Maine child care facility license: centers, small facilities and nursery schools

Small facility, center or nursery school

Maine licenses every group program under one umbrella, the “child care facility,” in 22 M.R.S. §8301-A. The type you open depends on where the care happens and how many children you serve.⁠¹

• Small child care facility. 3 to 12 children under 13, in a house or other place that is not the operator’s residence.⁠¹ Ch. 32 limits the ages to 6 weeks through 12 years.⁠²
• Child care center. 13 or more children under 13. A program also counts as a center if it is run as a single program across more than one location with more than 12 children in total. You can’t split one program across sites to stay under 13.⁠¹
• Nursery school. 3 or more children aged 33 months to under 8. No session may run longer than 3½ hours, there can be no more than two sessions a day, each child attends only one, and no hot meal is served.⁠¹
• Other programs. A program for children under 5 inside a private school, or one that contracts with Child Development Services sites, must also hold a facility license. Collaborative public pre-K with Head Start is an example.⁠²

If the care is in your own home, you are looking at the wrong license. A home program for 4 to 12 children is a family child care provider under a separate rule (Ch. 33).⁠¹ Ch. 32 requires a license for any facility serving more than two children, so even three children in a rented storefront or church hall need one.⁠²

The definition excludes licensed youth camps, single-skill classes such as karate, dance or basketball, and formal schools approved by the Commissioner of Education.⁠¹ Two narrower exemptions are written into the statute. An accredited Montessori school can ask the commissioner to waive rules that conflict with Montessori practice. Since PL 2025, c. 101, programs on a military installation, or certified by the Department of Defense or the Coast Guard, that serve only children of active-duty members are exempt altogether.⁠¹

The rule dates from 2021; the statute has moved since

Ch. 32 took effect on September 27, 2021. It replaced the old center rule and absorbed the separate nursery school rule (Ch. 36), which was repealed the same day. The Secretary of State’s filing history lists no amendment since then.⁠³ The statute has kept changing, though, and two of those changes matter here:

• Temporary licenses for new programs. Ch. 32 allows a temporary license only when an existing facility moves.⁠² PL 2023, c. 567 rewrote §8301-A(6-A) so OCFS may also issue a temporary license to a new facility “due to emergency circumstances.” That requires a completed background check, eligibility to provide care, and a preliminary evaluation showing the site meets minimum health and safety standards.⁠¹ Neither the statute nor Ch. 32 says how a new applicant asks for one or what OCFS counts as an emergency beyond the statutory definition, so ask your licensing specialist whether your situation qualifies before you plan around it.
• Family child care threshold. PL 2025, c. 135 changed the home-based license to 4 to 12 children. The small-facility definition still reads 3 to 12.⁠¹

Start with the State Fire Marshal

For a center, the fire review comes first. OCFS’s own checklist tells anyone planning 13 or more children to call Plans Review at the Office of State Fire Marshal (207-626-3880). You must get a construction permit and approval before using any building for child care, new or existing.⁠⁵ The Fire Marshal’s page sets the permit threshold at 13 or more children for a day care, and at 21 or more for a nursery school.⁠⁷

Note that the fire code uses its own size groups: day care homes (6 or fewer), group day care homes (7 to 12) and day care centers (more than 12).⁠⁷ For centers, which floor you may use depends on the building’s construction:⁠⁸

A wood-frame building cannot house a center in its basement, even with sprinklers. Centers need a manual fire alarm with pull stations and smoke detection in every room used. New centers must also transmit alarms automatically to the municipal fire department, and a center with 100 or more people needs panic hardware on every exit door. Where a center shares a building with a repair garage, a two-hour wall must separate both the space and its exits.⁠⁸

Ch. 32 then adds its own fire conditions. No license issues until the facility passes a fire safety inspection. The Fire Marshal’s approval must spell out where care may happen (basements, specific rooms, upper floors, any age limits). The Fire Marshal re-inspects at least every two years. A new heating system, major structural work or opening new rooms triggers another inspection, and you must tell OCFS 10 days before the work.⁠² Children under 2 may only be cared for on a first floor or a floor with a direct exit at grade.⁠²

Town approval, landlord sign-off, water and lead

Local codes. Maine leaves zoning to municipalities, and OCFS will not license over a town’s objection. Your file needs proof of local approval, or a written statement from the town that none is required.⁠² OCFS’s checklist puts it bluntly: “If you are not given approval by the city/town, a child care license cannot be issued to you.” Keep the document on site.⁠⁵ OCFS’s Local Code Compliance memo (May 2023) says that where a town requires it, the documentation should cover zoning, building, plumbing, sanitation and electrical ordinances. OCFS publishes the memo as the Zoning and Code Compliance Letter.⁠⁶⁠⁴

Landlord. If you rent, you need the landlord’s written approval to use the space for child care.⁠²⁠⁵

Drinking water. You can’t get a license or renewal without documented safe water.⁠²

• On municipal water, you collect one first-draw lead sample in a one-liter container from a Maine-certified lab before licensure.⁠²
• On your own well, a Maine-certified lab must test for fluoride, uranium, arsenic, first-draw lead, nitrates and total coliform bacteria. After that, test every year for coliform and nitrates, and every five years for fluoride, uranium, lead and arsenic.⁠² If the well fails, OCFS can let you operate under a written bottled water agreement. You then use bottled water for all drinking and food preparation and post the agreement for parents.⁠²
• A well serving 25 or more children and staff makes you a non-transient, non-community water system under the drinking water rule (10-144 C.M.R. Ch. 231).⁠² OCFS’s checklist flags anyone with a private water source planning more than 20 children to talk to their licensing specialist about public water supply approval.⁠⁵

If the septic or sewer system stops working, you must close until it is fixed.⁠²

Lead paint. Ch. 32 requires an annual screening for lead hazards from chipped or peeling paint. A facility is exempt if the building was built in 1978 or later, was certified free of lead hazards and lead-based paint within the previous 12 months (with the re-evaluations the rule sets), or serves no child under 6. If the screening shows possible exposure, a Maine-certified lead inspector or risk assessor must inspect.⁠² Your licensing specialist does a lead hazard survey during the pre-licensing inspection.⁠⁵ You also need a carbon monoxide detector on every level of each building.⁠²

Space, light, toilets and outdoor play

Ch. 32 sets capacity mainly by indoor space: 35 square feet of net usable space per child. Equipment, hallways, lockers, cubbies, door swings, closets, bathrooms, teachers’ spaces, food prep areas and offices don’t count. No room may hold more children than its usable space allows, except for occasional large-group activities shown on the written schedule.⁠² The floor plan you submit must give measurements of the indoor and outdoor areas children use.⁠⁵

Other physical requirements:⁠²

• Natural light in any room children use for more than four hours a day.
• One toilet and one wash basin per 20 children, with hot and cold running water. Each diapering area needs its own hand-washing sink.
• Access to an outdoor play area with enough space for all children, drainage that prevents standing water, and shade. Roads, water, railroad tracks and steep embankments must be fenced off. Nursery schools can be excused from outdoor space if they meet the rule’s outdoor-play policy conditions.

Who can direct the program, by licensed capacity

The applicant and proposed director are both vetted for “mature judgment” and lawful conduct. OCFS weighs arrests and convictions, child protective or out-of-home investigations, protection orders, and any past licensing actions. It also considers experience, including “the capacity to manage the financial operations and staff.”⁠² The required credentials step up with licensed capacity:⁠²

A school-age-only facility needs a director or lead teacher with an AA/AS in early childhood education, or 30 college credits in a related field such as elementary education, child development or recreation management.⁠²

Lead teachers are a separate requirement. A facility licensed for 13 to 20 children needs at least one, and the director can fill that role. Above 21, each group needs its own lead teacher. In programs of 13 or more, a lead teacher must be at least 18 and hold a CDA, have 12 months of direct child care experience, or have 30 college credits including one child-related course plus six months’ experience.⁠² At 50 or more children, whoever is in charge while the director is away must meet the director qualifications.⁠²

Other staff working without supervision must be 18. Staff aged 16 and 17 must be directly supervised. Everyone needs a high school diploma or equivalent, or must be in high school or a GED or HiSET preparation program.⁠²

Ratios and group sizes

Children of staff count toward both ratio and capacity, and no child under 6 weeks may be enrolled.⁠² Small facilities follow their own ratio table:⁠²

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

Mixed ages in a small facility work like this. One adult may have 3 under 2, 3 aged 2 to 5 and 2 over 5. Or one adult may have 8 aged 2 to 5 and 2 over 5. Two adults may have 6 under 2 plus 6 older. With three adults you can enroll 12, but no more than 9 of them may be under 2.⁠²

The published table lists two ratios and two group sizes in one cell for the 1-to-2½ and 3-to-under-5 bands, in the same order, and the 2½-to-3½ and 3-to-under-5 bands overlap.⁠³ The pairing above follows that order. The rule does not say which ratio applies when a child falls in the overlap, so ask your licensing specialist before you set up classrooms.

In centers, the youngest child in a mixed group sets the ratio and group size. Older children may fill younger children’s spaces, but not the reverse. Whenever 7 or more children are present, at least two staff must be in the building. One person may cover a single room of 6 or fewer for up to an hour at opening and closing.⁠² Groups must be separated by partitions taller than the children’s eye level.⁠² Infants and toddlers may share a group only if the total is 8 or fewer.⁠² At nap time, awake staff stay in ratio. A video-and-audio monitor can cover an adjoining nap room, but someone must check sleeping children in person at least every 30 minutes.⁠²

Training before and after you open

The applicant must finish OCFS-approved training before the license issues.⁠² On the checklist, that means Maine Roads to Quality’s Health and Safety orientation and adult and pediatric CPR and first aid. Courses without a hands-on skills assessment are rejected.⁠⁵

For all staff, Ch. 32 requires fire drill and emergency training in the first week. Within the first 90 days, staff complete orientation on 12 topics (13 in programs of 13 or more), including the rule itself, safe sleep and Shaken Baby Syndrome, medication administration, allergy emergencies, bloodborne pathogens, first aid and CPR with hands-on demonstration, and approved mandated reporter training.⁠² The thirteenth topic, for programs of 13 or more, is the health care plan written by your health consultant.⁠²

Everyone registers with Maine’s Professional Development Network (the Maine Roads to Quality Registry) and repeats mandated reporter training at least every four years.⁠²⁠⁵ Annual hours, counted from the license issue date and prorated for new hires, are:⁠²

Staff who drive children need approved transportation training. They also need a Bureau of Motor Vehicles check and must be found eligible before they transport anyone.⁠⁵

Background checks

Every staff member over 18 needs a Provider Letter of Eligibility under the separate background check rule (10-148 C.M.R. Ch. 34). OCFS will not license an applicant with disqualifying information.⁠² The checks are fingerprint-based and, as of 2026-10-12, OCFS conducts them at no cost to providers. You book fingerprinting with IdentoGO.⁠⁹⁠⁵ The search covers national FBI and sex offender databases, plus child abuse registries and criminal repositories in Maine and in every state the person lived in during the past five years. Each person repeats the check every five years. If a letter hasn’t arrived within 21 calendar days of fingerprinting, call OCFS at 624-7903.⁠⁹ Your licensing specialist reviews your own letter before recommending a license.⁠⁵

Policies, insurance and the health consultant

Ch. 32 requires a lot of paperwork before OCFS will approve you:⁠²

• Liability insurance of at least $100,000 per person and $300,000 per occurrence, plus $5,000 for property damage. Submit the certificate before the license issues.
• Entity documents. A corporation, partnership, association or trust submits its officers’ or partners’ names and addresses and its governing documents.
• Parent handbook covering 19 required items. These include fees and late pick-up charges, expulsion and suspension practices, medication, communicable illness, emergency relocation, and reporting of a child’s death or serious injury.
• Staff manual with 15 required policies. These include safe sleep, inclusion of children with disabilities, expulsion and suspension prevention, interpretation for English language learners, and release of children.
• Two abuse and neglect policies. One covers reporting suspicions to Child Protective Intake. The other covers what happens when a staff member is accused.
• A crisis plan for getting help when only one staff member is present, and a posted daily schedule in each classroom.

At 13 or more children you also need a written agreement with a health consultant, renewed at each license renewal. The consultant must be a physician, PA, nurse practitioner or RN with pediatric or child care experience, and must approve your written health plan. That plan covers emergency medical access, communicable disease and medication administration.⁠² Center applicants also submit their board of directors list (if any) and the director’s resume, transcripts and training records.⁠⁵

Applying, in the order that works

OCFS handles applications, inspections and action plans through an online provider portal.⁠⁴ Its checklist says most items can be done in any order but marks some as priorities.⁠⁵ In practice:

1. Call the Fire Marshal (13+ children)

   Get Plans Review guidance and the construction permit before committing to the building.⁠⁵⁠⁷

2. Get town and landlord approval in writing

   Without the town’s sign-off, OCFS will not issue the license.⁠⁵

3. Start fingerprinting

   for yourself and everyone who will work there, and wait for eligibility letters.⁠⁵⁠⁹

4. Submit the application

   through the portal with the fee, a measured floor plan and the Authorization for Release of Personal History Information. A bounced check suspends processing. An application you leave untouched for 60 days becomes void.⁠⁵⁠²

5. Fire inspection

   After you apply, OCFS asks the Fire Marshal to inspect. You may get a Statement of Deficiencies and have to file a Plan of Correction. Licensing stops until you pass.⁠⁵

6. Send your proof

   CPR and first aid cards, Health and Safety orientation, Registry enrollment, mandated reporter training, water tests, the insurance certificate and the State of Maine vendor form.⁠⁵

7. Licensing specialist inspection

   Your specialist inspects the whole building and grounds, does the lead survey and lists anything outstanding. Once everything is met, the specialist recommends licensure, subject to supervisory approval.⁠⁵ You can find your specialist by calling 287-5020.⁠⁵

OCFS does not publish a processing time for a new facility license. Plan around the fire inspection and town approval, the two steps you control least.

Fees and license types

As published in Ch. 32 on 2026-10-12, fees are non-refundable and payable to the Treasurer, State of Maine:⁠²

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

A first-time Maine operator, an operator moving to a new property, or one reopening after closing starts on a provisional license lasting 3 to 12 months. A full license follows and lasts two years. A conditional license, up to 12 months, comes with a Directed Plan of Action when you are out of compliance. A temporary license lasts no more than six months.⁠² A license covers one location and can’t be transferred. Several buildings on the same or adjoining property can share one license if they have the same director.⁠²

You need a revised license, and possibly fresh Fire Marshal and town approval, to raise capacity, change director, add space, do construction or replace a heating system.⁠² OCFS can waive a rule provision that no statute requires. You must show by clear and convincing evidence that your alternative meets the rule’s intent, and OCFS answers in writing within four weeks.⁠²

Inspections, renewal and penalties

OCFS inspects unannounced: when you apply, every year after licensure, when you change capacity, premises or administrator, and when it receives a complaint.⁠² The statute separately requires at least one unannounced inspection between 6 and 18 months after each license is issued.⁠¹ OCFS posts inspection reports online for three years. You also post your license, latest inspection results and any enforcement action where parents can see them.⁠² Violations you can’t fix on the spot go into a Plan of Action, which must be agreed within five business days.⁠²

File for renewal at least 60 days before expiry. If you apply on time, your license stays valid until OCFS decides. If you miss the deadline, the license expires.⁠²

Ch. 32’s civil penalties for uncorrected violations are $500 per records or disclosure violation, and up to $500 per incident or per child over the ratio limit. Fines are due within 30 days, and unpaid fines block renewal. Operating without a license can bring $500 to $10,000 a day through the Attorney General.⁠² The commissioner can close a facility for up to 10 days when children are in immediate danger.⁠² After one denial or revocation you must wait a year before reapplying; after a second, two years.⁠³

After the license: Rising Stars, vendor code and salary supplements

Ch. 32 requires every licensed facility to enroll in Maine’s quality rating system, Rising Stars for ME, and the checklist says to do it immediately after licensure.⁠²⁠⁵ OCFS administers the system with federal Child Care and Development Fund money and adopted a revised QRIS rule in 2025.⁠¹⁰

Submit the State of Maine vendor form after you apply. Without a vendor code, the state cannot pay you anything.⁠⁵ That code also unlocks the Early Childhood Educator Workforce Salary Supplement. Licensed facilities that are open and hold or have applied for a vendor code can draw monthly stipends for staff in the Maine Roads to Quality Registry. As published on 2026-10-12, these are $240 for Levels 1 to 4, $360 for Levels 5 and 6, and $540 for Levels 7 and 8. Owners and directors are eligible.⁠¹¹ Staff at Level 0 must first finish the free health and safety training and log 30 days of experience.⁠¹¹

If you are weighing the home-based route instead, see the family child care provider license.

Sources

1. 1
   Maine Legislature, 22 M.R.S. §8301-A, Child care facilities and family child care providers Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
2. 2
   Maine DHHS, Office of Child and Family Services, 10-148 C.M.R. Ch. 32, Child Care Facility Licensing Rule (effective September 27, 2021) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
3. 3
   Maine Secretary of State, 10-148 C.M.R. Ch. 32, official rule text and filing history Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
4. 4
   Maine DHHS, Office of Child and Family Services, Child Care Provider Licensing Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
5. 5
   Maine DHHS, Children's Licensing and Investigation Services, Child Care Facility Licensing Checklist (Center Pre-Licensing Checklist) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
6. 6
   Maine DHHS, Children's Licensing and Investigation Services, Local Code Compliance memo (Zoning and Code Compliance Letter), May 2023 Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
7. 7
   Maine Office of State Fire Marshal, Day Care & Nursery School Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
8. 8
   Maine Office of State Fire Marshal, Day Care & Nursery School: General Requirements Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
9. 9
   Maine DHHS, Office of Child and Family Services, Child Care Provider Background Checks Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
10. 10
    Maine DHHS, Office of Child and Family Services, Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS), Rising Stars for ME Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
11. 11
    Maine DHHS, Office of Child and Family Services, Early Childhood Educator Workforce Salary Supplement System Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑

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