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Home Daycare License Requirements in North Dakota (2026)

Opening a home daycare in North Dakota means getting a family child care home license from the North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services (HHS / DHHS) - Early Childhood Services, Early Childhood Licensing unit. Here is exactly what that takes in 2026 — your capacity limit and ratios, the training and background checks, the application steps, and the postings and enrollment forms you need — sourced to the state’s own rules and dated.

Who needs a license — home types in North Dakota

NORTH DAKOTA TIERS HOME-BASED CARE BY HEAD COUNT, AND EVERY BOUNDARY IS IN THE CENTURY CODE, NOT IN THE RULES. NDAC 75-03-08-03 says so in its first line: "The terms used in this chapter have the same meanings as in North Dakota Century Code section 50-11.1-02." Read the rules alone and you will find no capacity at all. 1) IN-HOME PROVIDER - NOT A LICENCE, AND NOT IN YOUR HOME. NDCC 50-11.1-02(11): "'In-home provider' means any person who provides early childhood services to children in the CHILDREN'S home." This is a nanny-style registration, governed by NDAC ch. 75-03-07. NDCC 50-11.1-06 makes it voluntary: "An in-home provider may apply for a registration document from the department... A registration document for an in-home provider may not be effective for longer than one year." The Legislative Council memorandum (LC# 27.9080.01000, September 2025) states the ceiling: "An in-home provider may provide early childhood services in a private residence for up to five children through age 11, of which no more than three may be under age 24 months." Its published table lists in-home as ages 0-11, up to 5 children, NOT eligible for the food program and NOT eligible for child care assistance. 2) SELF-DECLARATION - VOLUNTARY, IN YOUR OWN HOME, AND SUBSIDY-ELIGIBLE.

NDCC 50-11.1-02(27) - and this subsection number matters, see verify_flag - reads: "'Self-declaration' means voluntary documentation of an individual providing early childhood services in a private residence for up to five children through the age of eleven, of which no more than three may be under the age of twenty-four months." NDCC 50-11.1-16(1)(a): "An application for self-declaration is voluntary. If an individual applies for self-declaration from the department, the department shall determine whether the standards for self-declaration have been met and shall approve or deny a self-declaration based upon that determination." Fee: $15 (50-11.1-16(1)(b)).

Decision clock: "the department shall approve a self-declaration within thirty days of receipt of a completed application and all supporting documents" (50-11.1-17(1)). The operating standards live in NDAC ch. 75-03-07.1, which despite being 'voluntary' is a real rulebook: the provider must be at least eighteen (75-03-07.1-02(4)(a)(1)), must "[c]ertify completion of a department-approved basic child care course within ninety days of being approved as a provider" ((13)), must be currently CPR/AED and pediatric first aid certified ((14),(15)), must "complete a minimum of three hours of department-approved training annually, including one hour on safe sleep prior to provider providing care to infants and one hour on mandated reporter of suspected child abuse or neglect" ((16)), and must ensure the emergency designee is likewise certified ((17)-(19)). The self-declaration document "must be displayed prominently in the premises to which it applies" (75-03-07.1-02(2)). The LC memo's table records the practical difference from in-home: self-declaration is NOT eligible for the food program but IS eligible for the child care assistance program.

That is the entire commercial reason self-declaration exists. 3) FAMILY CHILD CARE - THE LICENSED HOME. NDCC 50-11.1-02(7): "'Family child care' means a private residence licensed to provide early childhood services for no more than seven children at any one time, except that the term includes a residence licensed to provide early childhood services to two additional school-age children." The licence is not optional above a threshold. NDCC 50-11.1-03(1): "A license for family child care is required if early childhood services are provided for four or more children ages twenty-four months and under, or six or seven children through age eleven at any one time which includes no more than three children under twenty-four months of age." Read that as two independent trip-wires. TRIP-WIRE A: a fourth child aged 24 months or under, no matter how few children you have in total. TRIP-WIRE B: a sixth child through age eleven, in a mix that keeps under-24-month children to three or fewer. Either one alone forces the licence. 'School-age children' is separately defined at NDCC 50-11.1-02(26): "children aged at least five years but less than twelve years of age" - so the +2 add-on is a 5-through-11 add-on.

Note that the phrase 'school-age' appears NOWHERE in NDAC ch. 75-03-08; the add-on exists only in the statute, which is exactly why providers who read only the rulebook miss it. The department's own framing of the two lawful mixes, in the LC memorandum: "A provider with a family child care license may either: Care for up to three children under the age of 24 months with additional children over 24 months, plus two school-age children; or Care for up to four children under the age of 24 months plus school-age children." LC table for family: ages 0-11, up to 7 children, eligible for the food program AND for child care assistance. 4) GROUP CHILD CARE - STILL A HOME OPTION, AND STILL ALIVE AFTER HB 1119. NDCC 50-11.1-02(9): "'Group child care' means a child care program licensed to provide early childhood services for thirty or fewer children." The licence trigger is at NDCC 50-11.1-03(2): "A license for group child care is required if early childhood services are provided for at least eight and no more than thirty children at any one time." The definition alone does not carry the floor of eight - only the licence-required subsection does; citing 50-11.1-02(9) for '8 to 30' overstates what that subsection says.

The LC memo confirms group care is a residential option: traditional setting "Private residence or nonresidential building," ages 0-11, up to 30 children, food-program and assistance eligible. Rules: NDAC ch. 75-03-09. Critically, NDAC 75-03-09-09(2) gives a group licensee a CHOICE of staffing regimes, and option (a) is simply the family pattern: "A provider may provide early childhood services for no more than seven children at any one time, which includes no more than three children under twenty-four months of age. A provider may also provide early childhood services to two additional school-age children; OR ... (b) A provider may elect to staff according to the following minimum ratio..." A group licence is therefore an upgrade path that does not force you to run at group scale on day one. 5) CHILD CARE CENTRE - THE NON-RESIDENTIAL TIER, AND ITS TWO CONFLICTING NUMBERS. NDCC 50-11.1-02(2) defines a centre as "an early childhood program licensed to provide early childhood services to nineteen or more children," while NDCC 50-11.1-03(3) says "A license for a child care center is required if early childhood services are provided for more than thirty children at any one time."

Both sentences are in the current codified chapter; 19 is the definitional floor for what may be licensed as a centre, 30+1 is the point at which a centre licence becomes compulsory. Rules: NDAC ch. 75-03-10. Traditional setting per the LC table: nonresidential building. 6) PRESCHOOL AND SCHOOL-AGE CHILD CARE - DIFFERENT CLOCKS, DIFFERENT SUBSIDY. NDCC 50-11.1-02(19): a preschool "follows a preschool curriculum and course of study designed primarily to enhance the educational development of the children enrolled and which serves no child for more than three hours per day" (NDAC ch. 75-03-11; ages 2-5; food-program eligible, NOT assistance-eligible). NDCC 50-11.1-02(25): school-age child care is "a child care program licensed to provide early childhood services on a regular basis for children aged at least five years through eleven years" (NDAC ch. 75-03-11.1). 7) WHAT IS NOT 'EARLY CHILDHOOD SERVICES' AT ALL.

NDCC 50-11.1-02(6) is the exemption list and it is long and specific: substitute parental child care under ch. 50-11; care in an educational facility in grade one or above; kindergarten under ch. 15.1-22 or an approved nonpublic elementary programme; care/preschool/pre-K for under-sixes in an educational facility through a department-approved programme; "[c]hild care provided in facilities operated in connection with a church, business, or organization where children are cared for during periods of time not exceeding four continuous hours while the child's parent is attending church services or is engaged in other activities, on the premises"; short summer religious instruction, Sunday schools, catechism; summer resident or day camps serving no child under six for more than two weeks; supervised sporting activities; federally funded Head Start and Early Head Start meeting federal performance standards; care in a medical facility by medical personnel to ill children; and "[a] child care program certified by and in good standing with the United States department of defense family child care certification program, in accordance with department of defense instruction 6060.02." Two further carve-outs sit in NDCC 50-11.1-03: subsection (6), "A license is not required for onsite child care services located in the actual building in which the child's parent is employed, not to exceed ten children per location"; and subsection (5), under which a governmental organization operates on 'public approval' by self-certifying compliance rather than holding a licence (see also the definition at 50-11.1-02(21)). 8) ONE PROGRAMME PER ROOF.

NDAC 75-03-08-07(3): "The department may not issue more than one in-home registration, self-declaration, or license per residence. A residence means real property that is typically used as a single family dwelling." Two providers cannot stack two licences on one house to double capacity. Nor is the licence portable: 75-03-08-07(2), "The license is nontransferable and valid only for the premises indicated on the license. A new application for a license must be filed upon change of provider or location."

How many children you can care for in North Dakota

FAMILY CHILD CARE: SEVEN AT ANY ONE TIME, PLUS UP TO TWO ADDITIONAL SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN - FUNCTIONAL CEILING NINE. NDCC 50-11.1-02(7), quoted in full: "'Family child care' means a private residence licensed to provide early childhood services for no more than seven children at any one time, except that the term includes a residence licensed to provide early childhood services to two additional school-age children." 'School-age children' at NDCC 50-11.1-02(26) means "children aged at least five years but less than twelve years of age." So the ninth child in a licensed family home must be at least five and not yet twelve. NDAC 75-03-08-09(1) then makes clear the count is instantaneous rather than cumulative: "Staffing requirements are established by the number of children physically in care at the family child care at any given time, rather than total enrollment." You may enrol more than nine children on paper; you may never have more than the licensed number under the roof at one moment. THE COUNTING RULE IS STATUTORY, AND IT COUNTS YOUR OWN CHILDREN. NDCC 50-11.1-02.1 ('Number of children in program - How determined') is the section that decides whether a family provider is legal on a Tuesday afternoon.

Its four subsections, quoted: "1. Except as provided under subsection 2, for the purpose of determining the number of children receiving early childhood services, ALL CHILDREN PRESENT ON THE PREMISES AND UNDER THE AGE OF TWELVE YEARS must be counted for an in-home, self-declaration, family child care, group child care, child care center, and preschool. 2. An in-home, self-declaration, family child care, and group child care provider's own child, foster child, or grandchild OVER THE AGE OF ELEVEN are exempt for the purpose of determining the number of children receiving early childhood services under this section. 3. For the purpose of determining the number of children receiving early childhood services, all children present on the premises aged at least five years through age eleven must be counted for school-age child care. 4. All children present are protected by this chapter regardless of whether money is received or goods or other services are received for their care." Plain reading: the provider's own children under twelve DO count against capacity. The only relatives exempted are the provider's own child, foster child or grandchild who is already twelve or older - which is a null exemption, because every child twelve or older is already outside the count under subsection 1. Subsection 2 is a clarifying belt-and-braces, not a licence to park your own eight-year-old outside the ratio.

THE DEPARTMENT SAYS THE SAME THING ON ITS OWN FORM, IN PRINT. SFN 1426 'Child Care Record' (Department of Health and Human Services, Early Childhood Services, revision 4-2025) carries a printed instruction line across the top of the roster: "Family and Group in a Home Providers: Include Provider's Own Children Under the Age of 12." That is the counting rule written on the very document a licensing specialist reads during a visit. Subsection 4 is the quiet trap: a neighbour's child you are watching for free is 'present on the premises' and is counted, because the chapter protects all children present "regardless of whether money is received." THE '3 UNDER 24 MONTHS' NUMBER IS A THRESHOLD, NOT A CEILING - AND THIS IS THE MOST COMMONLY BOTCHED FACT IN NORTH DAKOTA. NDCC 50-11.1-03(1): "A license for family child care is required if early childhood services are provided for four or more children ages twenty-four months and under, or six or seven children through age eleven at any one time which includes no more than three children under twenty-four months of age." The 'no more than three under twenty-four months' clause modifies the SECOND trigger (the 6-or-7 count), and it also defines the SELF-DECLARATION ceiling at NDCC 50-11.1-02(27) ("up to five children through the age of eleven, of which no more than three may be under the age of twenty-four months").

It is not a cap on a licensed family home. On the contrary: serving a fourth child aged 24 months or under is precisely one of the two conditions that REQUIRES the family licence. The department's own gloss, in the Legislative Council background memorandum LC# 27.9080.01000 (September 2025): "A provider with a family child care license may either: Care for up to three children under the age of 24 months with additional children over 24 months, plus two school-age children; or Care for up to four children under the age of 24 months plus school-age children." Two lawful mixes, then: (A) 3 infants/young toddlers + older children to a total of 7 + 2 school-age = 9 bodies; or (B) 4 children under 24 months + school-age children. Note that in mix (B) the department's summary drops the 'plus two' phrasing and simply says 'plus school-age children'; the outer statutory wall of seven-at-any-one-time plus two additional school-age children still binds, because NDCC 50-11.1-02(7) is what defines the licence itself. SPECIAL NEEDS RE-AGE A CHILD FOR COUNTING PURPOSES. NDAC 75-03-08-09(2): "If a child with special needs is admitted to the program, the child's developmental age level must be used in determining the number of children for which care may be provided." A seven-year-old functioning developmentally as a three-year-old is counted as a three-year-old, which can eliminate a school-age add-on slot. 'Child with special needs' is defined at 75-03-08-03(5) as "a child determined by a medical provider to have or to be at risk for chronic physical, developmental, behavioral, or emotional conditions."

SPACE IS A SECOND, INDEPENDENT CEILING. NDAC 75-03-08-14(1): "Adequate space must include a minimum of thirty-five square feet [3.25 square meters] of space per child indoors and a minimum of seventy-five square feet [6.97 square meters] of play space per child outdoors. Indoor space considered must exclude bathrooms, pantries, passageways leading to outdoor exits, areas occupied by furniture or appliances that children should not play on or under, and space children are not permitted to occupy. Providers who provide seventy-five square feet [6.97 square meters] of separate indoor recreation space per child are exempt from the outdoor space requirement." The outdoor exemption is also statutory - NDCC 50-11.1-19 ('Play area regulation'): "If an early childhood program under this chapter has sufficient indoor recreation space, the department may not require outdoor play space." Nine children therefore need at least 315 usable square feet indoors before furniture, bathrooms and hallways are subtracted. THE TIER ABOVE: GROUP CHILD CARE, UP TO THIRTY. NDCC 50-11.1-02(9): "'Group child care' means a child care program licensed to provide early childhood services for thirty or fewer children," with the licence required "if early childhood services are provided for at least eight and no more than thirty children at any one time" (50-11.1-03(2)). The LC memo adds the practical brake that is not in the state rules at all: "Group providers may care for up to 30 children, DEPENDING ON LOCAL ORDINANCE."

The department's 2026 final report devotes a whole section to municipal ordinances - "limiting the number of children or program types in certain zones, restricted parking, fire suppression, operation of a home-based business in residential zoning, special use fees and more" - and Recommendation 6 is simply that licensing specialists "should encourage providers to work closely with their local municipalities to determine if there are ordinances that apply to the operation of a child care business." There is no state pre-emption of city zoning here. ABOVE THAT: more than thirty children at any one time requires a child care centre licence (NDCC 50-11.1-03(3)), and a centre is by definition non-residential in the department's own provider table.

Adult-to-child ratios

AT THE FAMILY TIER NORTH DAKOTA PUBLISHES NO PER-ADULT AGE RATIO. THIS IS A DELIBERATE DESIGN, NOT A GAP - AND THE RULE TEXT IS SHORT ENOUGH TO QUOTE ENTIRE. NDAC 75-03-08-09 ('Staffing requirements'), complete: "1. Staffing requirements are established by the number of children physically in care at the family child care at any given time, rather than total enrollment. 2. If a child with special needs is admitted to the program, the child's developmental age level must be used in determining the number of children for which care may be provided." That is the whole section. There is no infant-per-adult figure, no decimal weight, no maximum group size beyond the licensed head count. The control at the family tier is the capacity envelope itself (7 at any one time + 2 additional school-age children, NDCC 50-11.1-02(7)) combined with the licence-trigger arithmetic in NDCC 50-11.1-03(1) that limits a 6-or-7-child mix to no more than three children under twenty-four months. In effect, one adult may lawfully hold the whole licensed group. WHAT DOES CONSTRAIN THE ADULT, THEN. Four provisions, all in NDAC 75-03-08-08.1 ('Duties of the provider'): (1) CERTIFICATION - "A provider shall be currently certified: a.

In infant and pediatric cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the use of an automated external defibrillator by the American heart association, American red cross, or other similar cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automated external defibrillator training programs that are approved by the department; and b. In pediatric first aid by a program approved by the department." (2) AN ADULT ALWAYS PRESENT - 75-03-08-08.1(2): "The provider shall have an adult staff member responsible for caring for or teaching children present in the family child care at all times to supervise staff members under the age of eighteen and children in care." Since staff may be as young as fourteen (twelve for immediate family - 75-03-08-12(1)), this is the rule that stops a teenager running the home alone. (3) THE SIXTY PERCENT RULE - 75-03-08-08.1(5): "The provider shall be present in the family child care no less than sixty percent of the time when children are in care." The licence is personal; you cannot licence a house and staff it entirely with employees. (4) THE SUPERVISION DEFINITION, which is the real ratio in disguise - 75-03-08-08.1(10): "The provider shall ensure safe care for the children under supervision.

Supervision means a staff member responsible for caring for or teaching children being WITHIN SIGHT OR HEARING RANGE of an infant, toddler, or preschooler AT ALL TIMES so that the staff member is capable of intervening to protect the health and safety of the child. For the school-age child, it means a staff member responsible for caring for or teaching children being available for assistance and care so the child's health and safety is protected." Sight-or-hearing at all times for every child under school age is a stricter operational constraint than any decimal ratio, and it is what a licensing specialist actually cites. Note the family chapter's own definition of 'infant' - 75-03-08-03(7): "'Infant' means a child who is younger than twelve months of age" - which is NOT the same as the '24 months and under' band used by the licence trigger, nor the 'less than eighteen months' band used by the group ratio table. Three different age lines coexist in North Dakota child care law and they are routinely conflated. THE GROUP TIER IS WHERE NORTH DAKOTA'S DECIMAL RATIO SYSTEM LIVES.

NDAC 75-03-09-09(2) offers a group licensee a genuine either/or: "(a) A provider may provide early childhood services for no more than seven children at any one time, which includes no more than three children under twenty-four months of age. A provider may also provide early childhood services to two additional school-age children; OR (b) A provider may elect to staff according to the following minimum ratio of staff members responsible for caring for or teaching children to children in group child care: (1) For children younger than eighteen months of age, a ratio of .25 in decimal form is assigned; (2) For children eighteen months of age to thirty-six months of age, a ratio of .20 in decimal form is assigned; (3) For children thirty-six months of age to four years of age, a ratio of .14 in decimal form is assigned; (4) For children four years of age to five years of age, a ratio of .10 in decimal form is assigned; (5) For children five years of age to six years of age, a ratio of .08 in decimal form is assigned; (6) For children six years to twelve years of age, a ratio of .05 in decimal form is assigned; and (7) When there is a mixed-aged group, the number of children in each age category is multiplied by the corresponding ratio number, converted to decimal form, and carried to the nearest hundredth.

To determine the number of staff members responsible for caring for or teaching children necessary at any given time, numbers of staff members for all age categories are added, and any fractional staff member count is then rounded to the next highest whole number whenever the fractional staff member count amounts to thirty-five hundredths or more. If lower than thirty-five hundredths, the fractional amount is dropped. NO MORE THAN FOUR CHILDREN UNDER THE AGE OF EIGHTEEN MONTHS PER STAFF MEMBER ARE ALLOWED IN ANY MIXED-AGED GROUP." Inverted, the decimals are the familiar ratios: 1:4 under 18 months, 1:5 for 18-35 months, roughly 1:7 for 3-year-olds, 1:10 for 4-year-olds, 1:12 for 5-year-olds, 1:20 for 6-through-11-year-olds. The .35 rounding rule means a computed staffing need of 1.34 requires one adult and 1.35 requires two - which is exactly where the department's '1.34 points' shorthand comes from. A WAIVER EXISTS AND IS UNAPPEALABLE. NDAC 75-03-09-09(3): "A provider licensed for at least two years may apply for a waiver of the required ratio, not to exceed .25 decimal point. The department shall consider demonstration of need, health and safety of children, age of children, number of children, and licensing history of the provider...

The decision to deny or revoke a waiver is not an appealable decision. The department shall review each waiver granted under this subsection annually." THE '1.34 POINTS' FIGURE IS DEPARTMENT POLICY, NOT RULE TEXT. Searched character-by-character, the string '1.34' does not appear anywhere in NDAC ch. 75-03-08 or ch. 75-03-09. It appears in the Legislative Council memorandum - "In group child care, the licensed provider is assigned 1.34 points, and each additional adult is assigned 1.0 point... The provider may care for children totaling 1.34 points. However, ratio requirements must be followed, and a group may not contain more than four children under 18 months of age per provider" - and in the department's 2026 final report, which describes the asymmetry as a problem: "the first adult can care for a combination of children in a mixed age group that totals 1.34 points, but the fractional amount is dropped for each additional adult." In a centre, by contrast, "each adult is assigned 1.34 points" (LC memo). Recommendation 2 of the 2026 report asks that this be equalised - "the first adult and each adult thereafter should be able to care for 1.34 points instead of dropping the fractional amount for each additional adult" - which is a proposal, not law.

FOR ORIENTATION, THE CENTRE TABLE (NDAC 75-03-10-08, quoted verbatim in the department's 2026 report): under eighteen months, one staff member to four children, ratio .25, maximum group size ten; eighteen to thirty-six months, 1:5, .20, max fifteen; three to four years, 1:7, .14, max twenty; four to five years, 1:10, .10, max twenty-five; five to six years, 1:12, .08, max thirty; six to twelve years, 1:20, .05, max forty. Mixed-age centre groups take the group size of "the age of the majority of the children" or "the highest number of children in the youngest age group," and "[w]hen children age zero to eighteen months are in the mixed-age group, the maximum group size does not exceed ten children." Preschool programmes use their own decimal set (LC memo): 2-3 years 1:6 / .167; 3-4 years 1:11 / .09; 4-5 years 1:13 / .077; 5-6 years 1:16 / .063, with the same .35 rounding convention. NONE OF THIS APPLIES TO A LICENSED FAMILY HOME. If a source hands you an age-banded infant ratio for a North Dakota FAMILY child care licence, it has imported the group, centre or preschool table. The family chapter's answer to 'how many adults?' is: one qualified provider, present at least sixty percent of the time, with an adult always on site, keeping every pre-school-age child within sight or hearing, for a group that never exceeds seven plus two school-age children at any one instant.

Training you must complete before licensure

NORTH DAKOTA DOES NOT GATE THE FAMILY LICENCE ON A CLASSROOM-HOURS TOTAL. IT GATES IT ON TWO CURRENT CERTIFICATIONS, AND THEN GIVES YOU NINETY DAYS FOR THE COURSEWORK. WHAT MUST BE IN HAND BEFORE YOU OPERATE. NDAC 75-03-08-08.1(1): "A provider shall be currently certified: a. In infant and pediatric cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the use of an automated external defibrillator by the American heart association, American red cross, or other similar cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automated external defibrillator training programs that are approved by the department; and b. In pediatric first aid by a program approved by the department." This is doubled at the statutory level as a condition of issuance. NDCC 50-11.1-04(1)(g) makes the department's grant of a licence conditional on a showing that "[s]taff members have received training and are currently certified in infant and pediatric cardiopulmonary resuscitation, including the use of an automated external defibrillator by the American heart association, American red cross, or other similar cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automated external defibrillator training programs that are approved by the department, and are currently certified in first aid by a program approved by the department."

Two independent sources, one requirement: CPR/AED (infant AND pediatric) plus pediatric first aid, current, before the licence issues. SAFE SLEEP IS A HARD PRE-CONDITION IF YOU TAKE INFANTS. NDAC 75-03-08-10(4): the provider shall "Certify completion of one hour of department-approved safe sleep training PRIOR TO provider providing care to infants and annually thereafter." The statutory mandate behind it is NDCC 50-11.1-02.3: "The department shall adopt rules to require a staff member of an early childhood service provider who is responsible for the care or teaching of children under the age of one to annually complete a department approved safe sleep training course." Staff carry the identical duty at NDAC 75-03-08-12(7). THE BASIC CHILD CARE COURSE - NINETY DAYS, NOT DAY ONE. NDAC 75-03-08-10(2): a provider shall "Certify completion of a department-approved basic child care course within ninety days of licensure." Staff get the same window measured from hire - 75-03-08-12(3), "within ninety days of employment." WHAT THAT COURSE IS, NAMED BY THE DEPARTMENT. The HHS final report of May 27, 2026 identifies it: "In North Dakota, all child care providers and staff must complete GETTING STARTED, a 15-hour course which covers critical health and safety standards required by CCDF and child development including the major domains of cognitive, social, emotional, and physical development and approaches to learning."

The report lists the covered standards: "Infectious disease prevention; Safe sleep practices; Medication administration; Food allergy management; Physical premises safety; Abusive head trauma; Emergency preparedness; Handling hazardous materials and bio contaminants; Child abuse reporting." The same report ties the ninety-day clock to federal law rather than state preference: "The Child Care and Development Fund require states to have a framework for training that includes preservice training on mandated health and safety topics and a minimum number of annual hours of training for the child care workforce. PRESERVICE TRAINING MUST BE COMPLETED WITHIN 90 DAYS OF EMPLOYMENT." So 'pre-service' in North Dakota means fifteen hours of Getting Started, deliverable inside the first ninety days - not before the doors open. STAFF: THE NINETY-DAY WINDOW HAS A SECOND, HARDER EDGE. NDAC 75-03-08-12(4) and (5) require each staff member to be "currently certified WITHIN NINETY DAYS OF EMPLOYMENT AND PRIOR TO STAFF MEMBER HAVING UNSUPERVISED ACCESS TO CHILDREN UNDER CARE" in infant and pediatric CPR/AED and in pediatric first aid respectively.

Whichever comes first governs: a staff member who will be left alone with children on day three needs the cards on day three. ORIENTATION IN THE FIRST WEEK, AND IT MUST BE DOCUMENTED ON A FORM. NDAC 75-03-08-12(8): each staff member shall "Receive orientation to the family child care program during the first week of employment. The orientation must be documented on an orientation certification form and must address the following: a. Emergency health, fire, and safety procedures; b. The importance of handwashing and sanitation procedures to reduce the spread of infection and disease among children and staff members; c. Any special health or nutrition instructions regarding the children assigned to the staff member; d. Any special needs of the children assigned to the staff member; e. The planned program of activities at the family child care; f. Rules and policies of the family child care; and g. Child abuse and neglect reporting laws." WHO COUNTS AS STAFF, AND HOW YOUNG THEY MAY BE. NDAC 75-03-08-12(1): each staff member who provides care shall "Be at least fourteen years of age, provided that each staff member under age sixteen provides written parental consent for employment as a staff member, and the employment arrangements comply with North Dakota Century Code chapter 34-07. A member of the immediate family of the provider may provide care if the family member is at least twelve years of age."

Twelve-year-old siblings are lawful helpers in a North Dakota family child care - which is precisely why 75-03-08-08.1(2) insists an adult be present at all times to supervise staff under eighteen. VOLUNTEERS ARE NOT A LOOPHOLE. NDAC 75-03-08-12.1: "If a volunteer is providing child care, the volunteer shall meet the qualifications of a staff member responsible for caring for or teaching children and shall receive orientation for all assigned tasks." 'Volunteer' is defined at 75-03-08-03(10) as "an individual who visits or provides an unpaid service, including a firefighter for fire safety week, a practicum student, or a foster grandparent." SUBSTITUTES AND EMERGENCY DESIGNEES. 'Substitute staff' means "paid or unpaid staff who work less than thirty-two hours per month and are not regularly scheduled for work" (75-03-08-03(9)); an 'emergency designee' is "an individual designated by the provider to be a backup staff member for emergency assistance or to provide substitute care" (75-03-08-03(6)), and 75-03-08-08.1(7) makes designating one optional ("The provider MAY select an emergency designee").

The department's 2026 report states the current policy expectation for these roles: "Individuals who are identified as substitutes or emergency designees must complete required preservice training and thereafter keep their pediatric CPR/AED and pediatric 1st Aid certification current, plus complete annual Safe Sleep training if working with infants and annual Mandated Reporter Training. No additional training hours are required." MINIMUM AGE AND HEALTH OF THE PROVIDER. NDAC 75-03-08-10(1): the provider shall "Be at least eighteen years of age." 75-03-08-08.1(9): "The provider must be an adult of good physical, cognitive, social, and emotional health and shall use mature judgment when making decisions impacting the quality of child care," and under 75-03-08-13(1) the department may require a formal evaluation at the individual's own expense if capability "appears questionable." NO DEGREE IS REQUIRED AT THIS TIER. Unlike the group supervisor (NDAC 75-03-09-10(2), which demands a bachelor's or associate's degree, CDA, Montessori certification, or a year of documented exclusive experience with references) and unlike a centre director, a family child care provider needs no credential beyond age eighteen, the certifications above, and the basic course.

Recommendation 3 of the department's 2026 report proposes moving the credentialed tiers to a points model combining "education, work experience, and training and professional development" - again, a proposal, not law.

Ongoing (annual) training

NINE CLOCK HOURS A YEAR FOR THE FAMILY CHILD CARE PROVIDER, AND THE RULE NAMES WHAT ONE OF THEM MUST BE. NDAC 75-03-08-10(3), quoted in full: "Certify completion of a minimum of NINE HOURS of department-approved training related to child care ANNUALLY, INCLUDING ONE HOUR ON MANDATED REPORTER of suspected child abuse or neglect. The same training courses may be counted toward licensing annual requirements only if at least three years has passed since the last completion date of that training course, with the exception of safe sleep and mandated reporter annual training." Plus, if infants are served, NDAC 75-03-08-10(4): "Certify completion of one hour of department-approved safe sleep training prior to provider providing care to infants and annually thereafter." A family provider caring for infants therefore has a floor of nine hours of which one is mandated-reporter, and a separate recurring safe-sleep hour. 'ANNUAL' IS NOT THE CALENDAR YEAR. NDAC 75-03-08-03(1): "'Annual' is defined as the provider's licensing year." The clock runs from your licence date, not from January. THE THREE-YEAR ANTI-REPEAT RULE IS THE SLEEPER.

You cannot bank the same nine hours every year: a course counts again only "if at least three years has passed since the last completion date of that training course." The only two exemptions are safe sleep and mandated reporter, which are exempt precisely because they are required every year. THIS FIGURE WAS AMENDED, AND THE OLDER TEXT IS STILL IN CIRCULATION. In the version of 75-03-08-10 in force through July 1, 2020 the subsection read: "Certify completion of a minimum of nine hours of department-approved training related to child care every licensing year. The same training courses may be counted toward licensing annual requirements only if at least three years has passed since the last completion date of that training course, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF SUDDEN INFANT DEATH PREVENTION ANNUAL TRAINING" - no mandated-reporter hour, and the exception framed around SIDS rather than safe sleep. The current text (amended effective January 1, 2023 and April 1, 2024) carries the mandated-reporter hour. Nine is the same; what is inside the nine is not. THE MANDATED-REPORTER HOUR HAS ITS OWN STATUTE, AND THE CODIFIED TEXT CONTAINS A PRINTING ERROR.

The section is printed in the official Century Code chapter as "50-11-02.4. Early childhood services providers - Mandated reporter of suspected child abuse or neglect - Training" - note the missing '.1', an obvious codification slip since it sits between 50-11.1-02.3 and 50-11.1-03 inside chapter 50-11.1. Its text: "1. An early childhood services provider annually shall provide documentation to the department of the provider's and the provider's staff members' completion of the online interactive training module provided by the department for mandated reporters of suspected child abuse or neglect. 2. This training must qualify for continuing education credits that count toward license renewal." It came from House Bill No. 1144 (2023), which per the Legislative Council memorandum "required child care providers to complete and provide documentation to DHHS verifying the provider and the provider's staff members have completed annual training on suspected child abuse or neglect." The underlying reporting duty is NDAC 75-03-08-08.1(6): "The provider, as a mandatory reporter, shall report any suspected child abuse or neglect as required by North Dakota Century Code section 50-25.1-03." STAFF ANNUAL TRAINING AT THE FAMILY TIER HAS NO NUMERIC TOTAL IN THE RULE.

NDAC 75-03-08-12 imposes on each staff member an annual mandated-reporter hour - "(6) Certify annual completion of one hour of department-approved mandated reporter of suspected child abuse or neglect training" - and an annual safe-sleep hour where infants are served - "(7) Certify completion of one hour of department-approved safe sleep training prior to staff member providing care to infants and annually thereafter" - but the chapter sets no aggregate annual hours figure for family child care STAFF the way 75-03-08-10(3) does for the provider. The Legislative Council memorandum describes a broader practice - "Staff members are required to be at least 16 years old and must complete between 7 to 13 hours of annual training, depending on how many hours the staff member works per week" - but that sentence sits in a passage about centres and school-age programmes and conflicts with 75-03-08-12(1)'s minimum age of fourteen (twelve for immediate family). Treat any staff-hours number for the FAMILY tier as unverified; see verify_flag. COMPARATIVE ANNUAL HOURS ACROSS THE NORTH DAKOTA TIERS, so a reader does not import the wrong figure: SELF-DECLARATION provider - three hours.

NDAC 75-03-07.1-02(4)(a)(16): "Shall complete a minimum of three hours of department-approved training annually, including one hour on safe sleep prior to provider providing care to infants and one hour on mandated reporter of suspected child abuse or neglect." FAMILY CHILD CARE provider - nine hours (NDAC 75-03-08-10(3)). GROUP CHILD CARE supervisor - ten hours. NDAC 75-03-09-10(3): "The group child care supervisor shall certify completion of a minimum of ten hours of department-approved training related to child care annually, including one hour on safe sleep prior to providing care to infants and one hour on mandated reporter of suspected child abuse or neglect. A department-approved basic child care course must be completed within ninety days of employment." CHILD CARE CENTRE director and supervisor, and SCHOOL-AGE director and supervisor - thirteen hours, per the Legislative Council memorandum ("must complete a minimum of 13 hours of department-approved training annually"). TRAINING DONE IN THE RENEWAL WINDOW IS NOT WASTED - NEW IN 2025. NDCC 50-11.1-03(11), added by Senate Bill No. 2107 (2025) (2025 Session Laws ch. 447): "Any hours of department-approved training related to child care which an applicant or staff member completes after submitting the fees and application as required under subsection 8 must be counted toward the licensing annual requirements for the following year."

Because subsection 8 requires the renewal application sixty to ninety days before expiry, this closes a two-to-three-month dead zone in which hours previously fell between licensing years. WHERE THE HOURS ARE RECORDED. Training is tracked through the ND Early Childhood Hub Registry account (the state professional development registry authorised by NDCC 50-11.1-14, under which the department may "establish a statewide system to build systematic early childhood workforce voluntary training which may include distance learning formats, a professional registry, certificates, and specializations," and NDCC 50-11.1-14.1, which requires the department to "implement a registry to track workforce participation"). A CHANGE IS PROPOSED BUT NOT ENACTED. Recommendation 4 of the department's May 27, 2026 final report would restructure the whole thing: "ongoing training requirements be IN ADDITION TO annual safe sleep training and mandated reporter training," with home-based (Program Type 2) providers working 25 or more hours needing "10 additional hours of department approved training, for a total of 11 or 12 clock hours," and those working 24 hours or fewer needing "7 additional hours... for a total of 8 or 9 clock hours." On the department's own timetable that could not take effect before July 1, 2028. The number in force on 2026-08-25 is nine.

Background checks

NORTH DAKOTA RUNS TWO PARALLEL SCREENS ON A FAMILY CHILD CARE HOME, AND CONFLATING THEM IS HOW PEOPLE GET THE TIMING WRONG. Screen one is the FINGERPRINT-BASED CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD CHECK (BCI plus FBI). Screen two is the DEPARTMENT-APPROVED AUTHORIZATION FOR BACKGROUND CHECK FORM, which sweeps in the child abuse and neglect index and a wider registry set and reaches people the fingerprint rule does not. Different populations, different deadlines, different rule sections. SCREEN ONE - FINGERPRINTS. NDAC 75-03-08-27(5), quoted in full: "A provider shall submit an application for a fingerprint-based criminal history record check AT THE TIME OF APPLICATION and within five years from the date of initial approval and at least once every five years thereafter. The provider shall ensure that each staff member submits an application for a fingerprint-based criminal history record check UPON HIRE and within five years from the date of initial approval and at least once every five years thereafter. The department may excuse an individual from providing fingerprints if usable prints have not been obtained after two sets of prints have been submitted and rejected.

If an individual is excused from providing fingerprints, the department shall submit a request to the bureau of criminal investigation for a nationwide NAME-BASED criminal history record check." The statutory machinery is NDCC 50-11.1-06.2(1): "Upon a determination by the department a criminal history record check is appropriate, the following individuals are to obtain TWO SETS of the individual's fingerprints from a law enforcement agency or other local agency authorized to take fingerprints: a. A provider holding or an applicant for early childhood services licensure, self-declaration, or in-home provider registration; b. Emergency designees and staff members of providers holding and applicants for early childhood services licensure, self-declaration, or in-home provider registration; and c. HOUSEHOLD MEMBERS of a residence out of which early childhood services are provided." Routing: subsection (3) - "If the department has no record of a confirmed decision for child abuse or neglect, the department shall submit the fingerprints to the bureau of criminal investigation to determine if there is any criminal history record information regarding the applicant, household members, or staff members in accordance with section 12-60-24." Note the order of operations: a confirmed child-abuse decision stops the process before the prints are even sent.

FEES: NDCC 50-11.1-06.2(5) - "The department may charge a fee not to exceed THIRTY DOLLARS for the purpose of processing the criminal history record information application." Subsection (6) exempts the department from the BCI fee under 12-60-16.9, and subsection (7) permits the fingerprinting agency to "charge a reasonable fee to offset the costs of the fingerprinting." The HHS Criminal Background Checks page states that HHS operates eight fingerprinting locations statewide and that there is "No fingerprinting fee" at state locations, while private law enforcement agencies may charge. VALIDITY AND THE 180-DAY BREAK RULE: NDCC 50-11.1-06.2(10) - "Unless an individual was separated from employment by a provider of early childhood services for more than ONE HUNDRED EIGHTY DAYS, a criminal history record check conducted under this section and subsection 3 of section 50-06-01.9 is valid for FIVE YEARS, after which the department shall require another criminal history record check." A staff member who leaves for six months and a day starts over. ONE NARROW EXEMPTION: NDCC 50-11.1-06.2(9) - "Any individual who is providing early childhood services solely for the provider's own children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and cousins as an IN-HOME PROVIDER may not be required to submit to a criminal history record check authorized under section 50-06-01.9." It applies to in-home providers only; it does not reach a licensed family child care.

SCREEN TWO - THE AUTHORIZATION FORM, AND THE AGE TWELVE HOUSEHOLD THRESHOLD. NDAC 75-03-08-28(2): "Each applicant, provider, emergency designee, and staff member in the family child care shall complete, and the provider shall submit to the department, a department-approved authorization for background check form NO LATER THAN THE FIRST DAY OF EMPLOYMENT." NDAC 75-03-08-28(3): "HOUSEHOLD MEMBERS AGE TWELVE AND OLDER shall complete, and the provider shall submit to the department, a department-approved authorization for background check form AT THE TIME OF APPLICATION, RELICENSURE, OR UPON OBTAINING RESIDENCE at the location of the family child care." Age twelve is the operative threshold in the RULE, and it is deliberately low - it matches the twelve-year minimum for an immediate family member to provide care under 75-03-08-12(1). Note the tension with the statutory definition at NDCC 50-11.1-02(10): "'Household member' means an ADULT living in the private residence out of which a program is operated, regardless of whether the adult is living there permanently or temporarily." The statute's fingerprint provision reaches adult household members; the rule's authorization-form provision reaches everyone twelve and older.

Both are current text; the rule is the stricter and is what a licensing specialist enforces. A teenage stepchild who moves in mid-licence triggers a form on the day of arrival. The statute independently requires the sweep at application: NDCC 50-11.1-04(1) - "The applicant for a license and the staff members, and, if the application is for a program that will be located in a private residence, EVERY INDIVIDUAL LIVING IN THAT RESIDENCE must be investigated in accordance with the rules adopted by the department to determine whether any of them has a criminal record or has had a confirmed decision for child abuse or neglect." CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT FINDINGS. NDAC 75-03-08-28(1): "If a confirmed decision made under North Dakota Century Code chapter 50-25.1 or a similar finding in another jurisdiction which requires proof of substantially similar elements exists, indicating that a child has been abused or neglected by an applicant, provider, emergency designee, staff member, or household member, that decision HAS A DIRECT BEARING on the applicant's or provider's ability to serve the public in a capacity involving the provision of child care, and the application or license may be denied or revoked... the applicant or provider shall furnish information satisfactory to the department, from which the department can determine the applicant's, provider's, or staff member's ability to provide care that is free of abuse and neglect.

The department shall furnish the determination of current ability to the applicant or provider." A confirmed finding is not automatically fatal, but the burden of rebuttal is entirely on the applicant. THE DISQUALIFYING OFFENCE LIST IS EXHAUSTIVE AND SHOULD BE READ AS A LIST, NOT A VIBE. NDAC 75-03-08-27(1): an applicant or provider may not be, and a family child care may not employ or allow in any capacity involving contact with children, anyone "found guilty of, pled guilty to, or pled no contest to: a. An offense described in North Dakota Century Code chapter 12.1-16, homicide; 12.1-18, kidnapping; 12.1-27.2, sexual performances by children; or 12.1-41, Uniform Act on Prevention of and Remedies for Human Trafficking; or in North Dakota Century Code section 12.1-17-01, simple assault; 12.1-17-01.1, assault; 12.1-17-01.2, domestic violence; 12.1-17-02, aggravated assault; 12.1-17-03, reckless endangerment; 12.1-17-04, terrorizing; 12.1-17-06, criminal coercion; 12.1-17-07, harassment; 12.1-17-07.1, stalking; 12.1-17-12, assault or homicide while fleeing a police officer; 12.1-20-03, gross sexual imposition; 12.1-20-03.1, continuous sexual abuse of a child; 12.1-20-04, sexual imposition; 12.1-20-05, corruption or solicitation of minors; 12.1-20-05.1, luring minors by computer or other electronic means; 12.1-20-06, sexual abuse of wards; 12.1-20-07, sexual assault; 12.1-21-01, arson; 12.1-22-01, robbery; 12.1-22-02, burglary, if a class B felony under subdivision b of subsection 2 of that section; 12.1-29-01, promoting prostitution; 12.1-29-02, facilitating prostitution; 12.1-31-05, child procurement; 14-09-22, abuse of child; or 14-09-22.1, neglect of child; b.

An offense under the laws of another jurisdiction which requires proof of substantially similar elements...; or c. An offense, other than an offense identified in subdivision a or b, if the department in the case of an applicant, provider, or household member, or THE PROVIDER in the case of a staff member or emergency designee, determines that the individual has not been sufficiently rehabilitated." Subdivision (c) delegates the rehabilitation judgment for staff and emergency designees to the PROVIDER, not to the department - which is why 75-03-08-27(4) requires that "The provider shall establish written policies and engage in practices that conform to those policies to effectively implement this section BEFORE the hiring of any staff members." REHABILITATION: 75-03-08-27(1)(c) - "An offender's completion of a period of FIVE YEARS after final discharge or release from any term of probation, parole, or other form of community corrections or imprisonment, without subsequent charge or conviction, is prima facie evidence of sufficient rehabilitation." Subsection (3) applies the same five-year test to a defined set of misdemeanours (simple assault, reckless endangerment, criminal coercion, harassment, stalking, and class B misdemeanour domestic violence) but on the softer standard of "without subsequent CONVICTION" rather than "charge or conviction."

The statutory anti-blanket-ban rule is NDCC 50-11.1-06.1: "Conviction of an offense does not disqualify an individual from licensure, self-declaration, or registration under this chapter unless the department determines: 1. The offense has a direct bearing upon the individual's ability to serve the public...; or 2. Following conviction of any offense, the individual is not sufficiently rehabilitated under section 12.1-33-02.1." NDAC 75-03-08-27(2) then makes the direct-bearing determination as a class for the listed offences. DISPUTING A RESULT - A REAL, TIMED PROCESS. NDAC 75-03-08-27(6): "a. If an individual disputes the results of the criminal history record check required under this chapter, the individual may request a review of the results by submitting a written request for review to the department WITHIN THIRTY CALENDAR DAYS of the date of the department's memo outlining the results. The individual's request for review must include a statement of each disputed item and the reason for the dispute. b. The department shall assign the individual's request for review to a department review panel.

An individual who has requested a review may contact the department for an informal conference regarding the review any time before the department has issued its final decision. c. The department shall notify the individual of the department's final decision in writing WITHIN SIXTY CALENDAR DAYS of receipt of the individual's request for review." HOW YOU ACTUALLY SUBMIT IT IN 2026. Per the HHS Criminal Background Checks page, beginning NOVEMBER 3, 2025 applicants must create a ND Login account and submit the request through the ND Gateway Portal at ndgateway.nd.gov/gsp; fingerprint appointments are then scheduled through the CBCU system at one of eight HHS fingerprinting locations statewide, and applicants must bring a valid government-issued photo ID (driver's license, state ID, military ID, passport, tribal ID). The registries searched for all HHS background checks are "ND criminal record (non-public), FBI Criminal Record (non-public), ND Child Abuse/Neglect Index (non-public), ND Sex Offender Registry, ND Offenders Against Children Registry," and the page states that child care checks additionally include national and interstate sex offender registries plus interstate criminal repositories.

THE FEDERAL SUPERVISION RULE THAT GOVERNS THE GAP. Under the CCDBG regime North Dakota applies, a new child care employee may not begin employment until the department has received and reviewed either the in-state BCI record or the national FBI record; on a clean initial return the employee may work UNDER DIRECT SUPERVISION, and may work unsupervised only once the entire check - including records from each state of residence in the past five years - is complete. This mirrors NDAC 75-03-08-12(4)-(5), which bars unsupervised access before CPR/first-aid certification as well. NAME CHANGES. The department's Early Childhood Services policy chapter states that an authorization for background check "must be submitted whenever a name change occurs" - a small trap that catches newly married providers mid-licence.

The application, step by step

Work through these in order — the prep packet turns them into a checklist you can tick off:

1. STEP 0 - DECIDE WHICH TIER YOU ARE IN, BECAUSE THE ANSWER IS A HEAD COUNT, NOT A PREFERENCE. You need a FAMILY CHILD CARE licence the moment either statutory trip-wire in NDCC 50-11.1-03(1) fires: "A license for family child care is required if early childhood services are provided for four or more children ages twenty-four months and under, OR six or seven children through age eleven at any one time which includes no more than three children under twenty-four months of age." Below that you may take the voluntary SELF-DECLARATION route (NDCC 50-11.1-02(27): "up to five children through the age of eleven, of which no more than three may be under the age of twenty-four months"; NDAC ch. 75-03-07.1; $15 fee under NDCC 50-11.1-16(1)(b)), which is unlicensed but is child-care-assistance eligible. Above eight children at any one time you are in GROUP child care (NDCC 50-11.1-03(2), NDAC ch. 75-03-09), and above thirty you are a CENTRE (NDCC 50-11.1-03(3)). Count with NDCC 50-11.1-02.1 in hand: every child present under twelve counts, including your own, and children present without payment count too.
2. STEP 1 - CHECK YOUR CITY BEFORE YOU CHECK THE STATE. There is no state pre-emption of municipal regulation of a home-based child care business. The Legislative Council memorandum notes that group capacity runs to thirty "depending on local ordinance," and the department's May 27, 2026 final report devotes a section to ordinances providers "identify as barriers to child care licensing... limiting the number of children or program types in certain zones, restricted parking, fire suppression, operation of a home-based business in residential zoning, special use fees and more." Recommendation 6 of that report is precisely that licensing specialists "encourage providers to work closely with their local municipalities." NDAC 75-03-08-14(15) also makes the local fire code the operative standard: the family child care "must meet the local minimum fire and safety standards."
3. STEP 2 - CREATE YOUR ND EARLY CHILDHOOD HUB REGISTRY ACCOUNT AND START THE PROVIDER ORIENTATION SERIES. HHS routes new applicants through the ND Early Childhood Hub Registry account; the Child Care Licensing Toolkit is open to anyone "working on getting a North Dakota childcare license, or if you became licensed in the last 90 days" and runs three phases - "Get Ready!" (complete orientation and the health/safety checklist), "Get Set!" (work with a coordinator to prepare the space) and "Start Your Childcare!" (business toolkit support). The registry is the statutory workforce tracking system: NDCC 50-11.1-14 authorises "a professional registry, certificates, and specializations," and NDCC 50-11.1-14.1 requires the department to "implement a registry to track workforce participation."
4. STEP 3 - FILE THE APPLICATION WITH THE STATE - NOT WITH A COUNTY. NDAC 75-03-08-07(1): "An application for a license must be submitted to the department in which the family child care is located. Application must be made in the form and manner prescribed by the department." The words 'or its authorized agent' were struck from this subsection effective April 1, 2024; the county social service board no longer takes the application. In practice the 'form and manner prescribed' is the HHS Child Care Licensing (CCL) provider portal at https://childcarelicensing.nd.gov/, which HHS designates for new applications and annual renewals. Choose a one-year or two-year licence: NDCC 50-11.1-04(2) caps any early childhood licence at two years.
5. STEP 4 - PAY THE FEE, AND MIND THE SIXTY-DAY WINDOW ON EVERY RENEWAL AFTERWARDS. NDCC 50-11.1-03(7)(a): "The owner of a family child care applying for a license shall pay an annual license fee of twenty dollars or if the license is issued for a two-year period, a fee of thirty-five dollars." The fee is nonrefundable and, by NDCC 50-11.1-03(10), "must be paid to the department." At renewal, NDCC 50-11.1-03(8) requires the fee and application "at least sixty days and no more than ninety days before the expiration date"; submit inside sixty days and "the applicant shall submit with the application TWO TIMES the nonrefundable fees." A silver lining added in 2025: NDCC 50-11.1-03(11) (SB 2107, ch. 447) counts training completed after that submission toward the FOLLOWING year's requirement.
6. STEP 5 - RUN BOTH BACKGROUND SCREENS, FOR TWO DIFFERENT POPULATIONS, ON TWO DIFFERENT CLOCKS. (a) FINGERPRINTS - NDAC 75-03-08-27(5) requires the provider to submit a fingerprint-based criminal history record check application "at the time of application," each staff member "upon hire," and everyone again "within five years from the date of initial approval and at least once every five years thereafter." NDCC 50-11.1-06.2(1) extends the fingerprint population to emergency designees and to household members of the residence, and requires TWO sets of prints. Since November 3, 2025 the request is submitted through the ND Gateway Portal (ndgateway.nd.gov/gsp) with a ND Login account, and the appointment is booked through the CBCU system at one of eight HHS locations; bring a government-issued photo ID; no fingerprinting fee at state sites; the department may charge up to $30 to process the record check (NDCC 50-11.1-06.2(5)). (b) AUTHORIZATION FORM - NDAC 75-03-08-28(2) requires a department-approved authorization for background check form from each applicant, provider, emergency designee and staff member "no later than the first day of employment," and 75-03-08-28(3) requires the same form from every HOUSEHOLD MEMBER AGE TWELVE AND OLDER "at the time of application, relicensure, or upon obtaining residence at the location."
7. STEP 6 - GET AND KEEP THE TWO CERTIFICATIONS THAT GATE THE LICENCE. NDAC 75-03-08-08.1(1): the provider must be currently certified in infant AND pediatric CPR with AED use, and in pediatric first aid, both by department-approved programmes (American Heart Association, American Red Cross or similar). NDCC 50-11.1-04(1)(g) makes the same certifications a precondition of the department granting the licence at all. If you will serve infants, complete one hour of department-approved SAFE SLEEP training BEFORE the first infant arrives (NDAC 75-03-08-10(4); statutory mandate at NDCC 50-11.1-02.3), and complete the annual mandated-reporter module (NDCC 50-11-02.4, as printed).
8. STEP 7 - COMPLETE THE BASIC CHILD CARE COURSE WITHIN NINETY DAYS OF LICENSURE. NDAC 75-03-08-10(2): "Certify completion of a department-approved basic child care course within ninety days of licensure." HHS identifies that course in its May 27, 2026 report as GETTING STARTED, "a 15-hour course which covers critical health and safety standards required by CCDF," spanning infectious disease prevention, safe sleep, medication administration, food allergy management, physical premises safety, abusive head trauma, emergency preparedness, hazardous materials and bio-contaminants, and child abuse reporting. Staff have the same ninety-day window from hire (75-03-08-12(3)), but must hold CPR/AED and pediatric first aid before any UNSUPERVISED access to children (75-03-08-12(4),(5)).
9. STEP 8 - BRING THE HOUSE UP TO NDAC 75-03-08-14, BECAUSE THIS SECTION BLOCKS EVEN A PROVISIONAL LICENCE. NDAC 75-03-08-06(6): "The department may not issue a provisional license if the family child care is not in compliance with section 75-03-08-14." That section requires, among other things: at least 35 sq ft of qualifying indoor space per child and 75 sq ft of outdoor play space per child (the outdoor requirement waived if you provide 75 sq ft of separate indoor recreation space per child - and see NDCC 50-11.1-19); "one properly installed smoke detector located in each sleeping area used by the children, and one properly installed smoke detector and one fire extinguisher PER LEVEL"; railings and safety gates on elevated areas, stairs and porches; drinking water "from an approved community water system or from a source tested and approved annually by the department of environmental quality"; a comfortable clean sleeping place and individual blanket per child; contained or fenced play areas near busy streets, inspected daily; guns and ammunition "in locked storage, each separate from the other, or... trigger locks"; unblocked exits; "a working telephone in the location used for child care"; an indoor bathroom with at least one sink and one flush toilet; hot and cold running water with child-accessible taps not exceeding 120 degrees Fahrenheit; and prompt removal of ice, snow and debris from steps and walkways.
10. STEP 9 - PASS THE FIRE INSPECTION, AND EXPECT IT AGAIN EVERY YEAR. NDAC 75-03-08-14(15): "The family child care must meet the local minimum fire and safety standards. The provider shall obtain a fire inspection PRIOR TO LICENSURE AND ANNUALLY THEREAFTER. Any inspection fees are the provider's responsibility. The provider shall have any code violations noted by the fire inspector corrected and shall file reports of the inspections and any corrections with the department." The department may demand further inspections at your cost "[i]f the fire, safety, health, or sanitation environment appears questionable." Separately, NDCC 50-11.1-07(2) lets the department call in the state fire marshal: "Upon request of the department, the state fire marshal, or the fire marshal's designee, shall inspect the premises for which a license... is applied or issued and shall report the findings to the department."
11. STEP 10 - WRITE THE POLICIES AND THE DISASTER PLAN BEFORE THE VISIT, NOT AFTER. NDAC 75-03-08-19(2) requires written policies covering how accidents and illnesses will be handled; developmentally appropriate discipline and guidance techniques; "[t]he process for a parent or staff member to report a complaint, a suspected licensing violation, or suspected child abuse or neglect"; hiring practices and personnel policies; telling parents they may request daily reports on eating, napping and diapering; "[p]rocedure for accountability when a child fails to arrive as expected"; and transportation procedures if you transport. NDAC 75-03-08-15(1) additionally requires a written transportation policy "[p]rior to licensure" if you will transport children. NDAC 75-03-08-16(1) requires an emergency disaster plan "established and posted," "developed in cooperation with local emergency management agencies," covering emergency procedures including emergency food, water and first-aid supplies; "[p]rocedures for evacuation, relocation, shelter-in-place, and lockdown"; communications and reunification with families; continuity of operations; and "[a]ccommodations for infants, toddlers, children with disabilities, and children with chronic medical conditions." Fire and emergency evacuation drills are monthly (75-03-08-16(2)). Finally, NDAC 75-03-08-22(1): "A copy of this chapter must be kept on the premises and available to staff members at all times."
12. STEP 11 - HOST THE LICENSING VISIT AND THE INVESTIGATION. NDCC 50-11.1-04(1): "The department shall investigate the applicant's activities and proposed standards of care and shall make an inspection of all premises to be used by the early childhood program applying for a license." The department's own policy guidance sets the expected duration of an on-site family child care licensing study at roughly two to two and a half hours (longer for a group licence). NDCC 50-11.1-07(1) preserves an open-ended right to "at any time investigate and inspect an early childhood program... and the conditions of their premises, the qualifications of current and prospective staff members."
13. STEP 12 - RECEIVE THE DECISION WITHIN THIRTY DAYS. NDCC 50-11.1-04(1): "Except as otherwise provided, the department shall grant a license for the operation of an early childhood program within thirty days of receipt of a completed application and all supporting documents by the department" upon showings that the premises are fit and sanitary; staff are qualified; nothing in the application is fraudulent or untrue; neither the applicant nor anyone listed has had a licence or self-declaration denied or revoked in the prior twelve months (waivable by the department after considering child safety and licensing history); no applicant has three or more prior denials/revocations with the most recent inside three years; fees, penalties and prior sanctions are paid; and staff hold current CPR/AED and first aid.
14. STEP 13 - IF ITEMS REMAIN OPEN, EXPECT A PROVISIONAL OR RESTRICTED LICENCE - AND UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU SIGN AWAY. NDAC 75-03-08-06 permits a provisional licence that must state the items of noncompliance and "[e]xpire at a set date, not to exceed six months from the date of issuance," exchangeable for an unrestricted licence bearing "an expiration date of one year from the date of issuance as the provisional license." The price: a written waiver of both the statement of charges and the ch. 28-32 administrative hearing (75-03-08-06(3)). You must "prominently display the provisional license and agreement" and "provide parents written notice that the family child care is operating on a provisional license and the basis for the provisional license" (75-03-08-06(7),(8)). A restricted licence under 75-03-08-06.1 can bar a named individual from the premises during care hours, bar an animal, or confine you to named rooms, floors or outdoor space. NDCC 50-11.1-04(4) directs that "[t]he department shall consider issuing a provisional or restricted license BEFORE revoking a license," possibly on a department-approved compliance plan.
15. STEP 14 - AFTER OPENING: KEEP THE FILE, THE POSTINGS AND THE CLOCKS. Post the licence (NDAC 75-03-08-04(2)). Post emergency numbers at the working telephone (75-03-08-14(12)), the disaster plan (75-03-08-16(1)) and the daily or weekly menu (75-03-08-21(9)). Maintain per-child records under 75-03-08-22(2), including a health assessment "completed annually." Report to the department within twenty-four hours any death, hospitalisation-level accident or illness, injury requiring medical treatment, poisoning or medication error, emergency closure or relocation, and any fire or explosion (75-03-08-08.1(4)). Be present at least sixty percent of the time children are in care (75-03-08-08.1(5)). If a correction order arrives, notify every parent within ten business days of mailing or three days of electronic transmission AND post the order conspicuously "until the violation has been corrected or for five days, whichever is longer" (75-03-08-29(5)); a written refutation is due within five calendar days (75-03-08-29(8)(a)). If you renew late, expect the department to require a posted notice of late application at the premises (NDCC 50-11.1-04(5)). Any denial or revocation must be appealed in writing "within ten calendar days" (75-03-08-31).

What you must post on your walls

• THE CURRENT LICENCE, PROMINENTLY. NDAC 75-03-08-04(2): "The current license must be displayed prominently in the premises to which it applies." Failure to display is one of the violations carrying the 24-HOUR correction deadline under NDAC 75-03-08-29(1)(a), which lists section 75-03-08-04 by name - and a $25-per-day fiscal sanction is not available for it, but the 24-hour clock alone marks how seriously the department treats it. (For contrast, a self-declaration holder has the identical duty at NDAC 75-03-07.1-02(2).)
• A PROVISIONAL LICENCE PLUS ITS AGREEMENT, AND WRITTEN NOTICE TO EVERY PARENT. NDAC 75-03-08-06(7): "The provider shall prominently display the provisional license and agreement." NDAC 75-03-08-06(8): "The provider shall provide parents written notice that the family child care is operating on a provisional license and the basis for the provisional license." A provisional licence is by definition a licence issued to someone who "fails to, or is unable to, comply with all applicable standards and rules" and it must "State the items of noncompliance" (75-03-08-06(2)(a),(b)) - so the posting is a public statement of what is wrong.
• EMERGENCY TELEPHONE NUMBERS AT THE WORKING TELEPHONE. NDAC 75-03-08-14(12): "The provider shall ensure that the family child care has a working telephone in the location used for child care. The provider shall POST emergency numbers of parents and first responders." The telephone itself is a facility requirement, and 75-03-08-14 is the section that blocks issuance of even a provisional licence when unmet (75-03-08-06(6)).
• THE EMERGENCY EVACUATION AND DISASTER PLAN. NDAC 75-03-08-16(1): "Each provider shall establish and POST an emergency disaster plan for the safety of the children in care. Written disaster plans must be developed in cooperation with local emergency management agencies." The plan must include emergency procedures with emergency food, water and first-aid supplies; procedures for evacuation, relocation, shelter-in-place and lockdown; communications and reunification with families; continuity of operations; and accommodations for infants, toddlers, children with disabilities and children with chronic medical conditions. Drills are monthly: 75-03-08-16(2), "Fire and emergency evacuation drills must be performed monthly." The department publishes SFN 517 'Child Care Evacuation and Disaster Plan' (Early Childhood, revision 4-2026) as the vehicle, and the form itself states: "All licensed and self-declaration providers are required by administrative rule to develop emergency evacuation and disaster plans."
• THE DAILY OR WEEKLY MENU. NDAC 75-03-08-21(9): "The provider shall POST a daily or weekly menu for meals and snacks." This posting is routinely omitted from third-party summaries of North Dakota family child care and is an easy citation on an unannounced visit.
• ANY CORRECTION ORDER, CONSPICUOUSLY, PLUS INDIVIDUAL PARENT NOTICE. NDAC 75-03-08-29(5): "Within ten business days of mailing or within three days of electronic transmission of the correction order, the provider shall notify the parents of each child receiving care at the family child care that a correction order has been issued. In addition to providing notice to the parent of each child, the provider also shall POST the correction order in a conspicuous location within the family child care UNTIL THE VIOLATION HAS BEEN CORRECTED OR FOR FIVE DAYS, WHICHEVER IS LONGER."
• A NOTICE OF LATE APPLICATION, IF YOU RENEW LATE. NDCC 50-11.1-04(5): "The department shall notify the licensee and operator that the licensee and operator are required to POST A NOTICE OF LATE APPLICATION at the early childhood program premises if the department has not received a completed application and all supporting documents for licensure or self-declaration renewal at least thirty days before the expiration date of the early childhood program's license." The parallel provision for self-declaration holders is NDCC 50-11.1-17(4). This is a statutory posting with no counterpart in NDAC ch. 75-03-08, so a reader working only from the rulebook will miss it entirely.
• NOT A POSTING BUT KEPT ON SITE AND OFTEN CONFUSED WITH ONE: a copy of the rules. NDAC 75-03-08-22(1): "A copy of this chapter must be kept on the premises and available to staff members at all times." Likewise the written daily routine must be "available to parents" (75-03-08-20(1)) and parents must have "unlimited access and opportunities to observe their children at any time their children are in care" (75-03-08-19(4)) - a transparency duty that expressly "does not prohibit a provider from locking the doors of the family child care while children are in care." And by NDCC 50-11.1-02.2, read with NDCC 23-12-09 and 23-12-10, smoking is prohibited on the premises where early childhood services are provided; that statute treats even a registrant or self-declaration holder as "a child care facility subject to licensure by the department" for smoking-law purposes.

Enrollment forms for each child

• APPLICATION FOR A FAMILY CHILD CARE LICENCE - submitted 'in the form and manner prescribed by the department' (NDAC 75-03-08-07(1); NDCC 50-11.1-04(1): "An application for operation of an early childhood program must be made on forms provided, in the manner prescribed, by the department"). In 2026 the prescribed manner is the HHS Child Care Licensing (CCL) provider portal at https://childcarelicensing.nd.gov/, which HHS designates for new applications and annual renewals. The department's Early Childhood Services policy chapter historically identified the paper instrument as SFN 832, 'Application to Provide Early Childhood Services' - BUT that SFN number does not resolve on the state's eForms server today and the policy text carrying it was last revised 10/1/16 under the pre-merger Department of Human Services; treat SFN 832 as unverified and apply through the portal. See verify_flag.
• DEPARTMENT-APPROVED AUTHORIZATION FOR BACKGROUND CHECK FORM - required of "[e]ach applicant, provider, emergency designee, and staff member... no later than the first day of employment" (NDAC 75-03-08-28(2)) and of every "[h]ousehold member age twelve and older... at the time of application, relicensure, or upon obtaining residence at the location of the family child care" (NDAC 75-03-08-28(3)). The rule names the instrument only by description. The 2016-era policy chapter called it SFN 508 - that number is now occupied by an unrelated live form ('Service Authorization for Therapeutic Leave Days,' Medical Services Division, rev. 4-2026), so do not request 'SFN 508' from the licensing unit. Since November 3, 2025 the background check request itself is filed through the ND Gateway Portal (ndgateway.nd.gov/gsp) with a ND Login account.
• APPLICATION FOR A FINGERPRINT-BASED CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD CHECK - NDAC 75-03-08-27(5) (provider at time of application; each staff member upon hire; everyone again within five years and at least every five years thereafter). NDCC 50-11.1-06.2(1)-(2) requires TWO sets of fingerprints taken by a law enforcement or other authorised local agency, with the agency asked "to submit the fingerprints and a completed fingerprint card for each set to the department." Appointments are booked through the CBCU system at one of eight HHS fingerprinting locations; bring a government-issued photo ID; no fingerprinting fee at state locations; the department may charge up to $30 to process the check (NDCC 50-11.1-06.2(5)).
• SFN 517 - CHILD CARE EVACUATION AND DISASTER PLAN (Department of Health and Human Services, Early Childhood; live revision 4-2026, verified on the state eForms server). The form's own header states: "All licensed and self-declaration providers are required by administrative rule to develop emergency evacuation and disaster plans." It collects shelter-in-place and lock-down locations and the evacuation, relocation, communication and reunification content required by NDAC 75-03-08-16(1). The department's licensing checklist lists 'SFN 517, Child Care Evacuation Disaster Plan' among the items forwarded before a licence issues.
• SFN 845 - CHILD INFORMATION SHEET (HHS, Early Childhood; live revision 11-2024). Its header: "Every Early Childhood Program is required to have certain information on file. These requirements are set forth in the rules and regulations for Early Childhood Services as adopted by the North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services. All information requested herein is required and shall be kept confidential." It collects the child's name, enrolment date, date of birth, both parents' home/cell/work numbers, addresses, places of employment and emergency authorisation - i.e. the record content mandated by NDAC 75-03-08-22(2)(a)-(c).
• SFN 847 - PARENT'S STATEMENT ON HEALTH OF CHILD (HHS, Early Childhood; live revision 5-2026). Its header: "This form must be completed ANNUALLY by a parent or guardian of each child enrolled in child care." It captures medical provider information, preferred emergency hospital, chronic health conditions and allergies or intolerances. This is the instrument for NDAC 75-03-08-22(2)(e), which requires "[a] current health assessment or a health assessment statement completed by the parent, obtained at the time of initial enrollment of the child, that must indicate any special precautions for diet, medication, or activity. This assessment shall be completed annually."
• SFN 1426 - CHILD CARE RECORD (HHS, Early Childhood Services; live revision 4-2025). The attendance/enrolment roster, and it carries the capacity rule in print across the top: "Family and Group in a Home Providers: Include Provider's Own Children Under the Age of 12." Columns cover name/age/schedule (full-time, part-time, drop-in), date of birth, parent or guardian name, address and telephone, emergency contact person and number, and tick-boxes for Child Information Sheet, immunisation record on file, and Parent Statement on Health of Child - the exact record set required by NDAC 75-03-08-22(2).
• SFN 1041 - CHILD CARE DEATH REPORT (Early Childhood Services Division; still live on the state eForms server, revision 12-2020, bearing the pre-merger 'North Dakota Department of Human Services' letterhead). The reporting duty it serves is NDAC 75-03-08-08.1(4)(a): the provider shall report to the department within twenty-four hours "[a] death or serious accident or illness requiring hospitalization of a child while in the care of the family child care or attributable to care received in the family child care."
• STAFF ORIENTATION CERTIFICATION FORM - NDAC 75-03-08-12(8): orientation must occur "during the first week of employment" and "must be documented on an orientation certification form" covering emergency health, fire and safety procedures; handwashing and sanitation; special health or nutrition instructions; special needs of assigned children; the planned programme of activities; rules and policies; and child abuse and neglect reporting laws. The rule names the form by function; obtain the current version from your licensing specialist.
• IMMUNISATION VERIFICATION OR EXEMPTION DOCUMENT - NDAC 75-03-08-22(2)(d) requires "[v]erification that the child has received all immunizations appropriate for the child's age, as prescribed by the public health division of the department, or have on file a document citing that the child is medically exempt or exempt from immunizations based on religious, philosophical, or moral beliefs." The parallel operating duty is 75-03-08-21.1(1). The department's Early Childhood forms family historically used SFN 16038 'Certificate of Immunization' for this; confirm the current instrument with the licensing unit.
• WRITTEN AUTHORISATION FOR EMERGENCY MEDICAL CARE - NDAC 75-03-08-21.1(3): "The provider shall have a statement on file, signed by the child's parents, authorizing emergency medical care for each child"; duplicated as a records requirement at 75-03-08-22(2)(b).
• MEDICATION PERMISSION AND MEDICATION ADMINISTRATION RECORD - NDAC 75-03-08-21.1(6): written permission is required before any medication is given; prescription medication "must be accompanied by the medical provider's written instructions as to dosage and storage and labeled with the child's name and date"; and "[t]he provider shall keep a written record of the administration of medication, including over-the-counter medication, for each child. Records must include the date and time of each administration, the dosage, the name of the staff member administering the medication, and the name of the child. Completed medication records must be included in the child's record."
• WRITTEN PARENTAL CONSENTS AND RELEASES: a release-of-information form the programme must have available and signed before any information is released (NDAC 75-03-08-22(3)(c)); written parental consent for a child to leave the premises unsupervised, specifying "the activity, time the child is leaving and length of time the child will be gone, method of transportation, and parental responsibility for the child once the child leaves" (75-03-08-19(6)); written parental permission for aquatic activities "which includes parent disclosure of the child's swimming ability" (75-03-08-21.1(16)(b)); and written parental consent for employment of any staff member under age sixteen, with the arrangement complying with NDCC ch. 34-07 (75-03-08-12(1)).
• FIRE INSPECTION REPORT - NDAC 75-03-08-14(15) requires a fire inspection before licensure and annually thereafter, with the provider filing "reports of the inspections and any corrections with the department," and supplying either "[t]he fire inspector's written statement of compliance with the local fire code, if there is one; or... the fire inspector's written statement that the family child care has been inspected and that the inspector is satisfied that the family child care meets minimum fire and safety standards." Inspection fees are the provider's cost. The department's pre-licence checklist also lists a health/sanitation report, documentation of CPR and first aid cards, staff qualification documentation, the programming schedule, and "[f]loor plan with square footage upon initial licensure."
• REFUTATION REQUEST FORM - NDAC 75-03-08-29(8)(a): "A provider may refute a correction order by submitting a refutation request in writing ON THE FORM PROVIDED BY THE DEPARTMENT within five calendar days of receiving the correction order." The department must answer within five business days.

What's specific about getting licensed in North Dakota

North Dakota's real trap is the counting rule plus the tier thresholds, not a per-adult ratio. Under NDCC 50-11.1-02.1 every child present under age 12 counts toward your number — and your OWN children under 12 count too; only your own child, foster child, or grandchild OVER age 11 is exempt. The tier decision turns on a '24 months and under' threshold, which is a wider window than the 'under 12 months' most people picture — even though ND's rule actually defines 'infant' as under 12 months (NDAC 75-03-08-03(7)). Get the tier wrong — self-declaration (up to 5, no more than 3 under 24 months) vs. Family Child Care license (required at 4+ under-24-month children, or 6–7 total through age 11) — and you are either needlessly capped under a self-declaration or operating unlicensed at a $50/day civil penalty. Note the '3 under 24 months' number is the self-declaration cap and a trigger test — it is NOT a ceiling on a licensed home, which may lawfully serve 4+ under-24-month children (that is exactly what pushes you into needing the license).

How long it takes and what it costs in North Dakota

Timeline: Plan roughly 1–3 months. The clock is driven by fingerprint/background-check turnaround, scheduling the fire/safety inspection and licensing home visit, and completing CPR/first aid and safe-sleep/mandated-reporter training before you open. The basic child care course can be finished in the first 90 days after licensure, so it need not delay opening. The department may issue a provisional license (expiring within 6 months) if only minor items remain (NDAC 75-03-08-06).

Cost: Family Child Care annual license fee is $20 (or $35 for a two-year license) per NDCC 50-11.1-03(7); renewing late (fees/application submitted less than 60 days before expiration) costs double (50-11.1-03(8)). Add fingerprint-based BCI/FBI background-check fees and the cost of CPR/first-aid certification — both vary; confirm current amounts with the ND Bureau of Criminal Investigation and DHHS Early Childhood Services. The department-approved basic child care course is offered through ND Growing Futures and is typically low- or no-cost. Operating without the required license carries a $50/day civil penalty (50-11.1-03(9)).

Source: PRIMARY - LEGISLATURE (the anchor; agency pages were cross-checked against these, not the reverse): https://www.ndlegis.gov/information/acdata/pdf/75-03-08.pdf (NDAC ch. 75-03-08, Family Child Care Early Childhood Services; eleven sections amended effective April 1, 2024 - the operative currency date); https://www.ndlegis.gov/information/acdata/pdf/75-03-09.pdf (NDAC ch. 75-03-09, Group Child Care - staffing/decimal ratios at 75-03-09-09, supervisor qualifications and 10 annual hours at 75-03-09-10, space at 75-03-09-19); https://www.ndlegis.gov/information/acdata/pdf/75-03-07.pdf (NDAC ch. 75-03-07, In-Home Child Care); https://www.ndlegis.gov/information/acdata/pdf/75-03-07.1.pdf (NDAC ch. 75-03-07.1, Self-Declaration Providers - standards and 3 annual hours at 75-03-07.1-02); https://ndlegis.gov/cencode/t50c11-1.pdf (NDCC ch. 50-11.1, Early Childhood Services - definitions at -02, counting rule at -02.1, licence-required and fees at -03, application and 30-day grant at -04, background investigations and fees at -06.2, play area at -19, advisory board at -15; carries 2025 session results including 'Repealed by S.L. 2025, ch. 479, section 39' at -25/-26/-27);

https://ndlegis.gov/prod/acdata/html/75-03.html (Article 75-03 chapter index, confirming 75-03-08 through 75-03-11.1 are live and correctly numbered); https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/session-laws/bill-table.html (2025 Session Laws bill-to-NDCC-section table - SB 2107 ch. 447 at 50-11.1-03(11); HB 1497 ch. 448 at 50-11.1-21(1) and -23); https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-overview/bo1119.html (HB 1119 (2025), signed April 29, 2025 - the bill that would have eliminated the group child care licence and became a study instead); https://ndlegis.gov/sites/default/files/resource/committee-memorandum/27.9080.01000.pdf (Legislative Council, 'STUDY OF CHILD CARE PROVIDER LICENSING - BACKGROUND MEMORANDUM,' LC# 27.9080.01000, September 2025 - provider-type table, point system, centre and preschool ratios, prior legislation 2015/2017/2023/2025); https://ndlegis.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/committees/69-2025/27.5144.02000presentation1015.pdf ('Study of Child Care Provider Licensing - Final Report,' May 27, 2026 - HHS licensing staff roster, the seven administrative code books and nine provider types, the 'Getting Started' 15-hour pre-service course, NDAC 75-03-10-08 centre ratios quoted verbatim, six recommendations, and the 'Change Takes Time' implementation timetable running to June 30, 2029). PRIMARY - AGENCY (used for operational routing and cross-checked against the above): https://www.hhs.nd.gov/cfs/early-childhood-services/programs/regulations (Child Care Regulations - HHS's own list of the seven NDAC chapters by provider type);

https://www.hhs.nd.gov/cfs/early-childhood-services/child-care-licensing (Early Childhood Licensing unit; contact 600 E. Boulevard Ave., Dept. 325, Bismarck ND 58505-0250, (701) 328-2115 / (800) 997-8516, dhsec@nd.gov; links to the CCL portal and the public search); https://childcarelicensing.nd.gov/ (Child Care Licensing provider portal - new applications and annual renewals); https://search.ec.hhs.nd.gov/ (public early childhood programme search); https://www.hhs.nd.gov/providers/criminal-background-checks (ND Gateway Portal at ndgateway.nd.gov/gsp required since November 3, 2025; CBCU appointment system; eight HHS fingerprinting locations; no fingerprinting fee at state sites; registries searched); https://www.hhs.nd.gov/cfs/early-childhood-services/providers/child-care-licensing-toolkit (Get Ready / Get Set / Start Your Childcare, ND Early Childhood Hub Registry account); https://www.hhs.nd.gov/ec-news/study-child-care-provider-licensing-final-report (HHS posting of the final report, June 5, 2026). PRIMARY - LIVE STATE FORMS (downloaded and read on 2026-08-25 from the ND eForms server): https://www.nd.gov/eforms/Doc/sfn00517.pdf (SFN 517, Child Care Evacuation and Disaster Plan, rev. 4-2026);

https://www.nd.gov/eforms/Doc/sfn00845.pdf (SFN 845, Child Information Sheet, rev. 11-2024); https://www.nd.gov/eforms/Doc/sfn00847.pdf (SFN 847, Parent's Statement on Health of Child, rev. 5-2026); https://www.nd.gov/eforms/Doc/sfn01426.pdf (SFN 1426, Child Care Record, rev. 4-2025 - carries the printed instruction 'Family and Group in a Home Providers: Include Provider's Own Children Under the Age of 12'); https://www.nd.gov/eforms/Doc/sfn01041.pdf (SFN 1041, Child Care Death Report, rev. 12-2020). USED FOR DIFFING ONLY - SUPERSEDED TEXT, NOT AUTHORITY: https://ndchildcare.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Rule-for-Family-Child-Care.pdf (the NDAC 75-03-08 text as in force through July 1, 2020, circulated by Child Care Aware of North Dakota; used solely to prove that 'or its authorized agent' appeared nine times then and zero times now, and that the annual-training subsection formerly excepted 'sudden infant death prevention' rather than safe sleep and mandated reporter); https://www.nd.gov/dhs/policymanuals/62001/Content/PD/SC%20620%20Early%20Childhood%20Services%20ML%203480.pdf (Early Childhood Services Policies and Procedures, Service Chapter 620-01, sections revised 3/20/12 ML #3317 and 10/1/16 ML #3480, pre-merger 'Department of Human Services' letterhead - source of the SFN 832 / SFN 508 references and of the 'authorized agent' fee-routing language that current statute contradicts; cited above only as a stale source, never as authority).

Verified 2026-08-25. General information, not legal advice and not a guarantee of licensure — confirm with your state’s licensing agency before applying.