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Florida Assisted Living Administrator — Requirements & Free Practice

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Licenses, application pathways and examination requirements

Each license and applicant pathway has its own requirements and exemptions. Choosing practice questions does not determine your eligibility.

Assisted Living Facility Administrator

Personal qualification to serve as a Florida ALF administrator, ordinarily established by approved core training and the core competency test. The same qualifications apply to ALF managers. Statutory and rule-based exemptions, continuing education, temporary service and retesting conditions are preserved in the routes. Facility licenses and registration to teach core training are distinct authorizations.

Licensing authority: Florida Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) · Application information

Biennial maintenance through continuing education
No examination is required for this applicant pathway.
Background screening
Comply with Level 2 background screening under sections 408.809 and 429.174, Florida Statutes.
Continuing education
Complete at least 12 contact hours every two years in assisted-living topics and retain documentation.
Credential scope
This is personal ALF administrator qualification. Facility standard and specialty licenses authorize the facility; core-training-provider registration authorizes teaching core training.
Education
An administrator employed on or after October 30, 1995 must have at least a high school diploma or GED.
Existing qualification
Already qualified as an ALF administrator; this pathway maintains that existing qualification.
Facility specific training
Additional training depends on assigned duties and facility services: ECC administrators complete four hours initial ECC training after core training and four hours continuing education every two years; LMH administrators with direct contact complete six hours specialized training within six months and three hours biennial continuing education. Applicable ADRD and DNRO training also applies under Rule 59A-36.011.
Minimum age
At least 21 years of age.
Noncompliance
A continuing-education lapse belongs to the reactivation pathway and triggers retesting.
Renewal document
TMRI states no new ID card or certificate is required for renewal when the biennial 12-hour requirement has been fulfilled.

Official no-examination sources

Effective from 2024-06-05.

Qualification with grandfathered core training
No examination is required for this applicant pathway.
Background screening
Comply with Level 2 background screening under sections 408.809 and 429.174, Florida Statutes.
Credential scope
This is personal ALF administrator qualification. Facility standard and specialty licenses authorize the facility; core-training-provider registration authorizes teaching core training.
Education
An administrator employed on or after October 30, 1995 must have at least a high school diploma or GED.
Facility specific training
Additional training depends on assigned duties and facility services: ECC administrators complete four hours initial ECC training after core training and four hours continuing education every two years; LMH administrators with direct contact complete six hours specialized training within six months and three hours biennial continuing education. Applicable ADRD and DNRO training also applies under Rule 59A-36.011.
Minimum age
At least 21 years of age.
Ongoing education
Complete 12 hours of assisted-living continuing education every two years.
Prior training
Administrator attended core training before July 1, 1997; a manager attended core training before April 20, 1998.
Test exemption
No competency test is required while the grandfathered person remains compliant with continuing education; Rule 59A-36.010(1)(a)5 requires retesting when continuing-education noncompliance is discovered.

Official no-examination sources

Effective from 2024-06-05.

Initial qualification by core training and examination
Florida Assisted Living Facility Core Competency Test
Background screening
Comply with Level 2 background screening under sections 408.809 and 429.174, Florida Statutes.
Completion deadline
Complete core training and pass the competency test within 90 days after employment as an administrator.
Core training
Complete at least 26 hours with an approved core trainer before test registration.
Credential scope
This is personal ALF administrator qualification. Facility standard and specialty licenses authorize the facility; core-training-provider registration authorizes teaching core training.
Education
An administrator employed on or after October 30, 1995 must have at least a high school diploma or GED.
Facility specific training
Additional training depends on assigned duties and facility services: ECC administrators complete four hours initial ECC training after core training and four hours continuing education every two years; LMH administrators with direct contact complete six hours specialized training within six months and three hours biennial continuing education. Applicable ADRD and DNRO training also applies under Rule 59A-36.011.
Minimum age
At least 21 years of age.
Ongoing education
Complete at least 12 contact hours in assisted-living topics every two years.
Passing score
At least 75 percent.
Qualification through the licensed nursing home administrator exemption
No examination is required for this applicant pathway.
Background screening
Comply with Level 2 background screening under sections 408.809 and 429.174, Florida Statutes.
Core training exemption
Section 429.52(4) and Rule 59A-36.011(1)(b) exempt nursing-home administrators from the core-training and competency-test requirement. The underlying nursing-home-administrator credential is a condition, not an ALF exam leaf.
Credential scope
This is personal ALF administrator qualification. Facility standard and specialty licenses authorize the facility; core-training-provider registration authorizes teaching core training.
Education
An administrator employed on or after October 30, 1995 must have at least a high school diploma or GED.
Existing professional license
Hold a nursing home administrator license under Chapter 468, Part II, Florida Statutes.
Facility specific training
Additional training depends on assigned duties and facility services: ECC administrators complete four hours initial ECC training after core training and four hours continuing education every two years; LMH administrators with direct contact complete six hours specialized training within six months and three hours biennial continuing education. Applicable ADRD and DNRO training also applies under Rule 59A-36.011.
Minimum age
At least 21 years of age.
Ongoing education
The exemption does not remove the 12-contact-hour biennial ALF continuing-education requirement in section 429.52(5).

Official no-examination sources

Effective from 2024-06-05.

Reactivation after failure to maintain continuing education
Florida Assisted Living Facility Core Competency Test
Background screening
Comply with Level 2 background screening under sections 408.809 and 429.174, Florida Statutes.
Credential scope
This is personal ALF administrator qualification. Facility standard and specialty licenses authorize the facility; core-training-provider registration authorizes teaching core training.
Education
An administrator employed on or after October 30, 1995 must have at least a high school diploma or GED.
Eligibility
Previously completed core training but did not maintain continuing education.
Facility specific training
Additional training depends on assigned duties and facility services: ECC administrators complete four hours initial ECC training after core training and four hours continuing education every two years; LMH administrators with direct contact complete six hours specialized training within six months and three hours biennial continuing education. Applicable ADRD and DNRO training also applies under Rule 59A-36.011.
Minimum age
At least 21 years of age.
Retraining
Rule 59A-36.011(1)(d) requires retaking the assisted-living core training and passing the competency test again.
Vendor instruction
TMRI FAQ says: "You may retake the 26-hour core training course or a refresher course." The governing rule requires retaking core training; the FAQ is recorded as the testing vendor instruction.
Version on retesting
Rule 59A-36.010(1)(a)5 requires the training and competency-test requirements in effect when noncompliance is discovered.
Reemployment after previously completed core training and maintained continuing education
Florida Assisted Living Facility Core Competency Test
Background screening
Comply with Level 2 background screening under sections 408.809 and 429.174, Florida Statutes.
Change of administrator notice
Facility owner must notify AHCA within ten days and provide evidence of the new administrator qualifications within 90 days under section 429.176.
Continuing education
Maintain the required 12 hours every two years.
Credential scope
This is personal ALF administrator qualification. Facility standard and specialty licenses authorize the facility; core-training-provider registration authorizes teaching core training.
Education
An administrator employed on or after October 30, 1995 must have at least a high school diploma or GED.
Facility specific training
Additional training depends on assigned duties and facility services: ECC administrators complete four hours initial ECC training after core training and four hours continuing education every two years; LMH administrators with direct contact complete six hours specialized training within six months and three hours biennial continuing education. Applicable ADRD and DNRO training also applies under Rule 59A-36.011.
Minimum age
At least 21 years of age.
No repeat training
Rule 59A-36.011(1)(d) states: "A newly hired administrator or manager who has successfully completed the assisted living facility core training and continuing education requirements, shall not be required to retake the core training." Prior passage remains the examination leaf; a new sitting is not required merely because the person changes employers.
Prior core completion
Previously successfully completed the ALF core training, including passage of the currently offered competency test.
Temporary service during extenuating circumstances
Florida Assisted Living Facility Core Competency Test
Agency permission
AHCA may permit temporary service when extenuating circumstances, such as the death of an administrator, arise and the person has not completed required training.
Authorization identity
Rule 59A-36.010(1)(b) permits temporary service in the administrator role; it does not create a separately issued temporary personal license.
Background screening
Comply with Level 2 background screening under sections 408.809 and 429.174, Florida Statutes.
Credential scope
This is personal ALF administrator qualification. Facility standard and specialty licenses authorize the facility; core-training-provider registration authorizes teaching core training.
Education
An administrator employed on or after October 30, 1995 must have at least a high school diploma or GED.
Facility specific training
Additional training depends on assigned duties and facility services: ECC administrators complete four hours initial ECC training after core training and four hours continuing education every two years; LMH administrators with direct contact complete six hours specialized training within six months and three hours biennial continuing education. Applicable ADRD and DNRO training also applies under Rule 59A-36.011.
Minimum age
At least 21 years of age.
Specialty training
During the same 90-day period, complete additional training if the facility has an ECC or LMH license.
Temporary period
No more than 90 days; complete core training and the competency test during that period.

Florida Assisted Living Facility Core Competency Test

Provider
The MacDonald Research Institute, LLC (TMRI)
Format
Multiple choice, four answer choices per question
Exam questions
100 questions
Time limit
2 hours
Passing score
75%
Exam fee
$200
Practice scope

Inferred from the examination name; the authority has not published an examination outline.

  • Chapter 429, Part I, Florida Statutes — Assisted Living Facilities
  • Chapter 408, Part II, Florida Statutes — Health Care Licensing
  • Chapter 59A-35, Florida Administrative Code — Health Care Licensing Procedures
  • Chapter 59A-36, Florida Administrative Code — Assisted Living Facility
  • Chapter 419, Florida Statutes — Community Residential Homes
  • Chapter 394, Florida Statutes — Mental Health
  • Chapter 415, Florida Statutes — Adult Protective Services
  • Chapter 69A-40, Florida Administrative Code — Uniform Firesafety Standards for Assisted Living Facilities
Examination sources