Utah · waiver service

DSPD Caregiver Compensation in Utah

Caregiver Compensation is an ongoing supported-living service from Utah's Division of Services for People with Disabilities (DSPD). It lets a parent, step-parent, legal guardian or spouse be paid for the care they give a family member who already receives DSPD services. The caregiver is paid either through a fiscal agent (self-administered services) or as an employee of a provider agency.

Also called: caregiver compensation Utah · DSPD caregiver compensation · parent caregiver compensation · spouse caregiver compensation · CM2 · CM3

Who do you care for?

My parent →My spouse →My child →

Quick facts

Pay: $2,372/month (reported average)
Adult children & other relatives: Not right now
Spouse: Yes
Parent of a minor child: Yes
Waitlist: long

Who qualifies for DSPD Caregiver Compensation

Already receives services through a Home and Community-Based waiver managed by DSPD (for example the Community Supports, Acquired Brain Injury, or Physical Disabilities waivers).
Qualifies for living supports, with needs documented by assessment (UCANS and/or CBIA) and a medical and behavioral certification form.
For the Physical Disabilities track, one of these must apply: lives in a rural area with no other help within 15 miles, the parent has special training to run health-related technology, the person is functionally quadriplegic, or the person needs critical support during non-traditional work hours.
The paid caregiver completes DSPD's required training video and knowledge check.

Who can be paid as the caregiver

Adult children & other relatives Not right now: this service is specifically for parents, step-parents, legal guardians and spouses; other relatives are hired through regular DSPD self-administered services instead.
Spouse Yes: DSPD lists spouses as eligible paid caregivers (separate spouse service code CM2).
Parent of a minor child Yes: parents, step-parents and legal guardians can be paid after completing required training.
Living together: not stated as a requirement; the caregiver is a household family member by design.

Who employs the caregiver: Either. Under self-administered services an unpaid administrator (who cannot be the paid caregiver) is the employer and a contracted fiscal agent runs payroll; under the provider model the caregiver is employed by a provider agency that sets the wage.

Spouse rules differ by program — see spouse pay in Utah.

How much DSPD Caregiver Compensation pays

$2,372/month (reported average). No hourly wage schedule is published. A May 2024 FAQ says DSPD reimburses fiscal agencies $6.23 per quarter hour and providers $6.85 per quarter hour, and the amount families receive varies by fiscal agency or provider. Parents have reportedly averaged about $2,372 per month. Caregivers cannot be paid more than an employee would be, and overtime is not allowed.

Hours and budget: Assessments and documentation place the person in one of four categories with weekly caps of 10, 20, 30 or 40 hours. Changes go through DSPD's Request for Services committee. Caregiver Compensation generally replaces services already in the budget rather than adding to them. The case manager reviews billed hours monthly.

Compare with other Utah programs on the Utah caregiver pay page, or across states in pay rates by state.

Is there a waitlist?

Only people already receiving DSPD services can use it, and DSPD services are known for a multi-year waiting list.

How to apply for DSPD Caregiver Compensation

If not yet in DSPD services, apply online at dspd.utah.gov or call DSPD intake at 1-844-275-3773.
Once receiving DSPD services, ask your support coordinator to request Caregiver Compensation.
Have a clinician or doctor complete the medical and behavioral certification form.
Complete the DSPD caregiver training video and knowledge check, then submit monthly summaries and timesheets.

DSPD (applications and eligibility) · 1-844-275-3773 · official site
DSPD (alternate line) · 1-801-538-4200 · official site

Find out in 2 minutes

Answer 5 easy questions. See your programs and pay before you share any contact info.

See if you qualify →

DSPD Caregiver Compensation questions

Can parents get paid to care for a disabled child in Utah?

Yes, if the child already receives DSPD waiver services and qualifies for living supports. Parents, step-parents and legal guardians can be paid after finishing DSPD's training.

Can a spouse be paid in Utah?

Yes, under DSPD Caregiver Compensation, which has a separate spouse service code. Spousal pay came out of Utah's 2021 SB 63.

How many hours can I be paid for?

DSPD uses four categories capped at 10, 20, 30 or 40 hours a week, based on assessments and medical or behavioral documentation.

Can one parent manage the program and the other be paid?

Yes. The administrator role is unpaid, and the administrator cannot also be paid as a caregiver, so one parent can manage while the other is paid.

How much does Caregiver Compensation pay?

It depends on your fiscal agency or provider. DSPD pays fiscal agencies $6.23 per 15 minutes; parents have reportedly averaged about $2,372 a month.

Is caregiver pay taxable?

DSPD tells families to talk to a tax advisor about difficulty-of-care rules.

Sources: dspd.utah.gov · dspd.utah.gov · utahparentcenter.org · le.utah.gov · Updated 2026-10-08. Program rules change — always confirm with the program.

Other Utah programs

Guides

Where most Utah caregivers are

Counties with the most residents aged 65 and older. The rules are the same everywhere in Utah — pick yours for the local picture.

Across the line

States that border Utah

Each state writes its own rules, and they differ more than people expect — a spouse who can be paid on one side of the line often cannot be on the other.