.⁠² To sell, you must notify LARA in writing in advance and meet with LARA representatives, LARA then lists the deficiencies that must be corrected as a condition of the new owner’s license.⁠² Changes to information you gave in your application must be reported within 10 business days.⁠¹⁰

Specialized programs and public payment

Many Michigan AFC homes serve adults with developmental disabilities or mental illness under contract with a placing agency. Those programs apply separately for special certification on form BCAL-1053, giving the license number, capacity, staff ratio per shift, and the residents and services planned.⁠¹²⁠¹⁰ A new program receives temporary certification of up to 6 months; regular certification lasts up to 2 years and is tied to the licensee and location.⁠¹⁰ Staff must complete training acceptable to the contracting placing agency before working alone,⁠¹⁰ and certified homes with 4 to 6 residents need an interconnected smoke detection system powered by the building’s electrical service (a listed wireless system is accepted instead), installed by a licensed electrical contractor, inspected annually, plus evacuation assessments under NFPA 101A within 30 days of each admission.⁠¹⁰

If you expect payments from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, LARA’s application page says you must register in the state’s SIGMA Vendor Self Service system and obtain a vendor ID, or MDHHS cannot process payment.⁠¹² The sources reviewed do not describe which MDHHS payment programs or rates apply to AFC homes. Ask your LARA consultant and the placing agency (the community mental health program or MDHHS) which programs pay for the residents you plan to serve, and what each requires of the home.

What changed recently

The AFC rules in force today, R 400.601 to R 400.745, took effect November 3, 2025.⁠¹⁰ Provisions in that ruleset a new applicant should plan around include the high school diploma and one-year experience requirement for licensees and administrators, the AFC New Provider Training deadline, conditions under which 16- and 17-year-olds can count toward ratios, building-powered smoke alarms to NFPA 101 (2021) for house conversions, and a rule that residents of different gender identities share a bedroom only by documented agreement.⁠¹⁰ Fees last changed on January 1, 2022.⁠³

Sources

1. 1
   Michigan Legislature, MCL 400.703, Adult Foster Care Facility Licensing Act (1979 PA 218): definitions Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
2. 2
   Michigan Legislature, MCL 400.713: license required; investigation; disqualifying convictions; processing deadline; penalties Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
3. 3
   Michigan Legislature, MCL 400.713a: application fees Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
4. 4
   Michigan Legislature, MCL 400.714: temporary license Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
5. 5
   Michigan Legislature, MCL 400.716: excessive concentration; zoning approval for facilities over 6 Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
6. 6
   Michigan Legislature, MCL 400.717: provisional license Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
7. 7
   Michigan Legislature, MCL 400.719: regular license; validity Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
8. 8
   Michigan Legislature, MCL 400.720: Bureau of Fire Services certificate of approval Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
9. 9
   Michigan Legislature, MCL 400.734b: criminal history checks for staff Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
10. 10
    Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of Community and Health Systems, Licensing Adult Foster Care Facilities, Mich. Admin. Code R 400.601 to R 400.745 (effective November 3, 2025) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
11. 11
    Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Adult Foster Care: Applicants Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
12. 12
    Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, License Application Packet Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
13. 13
    Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Fire Safety Approvals and Inspections Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
14. 14
    Michigan Legislature, MCL 125.3206, Michigan Zoning Enabling Act: residential use of state licensed residential facilities Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
15. 15
    Michigan Legislature, MCL 125.3102, Michigan Zoning Enabling Act: definitions Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
16. 16
    Michigan Legislature, MCL 333.20106, Public Health Code: health facility definitions (home for the aged) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
17. 17
    Michigan Legislature, MCL 400.705, Adult Foster Care Facility Licensing Act (1979 PA 218): definitions (foster care) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑

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