Rhode Island family child care home license: FCCH and group home rules

When Rhode Island requires a license

Rhode Island law defines a family daycare home as any home other than the child’s own where care is offered “at the same time to four (4) or more children who are not relatives of the caregiver.”⁠² DHS uses the same line: a license is needed to “legally care for four (4) or more unrelated children.”⁠⁷ For this purpose, “related” covers a parent, grandparent, brother, sister, aunt, uncle or first cousin, by blood, marriage or adoption.⁠² Anyone who claims the relative exception in a prosecution carries the burden of proving the relationship.⁠²

Three neighboring arrangements are easy to confuse with this license:

• License-exempt relative care. This applies only to relatives paid through the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP). These providers may care for no more than six related children, and their own children under 6 count toward that limit. They must be at least 21, live in a different household from the child, and have a stable residence (not as a boarder).⁠⁷ You apply by email to the DHS Office of Child Care provider management team, not through licensing.⁠⁷
• Child care center. Care outside a home or residence is a child daycare center, with no minimum number of children.⁠² See the Rhode Island child care center license.
• Nonprofit or religious programs. These get no exemption. The statute says no one is exempt “by reason of public or private, sectarian, non-sectarian … for profit or nonprofit status.”⁠³

Running a family daycare home without a DHS certificate is a misdemeanor, fined $25 to $100 for each week the home operates. The only exception is a provider still holding an unexpired DCYF certificate issued before January 1, 2020.⁠³⁠⁶ DHS took over child care licensing from DCYF under P.L. 2019, ch. 88.⁠²

One rule, two home tiers

Since August 9, 2026, both home tiers are governed by one regulation, 218-RICR-70-00-2. DHS’s stated reasons for the amendment were to build in the RISES data system and to incorporate “the Group Family Child Care Home requirements.”⁠⁸⁠¹

• Family child care home (FCCH): a licensed residence where the resident cares for up to 6 children, “or up to twelve (12) children with one (1) or more approved assistants (dependent on enrollment details).”⁠¹
• Group family child care home (GFCCH): an FCCH whose residence “is in compliance with local zoning regulations,” caring for 8 to 12 children with one or more approved assistants.⁠¹

In practice the staffing rules decide which tier you need. An FCCH provider with an assistant on site is capped at 8 children. Only a group home provider may reach 12 (see the table below).⁠¹ If your plan depends on 9 to 12 children, you need group home qualifications and local zoning compliance. The statute describes the group home a little differently: an occupant at least 21 caring for 9 to 12 children, licensed yearly, and meeting “state and local fire, health, and zoning regulations.”⁠² Where the statute and rule differ, ask the licensing unit which applies to your file. The statute says group homes are “subject to yearly licensing,” while the rule defines a group home as a kind of FCCH and sets one two-year license period for FCCH licenses.⁠²⁠⁴⁠¹ Neither source says which term DHS puts on a group home license, so ask the licensing unit for the term and renewal date before you plan around it.

How many children, and who must be on site

The rule sets capacity by who is in the home and how many children are under 18 months. The staffing chart in § 2.3.4(B)(4) reads:⁠¹

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

Whenever every child in care is under 3, the ratio is 4 children to 1 adult.⁠¹ An assistant has to be present whenever you exceed 6 children or 2 children under 18 months.⁠¹ Field trips and swimming require one adult for every two children, and the adults supervising a swim must be in or right next to the water.⁠¹

Household members and visitors never count toward the ratio unless DHS has approved them as assistants.⁠¹ Your licensed capacity also depends on floor space, and DHS measures that during the home visit (see below).⁠¹

Your own children

Children who live in the home, including foster children, count toward capacity until they start kindergarten. DHS will consider an exception if you can prove the child attends a full-day preschool.⁠¹ A related child aged 5 to 12 who is home for less than three consecutive hours while you are operating does not count toward the ratio.⁠¹ During summer and school vacation weeks, resident school-age children under 12 can join without counting against capacity, as long as an additional approved assistant is present. DHS can also allow exceptions for school closures, sick days and holidays.⁠¹

Line up an assistant before you apply

This requirement catches many first-time Rhode Island applicants. Every FCCH “must have at least one (1) assistant” who can be called in immediately in an emergency. The same paragraph adds that “for programs serving six (6) or more children, an approved second assistant is required.”⁠¹ The application has to include documentation about “the applicant and at least one assistant.”⁠¹ DHS will not approve an initial or renewal application that names another licensed FCCH or GFCCH provider as your assistant, unless you can prove that person can cover both programs.⁠¹

The rule’s text says a second assistant is required at 6 or more children. Its staffing chart says a provider licensed for 6 with one assistant on site needs no additional assistant. The sources do not say which reading DHS applies, so ask the licensing unit before you apply how many assistants it will require you to name for a home licensed for 6.

The August 2026 amendment removed every reference to “substitutes,” so approved assistants are now the only backup the rule recognizes.⁠¹ An assistant must be at least 18, hold a high school diploma or GED, have current American Heart Association pediatric CPR (first certification in person) and pediatric first aid, clear a comprehensive background check, finish DHS pre-service training, and provide an annual physical and immunization information.⁠¹ You have to orient each new assistant during their first week. The orientation covers the regulations, child abuse reporting law and your program handbook.⁠¹

With an assistant in place, you may be out of the home for up to 20% of the work week, capped at 15 hours. An absence of three or more consecutive days needs an Out of Home Request in RISES. DHS will not approve more than 14 days of extended absence per calendar year.⁠¹ Without an assistant, you must be on the premises and directly supervising at all times.⁠¹ Separately, you may not work more than 15 hours in any 24-hour period, counting child care and any other job.⁠¹

Provider qualifications

Sources: ⁠¹

You must also live in the home. The rule requires one provider “who lives in the residence,” and DHS says the provider must live in the home or on the licensed property.⁠¹⁠⁷

Background checks for the whole household

The comprehensive background check covers state and national criminal and sex offender registries, child abuse and neglect clearances, and any other check state or federal law requires. Anyone who has lived outside Rhode Island in the past five years also needs out-of-state checks.⁠¹ The check applies to you, every assistant, and every household member 18 or older, and it is repeated every five years.⁠¹ A household member is anyone whose main residence is the home for more than 30 consecutive days, including adult children, roommates, partners, and visitors staying over 30 days.⁠¹

DHS may deny or revoke a license in these cases:⁠¹

• You, an assistant or an adult household member has a conviction or is serving an active probation sentence.
• A permanent household member has a history of DCYF involvement.
• Children in your or your assistant’s custody have been adjudicated dependent, neglected, abused, wayward or delinquent.
• You or your assistant has a documented history of chemical or alcohol abuse within the past seven years.

Getting the house ready

You must have the following inspections before your first license, and keep them current afterward:⁠¹

DHS cannot vary state fire and health safety standards.⁠⁴ Any construction that changes the measurements or quality of children’s space needs approval from the licensing administrator before work starts.⁠¹

The physical standards that most often force changes:⁠¹

• Space. You need 35 square feet of usable floor space per child, measured by DHS. Homes licensed before this standard must meet it if they ask to increase capacity.
• Bathroom. New applicants must have the bathroom used for child care on the same floor as the child care space, and children must be able to reach it without help.
• Basements. A basement can be used only if every area is less than 50% below ground, there are two exits, and one exit is a door leading directly outside. Bulkheads and overhead garage doors do not count as exits. Children may not sleep there unless the fire marshal approves it.
• Temperature and water. Heat must keep child areas at 65°F or above, and they may not exceed 74°F. Hot water and hand sinks must be set no higher than 120°F. Portable space heaters and extension cords are banned while children are in care. You need a kitchen fire extinguisher.
• Outdoors. Since January 1, 2023, the play area must be enclosed by a permanent fence at least 4 feet high. If you have no outdoor space, DHS must approve a plan for a nearby park or schoolyard. Outdoor trampolines and diving boards are banned. An in-ground pool needs a 6-foot fence with a self-closing, self-latching gate.
• Firearms. Firearms must be stored unloaded, with child protective devices, out of children’s reach. Ammunition must be locked up separately during care hours. You must tell every family that firearms are in the home and how many.
• Smoking. No smoking, vaping or tobacco in the home or on the grounds during care hours. If anyone smokes or vapes in the home outside care hours, you must tell all enrolled families.

The rule also adopts the CPSC outdoor home playground guidelines and the USDA Child and Adult Care Food Program meal standards (7 C.F.R. § 226.20).⁠¹ You must give families the CACFP nutrition guidelines at enrollment.⁠¹

Paperwork DHS expects before it approves you

The rule requires several items that are reviewed during licensing:⁠¹

• A Family Child Care Home Handbook, approved by DHS.
• An emergency preparedness and response plan on the DHS template. Fire drills are monthly, with every fourth drill obstructed, plus two shelter-in-place drills every 12 months.
• Liability insurance for the licensed program.
• A confidentiality policy for you and your assistants.
• A written transportation policy if you will drive children. Every driver needs a Rhode Island chauffeur’s license (or the equivalent from another state) and a background check on file.
• RISES Workforce Registry or Household Member Profiles for you, every household member and every assistant, completed and approved before licensure.

Infant care comes with its own rules. Infants sleep on their backs in CPSC-approved cribs, with no swaddles or other restraining devices. Bottles may not be propped or heated in a microwave. Each infant and toddler needs a feeding plan before enrollment.⁠¹

Applying, in order

1. Contact the licensing unit early

   DHS asks prospective providers to call (401) 462-3009 or email [email protected] “as early as you possibly can in the process.”⁠⁷

2. Complete the mandatory DHS orientation

   After orientation, the licensing unit emails you guidance on the next steps.⁠⁷ The rule requires orientation and pre-service training before you submit an application. Former providers reopening more than five years after closing must repeat both.⁠¹

3. Create your RISES profile

   Set up a personal profile in the RISES Workforce Registry and start the licensing application there.⁠⁷ RISES is the state’s early childhood data system for licensing, the workforce registry and provider applications.⁠¹

4. Take First Steps

   This is DHS’s “Child Care Licensing 101” training for new providers.⁠⁷

5. Submit the application in RISES

   Include the fee, documentation about the home, yourself and at least one assistant, and background checks for every required person.⁠¹⁠⁷ Incomplete applications expire six months after submission, and you then have to start a new one.⁠¹

6. Home visits

   A DHS representative visits one or more times to confirm the home is your residence, check compliance, and measure floor space to set your capacity.⁠¹

7. Provisional license

   You receive a provisional license for your first six months. Once a monitoring visit is done and any problems are fixed, it becomes a regular license for the remaining 18 months of the term.⁠¹ The statute caps provisional licenses at six months, with a review every three months.⁠⁴

You can apply to become a CCAP-approved provider at the same time, or add it later during the license period or at renewal. CCAP has its own requirements and orientation.⁠⁷ DHS says opening a child care program, regardless of type, “can take anywhere from 3-6 months,” and that it needs up to 14 days to review the applications and documents you submit.⁠⁷

Fees and license term

Sources: ⁠⁴

A family daycare home certificate is valid for two years. Licenses issued under the chapter cannot be transferred and apply only to the licensee and the address listed.⁠⁴⁠¹ Moving requires a Change of Address application in RISES four weeks before you start operating at the new address, along with a fee, inspections and a new home visit. DHS may issue a 30-day temporary certificate while it reviews the move.⁠¹

After you open

• Monitoring. DHS makes at least one unannounced visit a year. If DHS cannot get in or you are not there on two attempted visits, the license is suspended or revoked until a visit is completed.⁠¹ A program closed for more than 30 days may have to file a new initial application.⁠¹
• Renewal. RISES opens your renewal application 90 days before expiration, and it is due 30 days before. A late renewal can result in a probationary license. If you miss expiration entirely, you must close until DHS reviews a complete application.⁠¹
• Training. Within 90 days of licensure, you and your assistants must complete DHS’s mandatory health and safety modules. After that, providers and full-time assistants need 12 hours of professional development per calendar year, with 4 hours on a listed health and safety topic. Assistants hired for under 20 hours a week need 6 hours.⁠¹
• Changes to report in RISES. Report these immediately: new or departing assistants, household changes, name changes, a planned move, a request to change capacity or use different rooms, and new contact details. Give 30 days’ notice before closing.⁠¹
• Records. Keep attendance, sign-in logs, injury and medication logs, drill logs, pet records and field trip slips on site for at least three years.⁠¹
• Enforcement. The statute requires progressive penalties, except where public safety is in danger.⁠⁵ A suspension lasts up to six months. After a revocation you cannot apply for a similar license for three years.⁠⁵ A probationary license lasts up to 12 months and can be extended by six more.⁠⁴ Appeals go through the EOHHS appeals process, 210-RICR-10-05-2.⁠¹

If you also want to be a DCYF foster care provider or a Supportive Living Arrangement provider through BHDDH, you need written approval from that department, and you must meet both sets of rules.⁠¹

CCAP payments and the provider union

Many Rhode Island family child care homes are paid partly through CCAP. CCAP pays a weekly rate for each child based on time authorized: full, three-quarter, half or quarter week.⁠⁹ As of 2026-10-12, DHS’s rate page posts July 2026 rate charts for centers, while the chart it lists for licensed family child care is dated July 1, 2024.⁠⁹ The page does not say whether a newer family child care chart is coming, so ask the DHS Office of Child Care Provider Management Team ([email protected]) which weekly rates apply to your first year.

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

Sources: ⁠¹⁰

Family child care providers who take CCAP are represented by SEIU 1199 New England, the union DHS names as their selected representative.⁠⁷

What changed in 2026, and what is still unsettled

The amendment effective August 9, 2026 made these changes:⁠¹⁠⁸

• Applications, renewals, closures, address changes and variance requests moved into RISES.
• Group home definitions, staffing and qualifications were added to the same rule.
• “Substitutes” were removed.
• New applicants must provide a State Fire Marshal life safety inspection and the construction date for post-1978 homes.
• Incomplete applications now expire at six months.
• The staffing chart was revised.

DHS’s concise explanatory statement records “no changes” to the text after public comment, even though providers asked at the hearing about homes previously licensed for 11 or 12 children.⁠⁸

Two conflicts remain in the official text as of 2026-10-12. First, the statute describes group homes as 9 to 12 children licensed yearly, while the rule says 8 to 12 on the FCCH cycle.⁠²⁠¹ Second, the rule’s text and its staffing chart disagree on when a second assistant is required.⁠¹ If your capacity plan depends on either point, get the licensing unit’s answer in writing before you sign a lease or buy equipment.

Sources

1. 1
   Rhode Island Department of State, RI Code of Regulations, 218-RICR-70-00-2, Family Child Care Home Regulations for Licensure (amendment effective 08/09/2026) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
2. 2
   State of Rhode Island General Assembly, R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-12.5-2, Definitions Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
3. 3
   State of Rhode Island General Assembly, R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-12.5-4, License required Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
4. 4
   State of Rhode Island General Assembly, R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-12.5-5, General licensing provisions Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
5. 5
   State of Rhode Island General Assembly, R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-12.5-6, Violations, suspensions and revocations of license Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
6. 6
   State of Rhode Island General Assembly, R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-12.5-7, Penalties for violations Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
7. 7
   Rhode Island Department of Human Services, Apply to Be a Child Care Provider Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
8. 8
   Rhode Island Department of Human Services, Office of Child Care Licensing, Concise Explanatory Statement, 218-RICR-70-00-2 (2026 amendment) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
9. 9
   Rhode Island Department of Human Services, CCAP Provider Rates, Financial Information & Portal Help Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
10. 10
    Rhode Island Department of Human Services, Licensed Family Child Care Weekly Rates (effective July 1, 2024) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑

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