Residential Care Licensing

In the province of British Columbia there is legislation to protect adults and children receiving care in licensed residential community care facilities.

This legislation is the Community Care and Assisted Living Act and the Residential Care Regulation and the Director of Licensing Standards of Practice.  

For more information about an inspection visit the Inspection and Investigation Reports website .

Individuals providing care to more than two individuals, not related to them, are required to be licensed, and to provide care in a licensed setting.

Licensed residential care types include:

• Acquired Injury
• Child and Youth Residential
• Community Living
• Hospice Care 
• Long Term Care
• Mental Health
• Substance Use

Licensed Care is:

Care means supervision that is provided to: 

• A child through a prescribed program, 
• A child or youth through a prescribed residential program, or
• An adult who is: 
  • Vulnerable because of family circumstances, age, disability, illness or frailty, and
  • Dependent on caregivers for continuing assistance or direction. 

Community Care Facility means a premises or part of a premises: 

• In which a person provides care to 3 or more persons who are not related by blood or marriage to the person and includes any other premises or part of a premises that, in the opinion of the medical health officer, is used in conjunction with the community care facility for the purpose of providing care, or
• Designated by the Lieutenant Governor in Council to be a community care facility.

Licensing Officers inspect, license and monitor over 200 licensed residential care facilities in Island Health.

Director of Licensing Standards of Practice

Standards of Practice PDFs: 
Advance Directives and Care Plans
Agreement in Writing to the Use of Restraints
Immunization of Adult Persons in Residential Care
Incident Reporting of Aggressive of Unusual Behaviour in Adult Residential Care Facilities  Preventing Overdose Deaths 
Contact your local Licensing Office

Inspection Checklists

Residential Care Inspection Checklist - Initial Inspection for Applicants 

Residential Care Inspection Checklist - Routine Inspection

Residential Care Newsletters

Summer 2024
Fall 2023
Summer 2023
Spring 2023
Winter 2021
Spring 2020 

Residential Care Bulletin 

Heat Preparedness Bulletin
Winter 2022
Spring 2022

Submitting Reportable Incidents Online

For current information about submitting incident reports, please see Incident Reporting.