ApexCare Governance

Texas HCSSA

The Texas HCSSA application checklist.

Every document HHSC asks a personal assistance services agency to put into TULIP, what form it has to be in, and the three documents you will be told to prepare that a PAS agency does not need. Each item carries the rule or the HHSC provider letter behind it.

Rule text, fees and HHSC provider letters checked 21 October 2026.

Before you can submit at all

Two of these have to be finished before the application exists, not after it is filed.

  • A TULIP account, registered and granted access. Paper applications are no longer accepted
  • Presurvey Training completed by the administrator and by the alternate administrator, with the participation certificate from each module printed and signed (26 TAC §558.13(a))
  • An administrator and an alternate administrator who each meet one of the three PAS routes in §558.244(a)(3). Exactly one of each — HHSC does not allow multiple administrators
  • 8 clock hours of administrator training completed by each of them in the 12 months before designation (§558.259(c))
  • A legal entity registered and in good standing with the Secretary of State and the Comptroller
  • A permanent physical place of business. HHSC does not accept a virtual office; a home address is acceptable for PAS

Documents you upload

From HHSC provider letter PL 2025-03. All of them as notarized copies or originals.

  • Signed presurvey training participation certificates, administrator and alternate
  • Owner, controlling person and affiliate disclosures, each with a correct Social Security number and date of birth. If any disclosure answer is yes, supporting documentation goes with it
  • Taxpayer ID document from the IRS: the CP575 or a 147C letter. The licence is issued in the name of the legal entity and its taxpayer ID
  • Business entity documents for that legal entity
  • Assumed name certificate, if you trade under a name other than the legal entity. HHSC staff verify a Secretary of State filing; a county filing you upload yourself. These expire every ten years
  • A letter to the local health authority advising it the entity will be licensed at that address
  • Management company agreement, if one applies

The fee

Payment is made in TULIP through Texas.gov, or by mailed coupon.

  • Initial parent-agency licence fee of $2,625, which covers a licence valid for three years (§558.3(a)(1), §558.15(b))
  • Confirm the application status shows payment received. Until it does, the application is not assigned for review
  • Understand before you pay: the fee is not refunded if you withdraw, and not refunded if you are denied (§558.12(c), (d))

What a PAS agency does NOT need

Scoped by HHSC to all provider types except an HCSSA without an inpatient unit. Consulting sites commonly get this wrong.

  • A real-estate deed or lease
  • A Life Safety Code survey request letter
  • A fire marshal inspection report

After you submit

Two 45-day periods, not one (§558.31(b)).

  • Up to 45 days for HHSC to determine the application is complete and accurate
  • Up to 45 more days from completeness until the licence is issued
  • Watch the portal. If anything is missing, HHSC sends one electronic notice and you have 30 days to answer it
  • If HHSC misses one of its own periods you may request reimbursement of the licence fee, subject to the good-cause defences in §558.31(c)

The delay HHSC names by name. Of everything on this page, the one failure HHSC singles out in its own provider letter is the owner and controlling-party disclosure: “Failure to submit the SSN/DOB information or errors in submission will delay processing.” Check those fields character by character before you submit.

This checklist covers the application. For the whole sequence either side of it — choosing your category, the two clocks, what it costs, and the six-month initial survey deadline that starts the day your licence takes effect — read how to start a home care agency in Texas. For the written policies that have to exist before the surveyor arrives, read what a Texas home care policy manual has to contain.

The documents themselves

This page tells you what HHSC wants. The bundle is the policies, checklists and forms themselves, written to the Texas rule text, as editable Word files.

Texas Licensing Starter Bundle

$147
One-time. Texas HCSSA specific.
  • Texas rule crosswalk and readiness workbook, citing 26 TAC Chapter 558 line by line
  • 15 model policies Texas requires, including registry checks and abuse reporting
  • Personnel file and client file checklists built from the rules
  • HHSC application guide and initial survey prep guide
Get the bundle — $147

Every document cites the Texas rule it comes from. Rule text last checked against 26 TAC Chapter 558 in September 2026. Not affiliated with or approved by Texas HHSC.

Application questions

How many chances do I get to fix a missing document?

One notice. If HHSC finds your application incomplete it sends an electronic notice through the portal listing the additional information it needs, and you must submit that information within 30 days. If you do not, HHSC may treat the application as incomplete and deny it, and a denial does not refund the licence fee (26 TAC §558.12(d)). HHSC may accept information after 30 days for extenuating circumstances and may assess a late fee.

Do I need a lease, a deed or a fire marshal inspection?

Not for a personal assistance services agency. HHSC scopes the real-estate deed or lease, the Life Safety Code survey request letter and the fire marshal inspection report to all provider types except an HCSSA without an inpatient unit, and a PAS agency is an HCSSA without an inpatient unit. Many consulting sites list all three as universal requirements.

Can I submit the application and pay later?

You can submit, but nothing happens. HHSC states that applications are not assigned for review until the application status shows payment received, so an unpaid application is not in the queue at all.

What form do my documents have to be in?

HHSC’s presurvey training states that submitted documents must be notarized copies or originals. Every person you disclose as an owner, controlling person or affiliate needs a correct Social Security number and date of birth; HHSC says specifically that failure to submit that information, or errors in it, will delay processing.

Do I need a Certificate of Account Status from the Comptroller?

No. The Comptroller states that a Certificate of Account Status is required when a registered entity files to end its existence with the Secretary of State, and that this is the only time one is required. HHSC requires you to be registered with and in good standing from both the Comptroller and the Secretary of State, which is a different thing.

What stops an application outright?

The eligibility bars in 26 TAC §558.11: an unsatisfied final judgment, delinquent child support, an unresolved tax lien, a prior licence denial, suspension or revocation, a Medicare or Medicaid sanction or exclusion, and criminal convictions barred under Chapter 560. Incorrect, false or withheld information is separately grounds for denial or an administrative penalty (§558.12(b)).

Rule text and fees checked 21 October 2026. HHSC has proposed a rewrite of 26 TAC Chapter 558 (rule project 22R045, published in the Texas Register on 18 September 2026). It had not been adopted when this page was last checked. Confirm current rules and fees with HHSC before you rely on them.

ApexCare Governance™ provides operational documentation and educational guidance. It is not a law firm and not a licensed regulatory consultant. It does not provide legal advice, interpret regulations, certify compliance, or guarantee any licensing or inspection outcome. Verify all current requirements directly with Texas Health and Human Services.