What Are the Home Daycare License Requirements in Florida?
Florida licenses family child care homes only in counties that require it; everywhere else, a home registers annually with the Department of Children and Families (DCF).
Capacity tops out at 10 children for a family child care home and 12 for a large home.
Family child care home operators finish a 30-clock-hour course before caring for children plus 10 hours of training every year (large-home operators take a 40-clock-hour course), and screening reaches household members over age 12.
The sections below cover licensing, capacity, training, background checks and fees.
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At a glance
Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) Child Care Regulation; counties that require licensure license homes locally.
Where the county requires it, under an existing ordinance or a county commission resolution; homes not subject to a license register annually with DCF.
Registration with DCF, the licensed family child care home, and the large family child care home.
10 children for a family child care home (counting household children under 13); 12 for a large family child care home, with no more than 4 under 24 months.
Not established in our research — ask the licensing agency.
Family child care home operators: 10 clock hours (1 CEU) every year, after the 30-clock-hour introductory course; large family child care home operators take the 40-clock-hour introductory course.
$25 registered family child care home, $50 licensed family child care home, $60 large family child care home; counties that license locally may charge their own fees.
Home child care license types in Florida
- Registered family child care homeRegistration
The tier for homes in counties that do not require licensure: the home registers annually with DCF instead of holding a license.
- Licensed family child care homeLicense
Required where the county licenses family child care homes; capacity follows age-mix groups that top out at 10 children, counting household children under 13.
- Large family child care homeLicense
Up to 8 children under 24 months, or up to 12 children with no more than 4 under 24 months, with at least two full-time child care personnel on site.
Do you need a license to run a home daycare in Florida?
Florida statute (s. 402.302(2), F.S.) defines a licensable child care facility as one caring for more than five children unrelated to the operator that receives a payment, fee, or grant for any child.
Where a family child care home sits in that system depends on the county: family child care homes are licensed only where the county requires it, through an existing ordinance or a county commission resolution, and homes that are not subject to a license must register annually with DCF.
Florida's 2026 legislation (ch. 2026-140) renamed the family day care home the family child care home throughout the Florida Statutes, so the current rules use family child care home.
“If not subject to license, family child care homes shall register annually with the department”
Florida home daycare license types and capacity
A family child care home counts household children under 13 in its capacity and may care for one of these groups: up to 4 infants under 12 months; up to 3 infants plus other children to a total of 6; up to 6 preschoolers all older than 12 months; or up to 10 children if no more than 5 are preschool age and no more than 2 of those are under 12 months.
A large family child care home is the bigger tier: it must have at least two full-time child care personnel on site and may care for up to 8 children under 24 months, or up to 12 children with no more than 4 under 24 months.
The large home tier also has a prerequisite: the home must first have operated as a licensed family child care home for 2 consecutive years, with an operator who has held a CDA or its equivalent for 1 year.
“A maximum of 12 children, with no more than 4 children under 24 months of age.”
What qualifications and training does a Florida home daycare provider need?
Before caring for children, a Florida family child care home operator must pass an approved 30-clock-hour introductory course in child care, proven by passing a competency examination, and then complete 10 clock hours (1 CEU) of training every year.
The 30-clock-hour course is the family child care home requirement; the 40-clock-hour introductory course applies to child care center personnel and to large family child care home operators.
Our research did not establish a minimum age or an education prerequisite that Florida sets specifically for family child care home operators, so ask DCF Child Care Regulation or your county licensing agency what applies to you before you apply.
Do background checks cover you and your household?
Florida screens child care personnel under Level 2 standards (ch. 435, F.S.), the screening that applies to a family child care home's operator: it includes employment history checks, a search of criminal history records, sex offender registries, and child abuse registries of any state the person lived in during the preceding 5 years.
In a family child care home the screening reaches the household: members of the operator's family and other people residing with the operator are screened once they are over age 12.
Household members between the ages of 12 and 18 are screened for delinquency records but are not fingerprinted.
“Members of the operator’s family, or persons residing with the operator, who are between the ages of 12 years and 18 years shall not be required to be fingerprinted, but shall be screened for delinquency records.”
What does Florida require for home daycare inspections?
Each year, a Florida family child care home operator must complete a health and safety home inspection self-evaluation checklist and give it to parents.
That annual self-evaluation is the home inspection requirement our research confirms for family child care homes.
We did not capture the on-site inspection schedule DCF or a county licensing agency applies to licensed homes, or whether a pre-licensing visit happens before a first license, so confirm inspection expectations with the agency that licenses homes in your county.
“Operators of family child care homes shall be required annually to complete a health and safety home inspection self-evaluation checklist”
How do you apply for a Florida home daycare license, and what does it cost?
DCF charges a $25 fee for a registered family child care home, $50 for a licensed family child care home, and $60 for a large family child care home.
Counties that license locally may charge their own fees, so the total can differ by county.
A home that is not subject to a license registers annually with DCF.
Our research did not capture the application form family child care homes file, a processing timeline, or whether licensing includes a pre-licensing home visit; ask DCF Child Care Regulation or your county licensing agency for those details.
What does it take to hire an assistant for a Florida home daycare?
At the large family child care home tier, the second staff member is a rule, not an option: the home must have at least two full-time child care personnel on site.
Anyone who joins the home as child care personnel goes through Florida's Level 2 screening — employment history checks, criminal history records, sex offender registries and child abuse registries for states lived in during the preceding 5 years.
For a small family child care home, our research did not establish whether an assistant may be counted in capacity or which training applies to a hired assistant, so ask DCF Child Care Regulation or your county licensing agency before you post the job.
What This Page Does, and Doesn’t, Cover
This page summarizes the Florida licensing rules, agency pages and other sources listed below, as read for this state-by-state home daycare license requirements series, current as of October 2026. It is not a substitute for the instructions the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) Child Care Regulation publishes. For the rest of the picture in Florida, see daycare licensing steps in Florida.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a licensed and a registered family child care home in Florida?
A licensed home operates in a county that requires licensure, through an existing ordinance or a county commission resolution; a home in a county that does not require it registers annually with DCF instead.
The tier also changes the fee: DCF charges $50 for a licensed family child care home and $25 for a registered home, and counties that license locally may charge their own fees.
Do your own children count against Florida home daycare capacity?
Yes.
Florida counts household children under 13 in a family child care home's capacity, so your own children under 13 count toward the age-mix groups, which top out at 10 children.
A large family child care home can care for up to 12 children with no more than 4 under 24 months, or up to 8 children under 24 months.
Do Florida home daycare operators take the same 40-hour course as center staff?
No. A family child care home operator must pass an approved 30-clock-hour introductory course with a competency examination before caring for children, then complete 10 clock hours of training every year.
The 40-clock-hour introductory course applies to child care center personnel and to large family child care home operators.
Can a Florida family child care home care for infants?
Yes, within the capacity groups.
A home may care for up to 4 infants under 12 months, or up to 3 infants plus other children to a total of 6.
In the 10-child group, no more than 5 children may be preschool age and no more than 2 of those may be under 12 months.
How much does a Florida home daycare license cost?
DCF's fees are $50 for a licensed family child care home, $60 for a large family child care home, and $25 for a registered family child care home.
Counties that license locally may charge their own fees, so the total in your county can be different — check with the agency that licenses homes in your county before you apply.
More Florida Resources
Sources
- Florida Statutes — child care licensing statute (Florida Legislature) (retrieved 2026-10-05)
Sourced from the documents listed above. Verified October 2026. This is career and employer information, not licensing or legal advice. Confirm current rules with the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) Child Care Regulation.