IHSS Marin County: phone numbers, the Public Authority of Marin and the $20.40 wage

Who can get IHSS in Marin County

The county's IHSS page (archived copy captured May 8, 2026; the live county site blocked our request) says the program helps Marin residents who are 65 or older, blind or disabled stay safely at home by paying for domestic and personal care tasks. Its requirements:

• full-scope Medi-Cal eligibility;
• a Social Security number or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN); without either, apply for an ITIN as soon as you submit the IHSS application;
• Marin County residence, living in the community rather than a hospital or institution;
• age 65 or older, or a legal finding of blindness or disability, with the disability expected to last more than a year (children with disabilities can qualify);
• the ability to pay any Medi-Cal share of cost that applies to you.

The county also notes that IHSS does not provide 24-hour care. If you do not yet have Medi-Cal, it points you to 877-410-8817 or BenefitsCal online. The Public Authority's list of tasks IHSS can cover includes dressing, bathing, feeding and toileting; paramedical help such as injections, wound care and catheter care directed by a licensed medical professional; cleaning, cooking, shopping and laundry; and going with you to medical appointments. It lists things IHSS does not pay for, for example furniture moving, bill paying, reading your mail, caring for pets, yard work, repair jobs, sitting with you for company, and social outings.

Marin County IHSS phone number and application steps

The IHSS intake hotline is 415-473-4636 (the county writes it as 415-473-INFO). The archived county page gives its hours as Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. You can also start with the county's online IHSS Program Inquiry Form. If you apply for someone else, the county asks you to get their consent first, and to have address, phone number, birthdate and email ready.

1. Call or submit the inquiry form. Ask to apply for IHSS.
2. Health Care Certification. A licensed health care provider completes the SOC 873 (English and Spanish versions are on the CDSS site). It goes to the Marin IHSS office by mail to 10 N. San Pedro Rd., San Rafael, CA 94903 or by fax to 415-473-3960, as soon as possible and no later than 45 days after you apply. CDSS adds that no services can be authorized before the county receives it.
3. Home visit. According to the Public Authority's eligibility page, a social worker is assigned, visits your home and decides eligibility.
4. Notice of Action. If you qualify, the notice states your authorized hours and lists the authorized tasks.

After that, you choose and hire the caregiver. CDSS makes the recipient the employer, responsible for hiring, training, supervising and firing. If the person you pick is not yet an enrolled IHSS provider, they must enroll before the state can pay them. Our guide to hiring a private caregiver has interview questions and a sample work agreement you can adapt.

Enrolling as an IHSS provider at the Public Authority of Marin

State law requires every provider to complete enrollment and clear a Department of Justice background check before IHSS can pay them. Marin's process has three steps:

1. Online. On the enrollment website linked from pamarin.gov, enter your personal information, watch the required videos and book an enrollment appointment at the Public Authority office.
2. Appointment. Arrive 10 to 15 minutes early; the session, which includes a union presentation, runs about 60 to 90 minutes. Bring the original Social Security card plus an unexpired driver's license or federal photo ID; both must carry the same name. Photocopies and expired documents are not accepted. Where the Social Security card carries a work restriction (for example INS or DHS authorization only), add your work permit or green card. No children or pets.
3. Fingerprints. You receive a Request for Live Scan Service form and a list of approved vendors.

After the DOJ clears you, county payroll takes about 10 days to assign a provider number; you can ask for it on 415-473-7487 or at HHSIHSS@marincounty.org. Then register at the state's Electronic Services Portal (etimesheets.ihss.ca.gov). CDSS form SOC 847 explains the enrollment rules in more detail. You and the recipient also complete a Provider Packet, obtained from the recipient's social worker (IHSS office 415-473-7118), which goes to county IHSS payroll by mail or to the reception desk at 10 N. San Pedro Road.

The Public Authority's FAQ says a crime of abuse against a child or elder, Medicare fraud, and several violent, serious or sexual felonies will exclude you; call it for specifics. For the wider picture, read our IHSS provider walkthrough or, if the person you look after is a relative, paid family caregiving in California.

IHSS pay in Marin County: $20.40 an hour

The CDSS wage workbook we downloaded on October 15, 2026 (sheet "IP Effective 10-1-2026") gives Marin providers $20.40 an hour, effective February 1, 2026. Of the 58 counties, Marin is tied with San Diego for 10th place. San Francisco, across the bridge, pays $25.00; Sonoma to the north pays $20.25; Contra Costa pays $20.03.

Novato is the only Marin locality in the Labor Center's July 1, 2026 table; we found no San Rafael or unincorporated Marin rate there, and we make no claim about which employers each ordinance covers. The IHSS wage is $3.50 above the state minimum (our illustrative arithmetic) and is the same everywhere in the county.

Getting paid. Paper timesheets are gone; timesheets go in twice a month through the state's electronic system, and the Public Authority notes that electronic visit verification became mandatory in Marin in May 2020. The state has 10 business days to issue payment after a timesheet is received. Recipients who cannot use a device can approve timesheets by phone through the Telephone Timesheet System on (833) 342-5388. Working for more than one recipient? The state limit is 66 paid hours per workweek across all of them, apart from a few exemptions.

Time off. There is no paid vacation: IHSS pays only for hours worked, the Public Authority FAQ says. Under CDSS rules, the fiscal year that began July 1, 2026 carries 40 sick-leave hours, earned after 100 hours on the job and available after another 200 hours or 60 days; any balance lapses on June 30. Request it with the SOC 2302 or on the portal. Compare every county in IHSS wages by county.

IHSS Public Authority Marin: registry, benefits and training

The Board of Supervisors created the Marin County IHSS Public Authority as a special district in 2002. It keeps a registry of prescreened providers, matches recipients with them and follows up, helps recipients interview, hire and supervise, mediates disputes, conducts the state enrollment orientations, offers extra training and represents the employer side when wages are bargained.

Office: 70 Skyview Terrace, Suite B, San Rafael, CA 94903; 415-499-1024. Open Monday to Thursday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., closed for lunch 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and closed on Fridays.

Finding a provider through the registry

Recipients approved for IHSS in Marin, or relatives and authorized representatives acting for them, can ask for a list of caregivers matched on language, location, schedule and experience. You contact and interview them yourself and make the hiring decision. The Public Authority does not employ or supervise caregivers, and pay comes through IHSS. Requests: 415-499-1024 or registry@pamarin.gov. When a regular provider calls out and going without care would put you at risk, ask about the Emergency Back-Up Provider (EBUP) program, which supplies short-term caregivers for emergencies only and on a limited basis.

Joining the registry as a caregiver

Anyone interested in caregiving work who can communicate in English, work independently and has reliable transportation where needed can apply; experience helps but is not required. Fill in the short registry form, then the team calls you for an interview. Once listed, recipients see your name and contact you, and you decide which jobs to take. Registry members can also call 415-499-1024 about current openings. Note that the Public Authority FAQ also says you enroll as a provider first, then complete the registry application.

Health and dental benefits

About 165 subsidized benefit slots are funded. To apply for medical you need at least 65 hours in each of three consecutive months; dental requires 85 hours in each of three consecutive months. Providers pay a monthly share deducted from earnings: $130.00 for Kaiser and $18.62 for Delta Dental. Coverage ends if hours drop below the minimum, and you may reapply once you qualify again. Spouses and dependents are not covered. Application forms must be signed by hand.

Training and the union

Free in-person classes, updated monthly, cover topics such as body mechanics, infection prevention, dementia care basics and communication; registration is required and space is limited. Marin IHSS providers are represented by SEIU Local 2015 (Member Action Center 855-810-2015); the current memorandum of understanding with the Public Authority covers 2024-2026, and dues depend on hours worked.

IHSS in San Rafael, Novato and the rest of Marin

Both offices are in San Rafael: county IHSS at 10 N. San Pedro Road and the Public Authority at 70 Skyview Terrace. Applications, forms and registry requests otherwise run by phone, fax, email and post, so residents of Novato, Mill Valley, Sausalito or West Marin follow the same steps and earn the same IHSS rate.

• San Rafael: caregiver jobs in San Rafael and San Rafael caregivers.
• Novato: Novato caregiver jobs and caregivers in Novato.

Countywide: Marin County caregiver jobs and find caregivers in Marin County. Nearby guides: IHSS San Francisco, IHSS Sonoma County and IHSS Contra Costa County.

Marin County IHSS and Public Authority phone numbers

Covering hours IHSS does not pay for

Authorized hours rarely match every need. Families in Marin may want a caregiver for nights, for weekends, for social outings that IHSS excludes, or for cover while the regular provider takes unpaid time off. Those hours fall outside IHSS and are paid privately.

A Marin family can describe that job on CaregiverConnect without paying to post it. Caregivers who are interested apply themselves; the family then meets candidates, makes the hire and is the employer. Caregivers keep their whole rate because there is no commission. We do not perform background checks; caregivers can add proof of a check they arranged. Some extras are in optional paid plans. For local private rates, read in-home care costs in California; providers looking for more hours can sign up as a caregiver for free.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

1. Public Authority of Marin, home page (IHSS intake 415-473-4636, reception 415-473-7118, payroll line, fax)
2. Public Authority of Marin, Contact Us (70 Skyview Terrace, 415-499-1024, office hours)
3. Public Authority of Marin, Enrollment (three steps, documents, Live Scan, provider ID, payroll 415-473-7487, SOC 847)
4. Public Authority of Marin, Registry (who can join, how it works)
5. Public Authority of Marin, Find a Care Provider (registry lists, EBUP, registry@pamarin.gov)
6. Public Authority of Marin, Eligibility (intake steps, home visit, Notice of Action)
7. Public Authority of Marin, Health Benefits (165 slots, 65/85-hour rules, $130.00 Kaiser, $18.62 Delta)
8. Public Authority of Marin, FAQs (no paid vacation, excluding crimes, Provider Packet, payroll, spouses not covered)
9. Public Authority of Marin, About Us (2002 special district, services)
10. Public Authority of Marin, Care Providers (covered and excluded tasks)
11. Public Authority of Marin, Timesheet and Payroll Processing (10 business days, no paper timesheets)
12. Public Authority of Marin, Electronic Services (EVV mandatory since May 2020, Telephone Timesheet System)
13. Public Authority of Marin, Trainings (in-person classes, registration)
14. Public Authority of Marin, Union (SEIU Local 2015, 2024-2026 MOU, dues)
15. Marin County HHS, In-Home Supportive Services (archived copy captured 2026-05-08: eligibility, SOC 873 address and fax, 45 days, Medi-Cal line)
16. Marin County HHS, Get In-Home Supportive Services (archived copy captured 2026-05-08: inquiry form, intake hours)
17. CDSS, IHSS wages by county (workbook sheet "IP Effective 10-1-2026"; Marin $20.40 from February 1, 2026)
18. CDSS, In-Home Supportive Services (SOC 873 before authorization, recipient as employer)
19. CDSS, IHSS Program Requirements (66-hour weekly maximum)
20. CDSS, IHSS Provider Paid Sick Leave (FY 2026/27, SOC 2302, Service Desk, fraud hotline)
21. California DIR, minimum wage FAQ ($16.90 from January 1, 2026)
22. UC Berkeley Labor Center, inventory of local minimum wage ordinances (Novato rates from January 1, 2026)