IHSS Fresno County: phone number, provider pay, enrollment and the Public Authority

What IHSS Fresno pays for and who qualifies

Fresno County DSS describes IHSS as a program that arranges and helps pay for services so that elderly, blind or disabled people can live safely in their own homes, and it treats the program as an alternative to nursing homes or board and care facilities. The services a social worker can authorize fall into these groups:

• Domestic: housekeeping.
• Related services: meal preparation and clean-up, laundry, food shopping and errands.
• Personal care: help with walking, transfers, breathing, bathing and hygiene, dressing, eating, bowel and bladder care, medications, repositioning, and paramedical services.
• Accompaniment to medical appointments, which does not cover transport on its own.
• Protective supervision for people who cannot direct their own care because of a mental or cognitive impairment.

The county FAQ lists what IHSS does not pay for: pet care, reading or translation help, and transportation outside the IHSS-related tasks tied to medical appointments.

Fresno County's eligibility checklist runs as follows. The applicant is 65 or over, is blind, or has a disability likely to last over a year or to end in death. They are a Fresno County resident, living at home or at a place they picked for themselves; a hospital, nursing home, rehabilitation facility or residential care home does not count. They are on Medi-Cal or SSI/SSP, their functional limits stop them looking after themselves, and with IHSS in place they could remain at home safely. Finally, their physician completes a Health Care Certification. CDSS calls that certification the SOC 873 and says the county must have it before any services are authorized.

Fresno County IHSS phone number and how to apply

Applying and having eligibility decided costs nothing. The county warns about websites, calls and texts that offer to get you approved for a fee. There are three ways to apply:

1. By phone: call (559) 600-6666 and choose option 1. Phone applicants get a case number straight away.
2. Online: use the county's online IHSS application, in English or Spanish. The case number arrives by mail once the application is processed.
3. On paper: fill in the Application for Social Services (SOC 295) and send it through the county's Secure Document Submission upload, by mail to DSS-IHSS, PO Box 1912, Fresno, CA 93718-1912, by fax to (559) 600-5400, or by dropping it in the drop box at a DSS office.

After you apply, the FAQ explains, a Health Care Certification form is mailed to you; your physician completes it and it must be back with IHSS within 45 days. A social worker comes to the house to work out what help is needed, drawing on what you, your family, your caregivers and your health professionals report, and reviews the physician's form. The decision comes as a Notice of Action listing the services and monthly hours approved, or the reason for a denial. If you disagree with either, you can ask for a State Hearing. Anyone without Medi-Cal is referred to apply for it, and losing Medi-Cal can mean losing IHSS, so keep your Medi-Cal details current (toll-free 1-855-832-8082).

Reaching your social worker. Many Fresno IHSS social workers work from home part of the week. The county says to leave a message and expect a call back within one business day; if you need someone sooner, call (559) 600-6666, pick a language and press 1.

Share of cost. If your Medi-Cal has a share of cost, you owe part of your provider's wages. The county says not to pay the provider until CDSS sends a letter telling you to, and warns that refusing to pay could end the case.

IHSS provider pay in Fresno: $18.75 an hour

An individual IHSS provider in Fresno County has earned $18.75 an hour since January 1, 2026. That rate comes from the state's county-by-county table, which CDSS publishes as a spreadsheet (Fresno row, sheet "IP Effective 10-1-2026", downloaded October 15, 2026). The rate is countywide, so a provider in Clovis, Sanger, Reedley, Selma or Coalinga earns the same hourly wage.

Hours and overtime. Three rules from the SOC 846 enrollment agreement matter most. Once a provider passes 40 hours in the Sunday-to-Saturday week, the extra hours earn 1.5 times the base rate. Someone serving two or more recipients can claim 66 hours a week at most across all of them. Travel between recipients is limited to seven hours weekly. Every hour still has to fit inside the recipient's monthly authorized total.

Paydays and sick leave. Pay runs twice monthly, says the county FAQ: one period covers days 1 through 15, the other day 16 through month-end, and each is paid on a timesheet the recipient approves. Under CDSS rules the 2026/27 sick leave allowance is 40 hours, available from July 1, 2026; a new provider accrues it once 100 authorized hours are logged and can start using it once another 200 hours are worked or 60 days pass, whichever happens first.

For the wider market, the BLS May 2025 survey puts the median wage for home health and personal care aides in the Fresno metro area at $16.50, across 33,580 jobs. Neighboring counties' IHSS rates are in our IHSS pay by county guide.

How to become an IHSS provider in Fresno County

State law requires enrollment and a background check before IHSS can pay you. Fresno County moved most of the process online: you complete the forms and orientation videos on a computer, phone or tablet, then attend one short appointment in person. The Public Authority's enrollment page sets out eight steps.

1. Online enrollment. Create a user profile in the Provider Enrollment Application, watch the mandatory orientation videos, sign the SOC 846 (Provider Enrollment Agreement) and SOC 426 (Provider Enrollment Form) online, and book your in-person appointment.
2. In-person appointment at the DSS Clovis Campus, Building 1, Client Services, 3500 Never Forget Lane, Clovis, CA 93612. Bring a valid, unexpired government photo ID and your Social Security card; the names must match exactly or you will be rescheduled. You sign the IHSS 0050 Provider Responsibility Checklist and receive the Department of Justice Live Scan form. Applicants under 18 need a legal guardian present and a school-signed work permit.
3. Union orientation: a 30-minute in-person session with SEIU 2015. Latecomers are moved to the next session.
4. Fingerprints within 90 days. Take the Live Scan form to an approved site, check its hours and price first, and pay the fee yourself. Keep a copy and your receipt, and mail a copy to Fresno County Department of Social Services, PO Box 1912, Fresno, CA 93718-9889.
5. Welcome packet. Once every step is done within 90 days and the background check clears, a packet arrives by mail with your provider number and the SOC 848 Notice of Provider Eligibility.
6. Timesheet registration: sign up for electronic timesheets on the Electronic Services Portal, or for the Telephone Timesheet System on 1-833-342-5388. You cannot be paid without one of them.
7. Getting hired. The recipient hires you electronically in the portal, and timesheets can appear within 30 minutes. If that is not possible, the recipient completes the SOC 426A hiring agreement, which the Public Authority sends on request.
8. Newly hired packet: a letter confirming the hire, the SOC 2271 notice of authorized hours and maximum weekly hours, and instructions for W-4 and DE 4 tax withholding (PA 0061).

Disqualifying convictions. A conviction, or incarceration after one, for certain Tier 1 or Tier 2 crimes in the last ten years can bar you from enrolling. With a Tier 2 conviction you may still work for a recipient who chooses to hire you and requests an individual waiver. Background check questions go to the Public Authority on (559) 600-6666, option 4. The statewide rules are laid out in our IHSS provider walkthrough, and relatives can read about paying a family member through IHSS.

The IHSS Public Authority in Fresno and the SEIU 2015 union

The Fresno County Public Authority was created under a state mandate to act as employer of record for IHSS care providers. It sits within DSS Adult Services and negotiates wages, benefits and working conditions with the union. Its Provider and Recipient Call Center, which the county abbreviates PARCC, answers on (559) 600-6666, option 4, from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday to Friday, holidays excepted. Its fax is (559) 243-7485, its mailing address is PO Box 1912, Fresno, CA 93718-1912, and in-person visits go to DSS Building 1 at 3500 Never Forget Lane in Clovis.

The union. SEIU Local 2015 represents eligible providers on wages, benefits and some terms of employment without any sign-up; full membership is optional. The county links its memorandum of understanding with SEIU 2015, a document dated December 31, 2022. The SEIU Member Action Center number listed by the county is 855-810-2015.

Injury at work. Report it to PARCC on option 4. Claims are handled by Intercare Holdings Insurance Services, which answers status questions on (800) 771-5454 or (916) 781-5700.

Fresno IHSS registry: finding a provider or joining as one

For families. A recipient, or their authorized representative, who has approved hours but no provider can ask the Public Authority for a registry list, using the online Request for Registry List form in English or Spanish, or by calling (559) 600-6666, option 4. The service is free and matches recipients with care providers certified in CPR and First Aid whose schedules fit. You interview the people on the list, choose one, and hire through the Electronic Services Portal or by sending the hiring agreement by mail, fax or Secure Document Submission. You set the hours and duties, supervise the work, and can end the arrangement.

Back-up care. Eligible recipients can request a back-up provider for urgent personal care needs, up to 80 hours per fiscal year (July 1 to June 30), through their social worker or on option 4.

For providers. To join the registry you must already be an eligible Fresno County IHSS provider, or be a nursing student looking for experience. The steps are:

1. Confirm your eligibility with PARCC on option 4, then submit the Public Authority Registry Application. Incomplete applications are denied, and you are contacted by email only if you meet current recruitment needs.
2. Attend an individual screening on Zoom. To reschedule, call at least 48 hours ahead; missing it without rescheduling means waiting 90 days to reapply.
3. Attend the invitation-only introduction class on Zoom. You can reschedule once, within 14 days; miss the second date and the 90-day wait applies.

Once you are on the list, recipients interview you and decide whether to hire. Registry work pays the same $18.75 county wage.

Fresno County IHSS phone numbers and addresses

Tell IHSS when you move or someone moves in or out, change phone numbers, go into a hospital or care facility, start an adult day program or PACE, leave the county, or hire or fire a provider. Numbers are from Fresno County DSS, Public Authority and CDSS pages, checked October 15, 2026.

Hiring privately in Fresno and Clovis alongside IHSS

Fresno IHSS covers the tasks and hours written on the Notice of Action and nothing beyond them. If you want someone overnight, more weekend help, company during the day, or time off for the son or daughter who is already the paid provider, that care is a private arrangement. CaregiverConnect lets a Fresno family post such a job free of charge. Caregivers send applications straight to the family, which then interviews, hires and pays its pick and becomes the household employer, at a rate settled between them that cannot go below minimum wage. CaregiverConnect keeps no share of the pay and screens nobody itself, although caregivers are free to post evidence of a background check on their profiles. Some members buy optional premium plans.

Families can browse caregivers across Fresno County, caregivers in Fresno or caregivers in Clovis. Providers with free hours can see Fresno County caregiver jobs, jobs in Fresno and jobs in Clovis, or create a free caregiver profile. Hourly prices for private help are compared in our California home care cost guide.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

1. Fresno County DSS, In-Home Supportive Services (services, eligibility, ways to apply, SOC 295, fax numbers, PO Box, callback, Medi-Cal line)
2. Fresno County DSS, IHSS FAQs (45-day certification, Notice of Action, State Hearing, pay periods, share of cost, exclusions)
3. Fresno County Public Authority (employer of record, PARCC, hours, fax, Clovis location, SEIU 2015, MOU, workers' compensation)
4. Fresno County Public Authority, IHSS Provider Online Enrollment and Orientation (eight steps, IHSS 0050, Live Scan, SOC 848, TTS, SOC 426A, SOC 2271)
5. Fresno County Public Authority, Join the IHSS Public Authority Provider Registry ($18.75, screening, introduction class, 90-day wait)
6. Fresno County Public Authority, Request an IHSS Registry Provider (registry list, BUPS 80 hours)
7. CDSS, IHSS wages by county (workbook sheet "IP Effective 10-1-2026")
8. CDSS, In-Home Supportive Services (SOC 873, recipient as employer)
9. CDSS, SOC 846 Provider Enrollment Agreement (overtime, 66-hour cap, seven hours travel)
10. CDSS, IHSS Provider Paid Sick Leave (FY 2026/27)
11. CDSS, IHSS Provider Resources (IHSS Service Desk)
12. California DIR, minimum wage FAQ ($16.90 from January 1, 2026)
13. BLS OEWS May 2025, Fresno metro area (home health and personal care aides)