What is the LIC 9092 form used for?

LIC 9092 is the Fire Pre-Inspection/Consultation Request. An applicant sends it directly to the local fire authority, with any required fee, to get a voluntary walk-through and written feedback before the formal licensing clearance request goes out.

What is the STD 850 fire clearance form?

STD 850 is the State Fire Safety Inspection Request that the licensing agency, not the applicant, mails to the fire authority once CDSS accepts the application. It is the document that actually triggers the final fire clearance inspection.

How long does an RCFE fire clearance take?

State law gives the fire authority 30 days to complete the final inspection once it receives the final-inspection request or CDSS's final pre-licensure inspection request, whichever is later. Total time to an approved clearance varies with the fire authority's queue and how much correction work the property needs.

Do six-bed RCFEs pay fire inspection fees?

State law bars fire authorities from charging inspection fees for RCFEs serving six or fewer residents, though some jurisdictions still charge cost-recovery fees for the optional pre-inspection consultation.

What form covers a bedridden resident's fire clearance?

There is no separate form number just for bedridden status. The facility requests the fire clearance on the standard forms but must also notify the local fire authority of the resident's bedridden status, and the fire authority evaluates the home against the bedridden-specific requirements in Title 22 before issuing clearance.

RCFE fire clearance forms: LIC 9092 and STD 850 explained

An RCFE fire clearance runs through two forms, not one. LIC 9092 (Fire Pre-Inspection/Consultation Request) is optional and goes from the applicant straight to the fire authority. STD 850 (Fire Safety Inspection Request) is the one that matters for licensing: the licensing agency sends it to the fire authority once your application is accepted, and it is what starts the clock on your final inspection. Confusing the two, or submitting one to the wrong office, is a common source of delay.

The two forms and who sends each one

LIC 9092 is filed by the applicant, not by CDSS. The form itself instructs applicants to complete and submit this form and payment of fee, to the Fire Authority responsible for inspecting your facility, and not to send it to Community Care Licensing. It requests a walk-through ahead of the formal process: the local fire enforcing agency or State Fire Marshal, whichever has primary jurisdiction, conducts a pre-inspection of the facility prior to the final fire clearance approval, and at that visit provides consultation and interpretation of fire safety regulations, notifying the prospective licensee in writing of the specific regulations that must be met for clearance. This form replaced an older local-fire-authority information sheet; CDSS’s own forms notice confirms LIC 9092 (2/11) Fire Pre-Inspection/Consultation Request as the current version, so older form numbers circulating in some checklists are stale.

STD 850 works differently. It is not something you download and fill out before applying. CDSS’s own reference material for office staff describes the sequence plainly: when your application is accepted by the Centralized Application Unit, a Fire Inspection Request form (Std. 850) is mailed to the fire agency identified on the Local Fire authority information your application lists. In other words, the formal clearance request is CDSS’s job once your file is complete, not a form you chase down yourself. Your role is to make sure the local fire authority on your application is correct and reachable, because that is the address CDSS uses.

Why the pre-inspection request still matters

Skipping LIC 9092 will not stop your application, but it removes a step that can save you a second trip. Because the pre-inspection gives you a written list of what the fire authority expects, you can correct problems, missing extinguishers, blocked egress, a smoke detector placement, before the clearance request that actually counts arrives. We send LIC 9092 on every property we evaluate for this reason: it is cheaper to fix an issue during a consultation visit than during the inspection tied to your license.

Fees for the pre-inspection scale with capacity. The form itself states that a fee equal to, but not exceeding, the actual cost of the pre-inspection services may be charged for the pre-inspection of a facility with a capacity to serve 25 or fewer persons, and a fee equal to, but not exceeding, the actual cost of the pre-inspection services may be charged for a preinspection of a facility with a capacity to serve 26 or more persons. There is no fixed statewide number because the charge is tied to the fire authority’s actual cost, which varies by jurisdiction. A property evaluation early in the process, before you file LIC 9092, is one of the areas covered in our property requirements guide.

The 30-day clock on the final inspection

Once the final inspection request is in hand, the fire authority is on a statutory timer. The same LIC 9092 form spells out the rule under Health and Safety Code section 13235: the primary fire enforcing agency shall complete the final fire clearance inspection for a community care facility, residential care facility for the elderly, or child day care facility within 30 days of receipt of the request for the final inspection, or as of the date the prospective facility requests the final prelicensure inspection by the State Department of Social Services, whichever is later. That 30-day window covers the inspection itself, not the correction work that may follow if the fire authority finds deficiencies. A property that needs electrical or egress work after that first visit can add weeks before a second inspection is scheduled, which is one reason realistic licensing timelines run anywhere from about four months to well over a year depending on property condition and the local fire authority’s queue, a range covered in more detail in our guide to starting an RCFE in California.

Fee rules for small homes

Capacity changes what a fire authority can charge, separate from the pre-inspection fee discussed above. State law bars fire authorities from charging inspection fees for RCFEs serving six or fewer residents, under Health and Safety Code section 1569.84, though some jurisdictions still charge cost-recovery fees for the optional pre-inspection consultation described above. That distinction trips up a lot of first-time applicants who assume “no fire fees” means no fees at any stage. The exemption applies to the mandatory clearance inspection itself, not necessarily to a voluntary consultation visit.

Forms and notices for bedridden residents

Accepting or keeping a bedridden resident changes what the fire authority is evaluating, even though it does not create a separate form number. Title 22 lays out the mechanics in section 87202: all facilities shall maintain a fire clearance approved by the city, county, or city and county fire department or district providing fire protection services, or the State Fire Marshal, and prior to accepting or retaining nonambulatory or bedridden persons, the applicant or licensee shall notify the licensing agency and obtain an appropriate fire clearance. A clearance covering bedridden status is issued if the fire safety requirements are met, with residents who are unable to independently transfer to and from bed, but who do not need assistance to turn or reposition in bed, considered nonambulatory for purposes of that paragraph.

There is also a notification deadline separate from the clearance request itself. Facilities admitting or retaining a bedridden resident must notify the local fire authority within 48 hours under Health and Safety Code section 1569.72, naming the estimated length of time the resident will hold that status. That notice runs on its own clock and does not substitute for the underlying fire clearance covering the bedroom in question.

Keeping the paperwork straight

Most delays we see in fire clearance paperwork come from mismatched numbers, a capacity figure on the application that does not match what was sent to the fire authority, or an ambulatory count that changed after the pre-inspection but before the final request went out. Luis Santos, Managing Partner, operates three licensed RCFEs in the San Gabriel Valley, a fourth opening, operating since 2021, and we have had to amend a fire clearance request mid-process more than once when a resident’s status changed before the final inspection closed out. CDSS, not Guiding Hand, makes the licensing decision on every clearance; our role is advisory.

Guiding Hand reviews fire clearance paperwork against the property’s actual capacity and ambulatory mix before it goes to the fire authority, so the numbers on LIC 9092 and the eventual STD 850 match from the start.