Licensing a day care home in Illinois: the IDEC home and group home licenses

A new agency and new names, same license

Illinois moved child care licensing from the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) to the new Illinois Department of Early Childhood (IDEC) on July 1, 2026. The Child Care Act now requires a license or permit “issued by the Department of Children and Family Services before July 1, 2026 or issued by the Department of Early Childhood on and after July 1, 2026” ⁠¹. The same law (P.A. 104-480) renamed the categories: a day care home is now an “early care and education home” and a group day care home a “group early care and education home” ⁠²⁠³.

The rules did not get the new vocabulary. DCFS Rule 406 was recodified as 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007, Licensing Standards for Day Care Homes, and Rule 408 became Part 2009 for group day care homes, and both still say “day care home” ⁠⁸⁠¹⁸. Some application pages you will be sent to still sit on the DCFS Sunshine website, which describes the process in terms of Rule 406 and Rule 408 ⁠⁵. Whichever name you see, you are applying for the same license.

Do you need a license? The 3-child line

Illinois counts heads, not families. An early care and education home is a family home that receives “more than 3 up to a maximum of 12 children for less than 24 hours per day,” and the count “includes the family’s natural or adopted children and all other persons under the age of 12” ⁠². A group home is the same thing with a ceiling of 16 ⁠³.

The exemption in 225 ILCS 10/3(d-5)(1) mirrors that definition ⁠¹:

• Care for no more than 3 children under 12, your own included, needs no license.
• You may care for up to 6 if all of them are from the same household (siblings, step-siblings or foster children living together).
• An exempt provider must tell each parent that the care is operating under an exemption from licensure.

In practice, a parent with two children of their own under 12 can take in only one more child before a license is required. Any provider who is not required to be licensed may still apply for a license voluntarily ⁠¹. That matters if you want to be a licensed home in the Child Care Assistance Program, which treats licensed and license-exempt homes as separate provider types ⁠²³.

Day care home or group day care home

Both licenses are issued only for your own residence. The Sunshine overview puts it bluntly: “You may not rent or buy another home or apartment or use an unattached garage, outbuilding, etc. If you wish to use space away from where you and your family live, you must seek licensure as a day care center” ⁠⁵. If that describes your plan, read the Illinois day care center guide.

The group home caregiver must have one of the following ⁠²¹:

1. Experience plus coursework

   One year (1,560 clock hours) of child development experience in a licensed day care home, nursery school, kindergarten or licensed center, plus 6 semester hours in child care or child development courses.

2. College credit

   One year of college (30 semester or 45 quarter hours) that includes 6 semester hours in child care or child development.

3. Credential

   Completion of a credentialing program approved under Appendix F of Part 2009.

How many children you can take, by staffing

The statute allows 12 children in a day care home, but the rules cap a caregiver working alone at 8, and the 8 includes “the caregiver’s own children, related children and unrelated children under age 12 living in the home” ⁠¹⁴. Home-schooled children under 12 count too, unless another adult teaches them away from the day care area ⁠¹⁴.

“School age” means ages 6 to 12, plus 5-year-olds in full-day kindergarten ⁠²⁴. The rule refers to an “extended 4 school-age capacity addendum” granted in writing; where you hold it, your own full-time school-age children count among the 4 extra, and a qualified assistant must be present once more than 8 children are in care. The extra children may be cared for only before and after school, on holidays, weekends, during unforeseen school closings, when your own children come home sick, and in summer ⁠¹⁴. During a brief unforeseen school closing you may take one extra school-age child as long as the home stays at or under 12 ⁠¹⁴.

A group day care home follows the same solo limits, except that a caregiver alone may care for up to 12 school-age children, or up to 8 preschool children if none is under 3 ⁠²². With one adult assistant the cap is 12, with no more than 6 under 30 months and no more than 4 under 15 months, or 12 children aged 3 to 6. Extended capacity of 16 requires two qualified assistants on site whenever more than 12 children are present. Night care in a group home is capped at 12 ⁠²².

If enrolling a sibling would push you outside your age groupings, you may submit a transition plan. It can be approved only if you are in full compliance, at least one sibling has been in care for 30 days or more, and the plan returns you to compliance within 6 months ⁠¹⁴.

Assistants must be at least 14 and at least 5 years older than the oldest child they supervise. Assistants under 18 must stay within sight or hearing of the caregiver at all times ⁠¹². A substitute caregiver (18 or older) may cover up to 25 child care hours a month plus up to 2 weeks in a 12-month period ⁠¹³.

Owner qualifications and background checks

For a day care home, every caregiver must be at least 18, and caregivers licensed after January 1, 2011 need a high school diploma, an equivalency certificate, or a degree from an accredited college or vocational institution ⁠¹¹. The licensee must be present whenever children are in care unless a qualified substitute is there, and caregivers may not work outside the home during licensed hours ⁠¹¹. The primary caregiver must hold first aid, Heimlich and infant/child CPR certification, and someone with that certification must be on the premises during all hours of operation ⁠¹¹.

Background checks reach the whole household. Everyone 13 or older who lives or works in the home is checked. Those 18 and older are fingerprinted for a full check of Illinois State Police and FBI records, state and national sex offender registries, the DCFS Child Abuse and Neglect Tracking System (CANTS), and the abuse registry of any other state where they have lived. The check costs nothing ⁠⁵. New employees may start conditionally but may not be alone with children until their results arrive ⁠¹¹. You must also certify under penalty of perjury that you are no more than 30 days behind on any child support order ⁠¹¹.

Caregivers, household members, regular substitutes and assistants need a physical examination on Department forms; the Sunshine overview says the exam includes TB, DPT and MMR ⁠⁵⁠¹⁷. Caregiver and assistant medical reports are valid for 3 years ⁠¹⁷.

Training before you apply

The pre-service package is set out in 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.4(b) ⁠⁶:

• 15 hours of pre-service training from Appendix D of Part 2007, completed no more than one year before your application date. Applicants and assistants who will care for infants must cover SIDS, SUID, American Academy of Pediatrics safe sleep recommendations, and Shaken Baby Syndrome.
• Mandated Reporter Training approved by the Department, for every licensee and assistant whatever the children’s ages.
• Lead safety training, with the certificate submitted with the initial application. It covers mitigation plans for test results of 2.01 ppb or above and the effects of lead exposure.
• Gateways to Opportunity Registry membership for the primary caregiver and assistants, with credentials and pre-service training entered. Staff hired later must join within 30 days of hire ⁠⁸.

After licensure there are two more requirements. A Department-approved course of 6 or more hours on caring for children with disabilities is due within 36 months of the initial license ⁠¹¹. Each licensing year you need 15 clock hours of in-service training, and up to 5 extra hours carry over to the next year ⁠¹¹. The Department offers a free online orientation for home applicants ⁠⁵.

Preparing the house

The physical rules in 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.8 are detailed, and the home visit checks them line by line ⁠¹⁰. These are the items most likely to require work or spending:

• Radon. The home must have been tested for radon within the last 3 years when you apply ⁠⁶. After that it must be retested at least every 3 years, with the latest result posted next to the license ⁠¹⁰.
• Lead in drinking water. A home that serves children under 6 and is in a building constructed on or before January 1, 2000 must have its water tested by an IEPA or IEPA-certified laboratory. All results must be posted and sent to the local licensing office. Any fixture at 2.01 ppb or higher needs a mitigation plan, shared with parents, that lists interim water measures, start and completion dates, and retests no later than 6 months and 1 year after the plan is completed. After successful mitigation, testing can stop once two consecutive results are below 2.01 ppb unless the water heater, water source or service lines change ⁠¹⁰.
• Well water. If you use a private well, you need current test results showing safe drinking water, and new results before each renewal. If nitrate exceeds 10 ppm, children under 15 months must be given bottled water ⁠¹⁰.
• Detectors and extinguisher. You need a working smoke detector on every level, including basements and occupied attics, and one in each room where children nap. A carbon monoxide detector within 15 feet of nap rooms is required if the home has an attached garage or burns fossil fuel for heat or hot water. The kitchen needs an ABC-rated extinguisher and a working flashlight ⁠¹⁰.
• Basements. A basement used for care needs 2 exits. One must be a door or protected stairway leading directly outside. The second may be a window with a clear opening of at least 20 by 24 inches and 5.7 square feet, a sill no more than 44 inches above the floor, and fixed steps beneath it if the sill is higher than 24 inches. Otherwise the State Fire Marshal must approve the basement in writing ⁠¹⁰.
• Heat and water temperature. Portable space heaters may not be used during care hours. Faucets at children’s handwashing sinks may not exceed 115°F when children under 10 are in care ⁠¹⁰.
• Pools and hot tubs. In-ground pools need a fence at least 5 feet high with a locked gate. Above-ground pools need non-climbable walls at least 4 feet high or the same 5-foot fence. Hot tubs need locked covers ⁠¹⁰.
• Firearms. Handguns are banned on the premises except for a resident who must carry one for work, such as a peace officer, and you must post the state “no firearms” sign where parents pick up. Any other firearm must be disassembled and locked away, with ammunition locked separately, and parents must be told that firearms are stored in the home ⁠¹⁰.
• Animals and cribs. Monkeys, ferrets, turtles, iguanas and parrot-family birds are banned from areas children can reach during care hours. Cribs must meet 16 CFR 1219 or 1220 or have been made on or after June 28, 2011 ⁠¹⁰.
• Space. Once capacity exceeds 8, you need 35 square feet of usable floor space per child, plus 20 more per child under 30 months if they nap where they play ⁠¹⁰.

You also need written plans. The application must include a hazard protection plan covering hazards such as traffic, construction, bodies of water, open stairwells and neighborhood dogs ⁠⁶. The home must also have fire and tornado emergency plans and run monthly fire drills. Before children arrive each day, you check the exits and log the inspection, and the log is kept for a year ⁠¹⁰. Add a written late-pickup policy ⁠²⁵. If you will use a wood stove or fireplace during care hours, you need a written plan for that too ⁠¹⁰. If you drive children, keep proof of vehicle liability and medical insurance with your records ⁠²⁶. Infants must be put down to sleep on their backs, never on a sofa, car seat or swing ⁠¹⁵.

Part 2007 also says homes that fail to comply with “local, municipal and State regulations” may be prohibited from operating, and the Sunshine overview lists municipal inspections and approvals among the things that can slow licensure ⁠⁶⁠⁵. Check zoning and any village or city child care rules before you spend money on the house.

Applying: the order IDEC follows

1. Call the local licensing office

   The official advice is to phone the licensing office nearest your home, discuss your plans, ask about the next orientation and request an initial application packet ⁠⁵. The rules call the form the “Application for Home License” ⁠⁶, and Part 2007 refers to the CFS 597-DCI form as the one on which new applicants report the home’s construction date ⁠¹⁰. The Sunshine page predates the July 1, 2026 transfer, and neither it nor the IDEC licensure page names a current form number, so ask the licensing office which form to use.

2. Assemble the application

   This includes the signed Application for Home License, a list of everyone who will work in the home and every household member 13 or older, background check authorizations for all of them, the Child Support Certification, the names of 3 unrelated adults outside the household as references, the hazard protection plan, your diploma, proof of Gateways membership, the radon test, and lead test results and mitigation plans where required ⁠⁶. Group home applicants also document their caregiver qualifications ⁠²¹ and liability insurance ⁠⁵.

3. Fingerprints and background checks

   Missing a scheduled fingerprint appointment can lead to denial of the application unless you can show you took reasonable measures to get the person there; the rule lists a death in the family, serious illness and weather or transportation emergencies as adequate cause ⁠¹¹.

4. Fire safety inspection

   The State Fire Marshal inspects when care will be on a floor other than ground level or the home is in a multi-unit building. Single-floor, ground-level homes with “no unusual or complex code considerations” are inspected instead by a licensing representative trained by the Fire Marshal, using the checklist in Appendix E. Written fire approval is required before a permit or license can be issued ⁠⁶.

5. Home visit and licensing study

   The visit is scheduled once the application is complete and background results are back. The representative walks through the house and yard, sets your capacity, areas of use, and days and hours, and explains the record-keeping ⁠⁵. A license cannot be recommended without 3 positive written references and a written study signed by the representative and a supervisor ⁠⁶.

6. Permit or license

   If a few items are still outstanding, you may get a 2-month permit. It requires a complete application, the operator’s background results, medical reports, first aid and CPR certification, at least 2 favorable references, the home visit, written fire approval, and a written plan for meeting the remaining requirements within the 2 months ⁠⁹. Permits are not renewable or retroactive, and the full license can be issued at any point during the permit period once you comply ⁠⁹.

The state publishes no processing deadline for an initial license. The Sunshine overview says the time depends on fire marshal and municipal inspections, background check results and, above all, “the applicant’s familiarity and compliance with the licensing standards” ⁠⁵.

Fees and what you will still pay for

Part 2007 says “There shall be no fee or charge for the license,” and the same is true for the permit (rule text as published on 2026-10-12) ⁠⁸⁠⁹. The background check is also free ⁠⁵. The state still lists costs you will carry: medical exams and vaccinations, inspections and testing, pet vaccinations, equipment and supplies, and training ⁠⁵. For a group home, add the $100,000 liability policy ⁠²⁰. The rules require radon and lead-in-water tests but set no price for them.

Conditions on the license

• Term and location. The license lasts 3 years, is valid only at your residence and only for the areas listed on it, and cannot be transferred to another person or entity ⁠⁸.
• Hours. No home may be licensed for more than 18 hours of care in a 24-hour period ⁠⁸. A child is in night care when most of their time in your home falls between 6:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. Night care requires an individual bed, crib or cot for each child (two children may share a double bed only under the conditions in the rule), and caregivers must sleep on the same floor as the children ⁠¹⁶.
• Changes. Changing your name, location or supervising agency requires a new application 30 days before the change ⁠⁷. A name or supervising-agency change, or a change in the status of joint licensees, also calls for a new application within 30 days after it, and after a move the new application is due within 14 days ⁠⁶. If your license is revoked or not renewed, you cannot reapply for 12 months ⁠⁶.
• Supervising agency. The rules let a licensed child welfare agency or licensed day care agency supervise a home in place of the Department, and it is the supervising agency that files your application ⁠²⁴⁠⁶.

Inspections and renewal

IDEC says its representatives make annual unannounced visits to every licensed child care program. Monitoring results can be searched on the Sunshine website ⁠⁴. Monitoring continues for as long as the license is valid, whether or not you are caring for children at the time ⁠²⁷.

Renewal forms are mailed 6 months before expiration, and the completed application must be submitted at least 3 months before expiration to count as timely ⁠⁷. Before renewal you must be current on the 15 annual training hours and have a radon test from the last 3 years. Your fire, tornado and hazard plans are reviewed again, the fire inspection is repeated, and a new licensing study is done ⁠⁷. If you filed on time and the Department has not decided, your license stays in effect for up to 30 days, and the Department may extend that by another 30 days for good cause ⁠⁷.

Getting paid through CCAP

Many licensed homes serve families in the Child Care Assistance Program, which IDEC also runs. Being licensed does not enroll you: providers “must apply to be eligible to serve families” receiving CCAP ⁠²³. CCAP providers must complete the program’s health and safety orientation training, including CPR/first aid and mandated reporter training, within 90 days of CCAP approval. They must also complete annual health and safety training and receive annual monitoring visits from Child Care Resource and Referral health and safety coaches ⁠²³.

Sources

1. 1
   Illinois General Assembly, 225 ILCS 10/3, Child Care Act of 1969: license required; exemptions (as amended by P.A. 104-480, eff. July 1, 2026) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
2. 2
   Illinois General Assembly, 225 ILCS 10/2.18, Early care and education homes Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
3. 3
   Illinois General Assembly, 225 ILCS 10/2.20, Group early care and education home Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
4. 4
   Illinois Department of Early Childhood, Child Care Licensure Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
5. 5
   Illinois DCFS Sunshine website, An Overview of the Licensing Process Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
6. 6
   Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.4, Application for License Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
7. 7
   Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.5, Application for Renewal of License Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
8. 8
   Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.6, Provisions Pertaining to the License Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
9. 9
   Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.7, Provisions Pertaining to Permits Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
10. 10
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.8, General Requirements for Day Care Homes Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
11. 11
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.9, Characteristics and Qualifications of the Day Care Family Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
12. 12
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.10, Qualifications for Assistants Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
13. 13
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.11, Substitutes Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
14. 14
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.13, Number and Ages of Children Served Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
15. 15
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.22, Children Under 30 Months of Age Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
16. 16
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.23, Night Care Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
17. 17
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.24, Records and Reports Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
18. 18
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2009.20, Provisions Pertaining to the License (group day care homes) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
19. 19
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2009.30, General Requirements for Group Day Care Homes Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
20. 20
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2009.35, General Requirements for Group Day Care Home Family Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
21. 21
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2009.45, Caregivers (group day care homes) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
22. 22
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2009.65, Number and Ages of Children Served (group day care homes) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
23. 23
    Illinois Department of Early Childhood, Child Care Assistance Program: Become a Provider Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
24. 24
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.2, Definitions Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
25. 25
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.12, Enrollment and Discharge Procedures Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
26. 26
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.18, Transportation of Children by Day Care Home Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
27. 27
    Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Illinois Administrative Code, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2007.26, Cooperation with the Department Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑

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