Wisconsin CBRF license: opening a community-based residential facility

CBRF, adult family home or RCAC: which one you are building

Wisconsin law defines a community-based residential facility as a place where 5 or more adults who are not related to the operator or administrator live and receive “care, treatment or services that are above the level of room and board but that include no more than 3 hours of nursing care per week per resident.” Residents may not need care above intermediate-level nursing care.⁠¹ DHS describes CBRFs as serving frail elderly people, people with developmental, mental health, physical or sensory disabilities, and people with substance abuse problems.⁠⁴

Three other Wisconsin settings sit next to the CBRF, and choosing the right one decides your rule book:

• 3-4 bed adult family home (AFH). Three or four unrelated adults, with up to 7 hours of nursing care per resident per week. It is licensed by the same Bureau of Assisted Living under a different chapter, Wis. Admin. Code ch. DHS 88.⁠¹⁠¹⁵ See the Wisconsin adult family home guide.
• 1-2 bed adult family home. This is not licensed by the state. A managed care organization (MCO), a county human service agency or the IRIS program certifies it.⁠¹²
• Residential care apartment complex (RCAC). Independent apartments, each with its own lockable entrance, kitchen with a stove, bathroom, sleeping area and living area, and no more than 28 hours a week of services. Registered RCACs may take only private-pay tenants. Certified RCACs may also take Medicaid waiver tenants.⁠¹² The statute leaves RCACs out of the CBRF definition.⁠¹

The statute also excludes convents run by religious orders for their own members, domestic abuse shelters, and lodging houses where every lodger can get out in an emergency without help and gets no personal care, supervision or medication management from the operator.⁠¹ DHS does not require any license when residents hold their own leases, nothing beyond shared amenities is provided, and services such as bathing or medication help are arranged by residents with a provider of their choice.⁠¹² If the line is unclear, DHS tells founders to contact their Bureau of Assisted Living regional office before applying.⁠¹²

A CBRF whose residents need more nursing does not automatically become a nursing home, but there are hard limits. Without a DHS waiver, no more than 4 residents, or 10% of licensed capacity if that is greater, may need more than 3 hours of nursing a week, and then only for up to 30 days. You may never admit or keep someone who needs 24-hour supervision by an RN or LPN, or care above intermediate-level nursing care.⁠³

Size and class: the two decisions that drive the building

DHS licenses every CBRF by size and by class.⁠³

Class is set by your least capable resident: a single resident, for example someone with dementia, who would not leave without help or prompting when the alarm sounds makes the CBRF Class C. That choice has real consequences:

• Sprinklers. Any CBRF first licensed for class CA, CS or CNA on or after January 1, 1997 must be sprinklered. The only exception, in DHS 83.49, covered small Class C homes built and licensed before April 1, 2009 that met a list of conditions, and even those were required to install a full system within 5 years of April 1, 2009. Because an existing building applying for a first license now has to meet the new-construction standards, plan on a sprinkler system for any Class C CBRF.⁠³
• Sprinkler type by capacity. An NFPA 13D residential system is allowed at 16 or fewer residents when no room needs more than 2 heads. NFPA 13R is required at 16 or fewer when any room needs 3 or 4 heads. A full NFPA 13 system is required above 16 residents.⁠³
• Occupancy classification. DQA Memo 25-002 (October 14, 2025) states that Class C CBRFs of nine or more beds, in new or existing structures, “must be designed and approved as an IBC Group I-2 Condition 1.” The same memo notes that a small CBRF serving five to eight people can be built to the Uniform Dwelling Code.⁠⁹
• Construction type. Table DHS 83.50 covers buildings of 3 or fewer habitable floors. Unprotected wood frame (Type VB) is acceptable in every class for sprinklered one- and two-story buildings. A sprinklered three-story Class AS, ANA or C building needs at least Type IIA, and an unsprinklered three-story Class AS or ANA building needs Type IB. In Class AS and ANA homes, bedrooms and the dining and living area for residents who are blind, non-ambulatory, semi-ambulatory or physically disabled must be on the first floor.⁠³

Zoning and the community before you sign a lease

Under DHS 83.05(4), a CBRF may not sit on a parcel zoned for commercial, industrial or manufacturing use.⁠³ Wisconsin law treats every CBRF as a “community living arrangement for adults.” CBRFs must follow the same local building and housing codes as similar homes in the area.⁠⁷

For CBRFs in cities, s. 62.23(7)(i) sets the zoning framework:⁠⁶

• Spacing. No community living arrangement may open within 2,500 feet of another one, or within a shorter distance if the city sets one by ordinance. The city may grant exceptions.
• City-wide cap. Once the total capacity of community living arrangements reaches 25 or 1% of the city’s population, whichever is greater, the city may refuse new ones. Cities of the 1st through 4th class can apply the same cap to each aldermanic district.
• 8 or fewer residents. A CBRF that meets the spacing and cap rules above may locate in any residential zone without special zoning permission.
• 9 to 15 residents. The CBRF may locate in residential areas except those zoned only for single-family or two-family homes. In those zones it must ask for special zoning permission.
• 16 or more residents. The CBRF needs special zoning permission (a conditional use, special exception, variance or similar) to locate in any residential zone.
• Annual review. Starting 11 to 13 months after first licensure, and every year after that, the common council may decide whether the CBRF threatens health, safety or welfare. If it finds a threat, it may order the CBRF to close unless the CBRF gets special zoning permission.

Section 62.23(7)(i) governs cities; this guide did not review the parallel zoning provisions for villages, towns and counties, so ask the local zoning office which apply. DHS’s own list of steps tells founders to contact their municipality about local ordinances before applying.⁠¹² Deed covenants cannot block you either: a CBRF of 8 or fewer residents is a permissible use under a covenant limiting property to single-family or two-family homes, one of 15 or fewer is permissible under a covenant limiting it to multi-family homes, and a covenant that expressly prohibits community living arrangements for adults is void.⁠⁷ If your CBRF needs special zoning permission, the local government can ask DHS to inspect the proposed facility and review its program, and DHS then reports whether it approves.⁠⁷

The community comes into the license file in two more ways. Before initial licensure, you must make a good-faith effort to set up a community advisory committee with representatives of the facility, the neighborhood and a local unit of government. The committee continues after licensure.⁠² Your application must include evidence of that effort.⁠³ Separately, within 10 working days of receiving your application, DHS notifies the local planning commission. DHS asks it to report, within 30 days, any specific hazards to residents’ health and safety. No license can be issued until the commission responds or the 30 days run out.⁠² The DHS checklist tracks this as the “hazard request.”⁠⁵

Plan review comes first, even for an existing house

DHS says all CBRF plans must be prepared by a design professional, submitted to DHS and reviewed before construction. Existing structures seeking CBRF licensure must also complete plan review before they can be licensed.⁠⁴ Since April 1, 2009, an existing building applying for CBRF licensure must meet the new-construction physical environment standards in DHS 83, subchapter XI.⁠³⁠⁹

What the submittal involves:

• 9 or more beds. Building, HVAC and fire alarm drawings and calculations must be signed, sealed and dated by a Wisconsin-credentialed architect or professional engineer, and the fire sprinkler drawings and calculations by a Wisconsin-credentialed designer of engineering systems. A 5-8 bed CBRF in a residential building has a lighter “minimal submittal” of building, fire alarm and sprinkler drawings.⁠⁸
• Two agencies. The Department of Safety and Professional Services also reviews plans for new construction or remodeling of CBRFs with 9 or more residents. CBRFs attached to hospitals or nursing homes are exempt.⁠³
• Preliminary meetings. DHS’s Office of Plan Review and Inspection offers providers preliminary project meetings to go over scope, schedules, responsibilities and the inspection process before you submit.⁠¹²
• Timing. The DHS checklist tells applicants to allow 45 working days for plan review.⁠⁵ If construction above the foundation has not started within one year of approval, the approval is void and you must resubmit.⁠³
• Fees in the rule. DHS 83.63(4) sets plan review fees by project value: $100 under $2,000, $300 under $25,000, $500 under $100,000, $750 under $500,000, $1,500 under $1 million, $2,500 under $5 million and $5,000 above $5 million. It also sets an $80 fee for permission to start construction.⁠³ The DHS plan review page asks for “the correct fees” by check without listing amounts, so the rule is the only published schedule. Before you mail a check, ask the Office of Plan Review and Inspection ([email protected]) to confirm the amount for your project.⁠⁸
• Detection systems need approval before installation.⁠³⁠¹⁴

All rows are from DHS 83.52 to 83.55 and 83.48.⁠³ Smoke and heat detection must be interconnected so that one alarm sounds throughout the building. A small CBRF may use a UL-listed radio-transmitting system instead.⁠³⁠¹⁴

The administrator and the licensee

DHS will license only an applicant it finds “fit and qualified.” It looks at compliance history in Wisconsin and any other state, criminal history (including abuse, neglect, controlled substances and fraud in care settings) and financial history, including debts owed to the department.⁠³ DHS runs caregiver background checks before initial licensure and every four years after that. Each new applicant files a Background Information Disclosure (BID) form and BID Appendix for:⁠⁴

• the owner, or one designated principal officer if the owner is an entity
• officers or board members who have regular, direct contact with clients
• non-client residents over age 10 who have regular, direct contact with clients

The DHS checklist requires these checks to be completed in the same calendar year as the application.⁠⁵

The administrator must be at least 21 and meet one of these qualifications under DHS 83.15:⁠³

1. Health care degree

   An associate degree or higher in a health care field.

2. Degree plus experience

   A bachelor’s degree in another field plus one year of direct-contact work with a CBRF client group.

3. Degree plus course

   A bachelor’s degree in another field plus a DHS-approved assisted living administrator course.

4. Experience plus course

   Two years of direct-contact health care experience with a client group plus the approved course.

5. Nursing home license

   A valid Wisconsin nursing home administrator license.

Approved administrator courses must cover six core skills: leadership and management, resident care, resident rights and legal issues, physical environment and life safety, human resources and financial management. DHS’s page, revised September 15, 2025, lists one approved course, the “WALA 83.15 Administrator Course.”⁠¹¹ The administrator runs daily operations and is responsible for every employee’s training and competency. A qualified resident care staff member must be in charge whenever the administrator is away.⁠³

Staffing and training rules

DHS 83 sets no fixed staff-to-resident ratio. It requires enough employees, 24 hours a day, to meet residents’ needs, with these minimums:⁠³

• An administrator or designated qualified staff member is on the premises every day.
• At least one qualified resident care staff member is present whenever any resident is in the building.
• A staff member must be awake on duty if any resident needs 24-hour supervision. The rule lists elopement risk, dementia, self-abuse, agitation and unstable health conditions as examples.
• A staff member must also be awake if any resident’s evacuation time is 4 minutes or more.

Resident care staff must be at least 18. Every employee needs a communicable disease and tuberculosis screening documented by a physician, PA, nurse practitioner or RN within 90 days before starting work.⁠³

Wisconsin also requires state-approved training in four subjects. The courses and trainers must be approved through the Wisconsin Community-Based Care and Treatment Training Registry, run by the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay for DHS. UW-Green Bay has 15 business days to process trainer applications.⁠¹⁰

Until an employee finishes all required training, the administrator or a qualified staff member must supervise them directly. RNs, LPNs, pharmacists and practitioners are exempt from most of these courses. Certified nurse aides on the Wisconsin registry are exempt from several of them.⁠³

What goes into the application

DHS 83.05(2) defines a complete application:⁠³

• a program statement
• a floor plan with dimensions, exits and room uses
• a fire inspection form
• all required fees
• a balance sheet
• evidence of 60 days of projected operating funds in reserve

The program statement is the core document. It must name:⁠³

• the licensee, the administrator and the person in charge when both are away
• 24-hour staffing patterns and any licensed nurse availability
• the capacity and the class
• the client group, with an explanation of how the groups are compatible if you serve more than one
• the program services and the limits on whom you will admit
• respite care, if you offer it

Any later change must reach DHS at least 30 days before it takes effect.⁠³

The New Provider Licensure Application Checklist (F-02109D) adds these items:⁠⁵

• the Assisted Living Facility Model Balance Sheet (F-62674A) or an equivalent
• your admission and service agreement
• well water test results, if you use a well
• furnace and chimney inspection results
• plan approval, sprinkler, and smoke and heat detection documentation
• a copy of the lease with the landlord’s acknowledgment of business use, or proof of ownership
• a letter of intent to sell, if the building is now a licensed CBRF
• articles of incorporation or organization, or a partnership agreement, for the licensee entity

DHS separately lists operating expenses among the required uploads.⁠⁴

From portal account to probationary license

1. Confirm the setting and zoning

   Settle on CBRF rather than AFH or RCAC. Check local zoning against the commercial-parcel ban and the community living arrangement rules.⁠³⁠⁶⁠¹²

2. Complete plan review

   Submit design-professional plans to DHS (and to DSPS at 9 or more beds), allow 45 working days, and close out all conditions and inspections.⁠³⁠⁵

3. Get a MyWisconsin ID and apply in the DQA Provider Portal

   All CBRF applications go through the portal. DHS publishes video instructions.⁠⁴

4. Upload everything at once

   The application is not complete until all required documents are in. DHS sends only two revision letters. After a second failed revision, it will not accept applications from you for that location for one year. Incomplete applications close after six months.⁠⁴

5. Add the HCBS request if you want Medicaid waiver residents

   Upload form F-02138 with the application.⁠⁴

6. Wait out the hazard request

   DHS asks the municipality about hazards, and no license issues until the municipality answers or 30 days pass.⁠²

7. Sign the compliance statement

   It is required before DHS will schedule the initial survey.⁠⁴

8. Initial licensing survey

   An assisted living surveyor tours the building using the CBRF Initial Survey Checklist (F-02634B).⁠⁴

9. Decision

   DHS has 70 days to approve or deny, counted from receipt of the complete packet and completion of the initial survey.⁠⁴ A new CBRF, or one not yet operating, receives a probationary license valid for up to 12 months.⁠²⁠³

The license covers only the premises and persons named in the application and cannot be transferred.⁠³

Fees as published by DHS

As published on 2026-10-12, the CBRF licensing fee is $389.00 plus $50.25 per resident of licensed capacity, charged every two years. The 12-month probationary license costs half. Fees are non-refundable.⁠⁴ A CBRF is exempt from the fee if no resident’s total monthly charges exceed the state supplemental payment rate under s. 49.77(3s).⁠⁴

Plan review fees are separate (see above).⁠³

After licensure: surveys, renewals and ownership changes

A regular CBRF license does not expire. It stays valid until DHS suspends or revokes it. Every 24 months, on a date DHS sets, you file a biennial report and pay the license continuation fee.⁠³ Caregiver background checks repeat every four years.⁠³⁠⁴

Several ongoing duties tend to come up at survey:

• Assessments and service plans. Assess each resident before admission, at any change of condition and at least yearly (within 5 days for emergency admissions). Write a comprehensive individual service plan within 30 days of admission.⁠³
• Medication reviews. If staff give medications, a pharmacist or physician must review each resident’s regimen within 30 days before or after admission, whenever a medication changes significantly, and at least every 12 months. A physician, pharmacist or RN must review your medication system onsite every year. If no RN, practitioner or pharmacist supervises medication administration, a pharmacist must package prescriptions in unit doses.⁠³
• Fire drills. Hold drills at least quarterly, with one each year simulating sleeping hours.⁠³
• Record access. DQA Memo 26-001 (August 17, 2026) says surveyors must get paper records within two hours of the conclusion of the entrance conference. For electronic systems, you must hand over read-only logins within two hours of the same point.⁠¹³

Ownership changes start a new application. The buyer must file a complete application at least 30 days before the transfer. The seller must notify DHS and give residents at least 7 days’ notice, and stays responsible for the CBRF until DHS licenses the buyer. A change of LLC members, partners or the controlling corporate structure requires 30 days’ written notice to DHS.⁠³ To close, notify DHS in writing at least 30 days ahead.⁠³

Getting paid through Family Care

DHS’s assisted living office does not refer residents or fund facilities.⁠⁴ Public money for CBRF services comes through Wisconsin’s long-term care waiver programs, and neither program covers room and board:⁠¹²

• Family Care. Members can live in a licensed CBRF. You must contract with an MCO, and DHS says plainly there is “no guarantee an MCO will choose to contract with a provider.”
• IRIS. CBRFs are not an allowable setting for IRIS participants.
• HCBS settings rule. Before serving Family Care members, a provider-controlled setting must show it meets the federal home- and community-based services settings rule through the HCBS Compliance Review Request (F-02138). A CBRF license alone does not guarantee HCBS compliance or a contract.

What changed recently

• The rule text. The DHS 83 chapter online on 2026-10-12 is the January 2025 Register printing (No. 829); its core licensing, training and physical-plant sections date from the version effective April 1, 2009.⁠³
• Memo 25-002 (October 14, 2025). It replaced Memo 23-003 with updated citations. DHS’s position is unchanged: Class C CBRFs of nine or more beds must be designed as IBC Group I-2 Condition 1.⁠⁹
• Memo 26-001 (August 17, 2026). It set the two-hour record-access expectation for surveys.⁠¹³
• Online applications. All CBRF applications now go through the DQA Provider Portal.⁠⁴

Sources

1. 1
   Wisconsin State Legislature, Wisconsin Statutes § 50.01 (Definitions) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
2. 2
   Wisconsin State Legislature, Wisconsin Statutes § 50.03 (Licensing, revocation and suspension) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
3. 3
   Wisconsin State Legislature, Legislative Reference Bureau, Wis. Admin. Code ch. DHS 83, Community-Based Residential Facilities (Register January 2025 No. 829) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
4. 4
   Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Community-Based Residential Facilities: Opening a Community-Based Residential Facility Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
5. 5
   Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Division of Quality Assurance, CBRF New Provider Licensure Application Checklist, F-02109D (08/2022) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
6. 6
   Wisconsin State Legislature, Wisconsin Statutes § 62.23(7)(i) (Community and other living arrangements) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
7. 7
   Wisconsin State Legislature, Wisconsin Statutes § 46.03(22) (Community living arrangements for adults) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
8. 8
   Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Construction/Remodeling Plan Review for Health Care Facilities Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
9. 9
   Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Division of Quality Assurance, DQA Memo 25-002: Requirements for New 'Class-C' CBRFs in Existing or New Structures (October 14, 2025) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
10. 10
    Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Community-Based Residential Facilities: Approved Training Programs Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
11. 11
    Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Regulations: Assisted Living Administrator Training Courses Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
12. 12
    Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Assisted Living: Understanding Assisted Living Licensure and Certification and its Intersection with Medicaid Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
13. 13
    Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Division of Quality Assurance, DQA Memo 26-001: Bureau of Assisted Living Surveyor Access to Records (August 17, 2026) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
14. 14
    Wisconsin State Legislature, Wisconsin Statutes § 50.035 (Special provisions applying to community-based residential facilities) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
15. 15
    Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Adult Family Homes: Opening an Adult Family Home Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑

Was this information accurate? Report an errorPrint or save as PDF