Starting a family child care home in South Carolina: DSS registration, step by step

Registration is the default; a license is something you opt into

In South Carolina a home caring for up to six children does not need a license at all. Title 63, Chapter 13 regulates “all family childcare homes” through registration, a lighter process run by the Department of Social Services (DSS).⁠¹ A home may elect to be licensed instead, and the statute names the reason most operators do: a federal program that requires licensing as a condition of participation.⁠¹ DSS describes it the same way: a family child care home “must be registered but may choose to be licensed.”⁠³

The rules that apply to both routes are in Regs. 114-530 to 114-537, a rewritten set of family child care home regulations that took effect on May 24, 2024.⁠² The statute also refers to “suggested standards” for family homes, which DSS hands out at orientation; registered operators sign that they have read them, and licensed operators must show compliance with them.⁠¹⁠²

Sources for the table: ⁠¹⁠². The two-year vs. three-year conflict is between S.C. Code 63-13-20(23) and Reg. 114-530(A)(14); ask your regional office which term will be printed on your license.

When caring for children at home becomes regulated

The trigger has three parts, and all three must be present:

• Hours. “Childcare” means care for more than four hours but less than 24 hours a day, away from the child’s own home.⁠¹
• Days. “Regularly” means care available and provided on more than two days in a week.⁠¹
• Families. A home that cares only for related children, only for the children of one unrelated family, or a mix of the two is not a family child care home.⁠¹

DSS’s own summary is blunter: you must be registered “before they care for the second unrelated child.”⁠⁴ Center-based programs open less than four hours a day can be legally exempt, but DSS states that exemption is “not allowed for Family Child Care Homes or Group Child Care Homes.”⁠³

“Related” has a fixed meaning in the rules: parent, grandparent, brother, sister, stepparent, stepsister, stepbrother, uncle, aunt or first cousin, by marriage, blood or adoption.⁠² Operating without a registration is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $1,500, up to six months in jail, or both, and DSS can ask the family court for an injunction to close an unregistered home.⁠¹

Counting to six

The statute caps a family child care home at six children, “including those children living in the home and children received for childcare who are related to the resident caregiver.”⁠¹ Reg. 114-533(C) repeats the cap of six “at any given time” and adds two refinements:⁠²

• It counts children living in the home and related children “who are under the age of twelve (12).” The statute itself has no age qualifier, so the two texts differ on whether your own children aged 12 and older count toward the six; ask your regional office how it counts them.
• Local zoning can set a lower number, and the lower number wins.

A “child” under these rules is anyone from birth through age 12, or up to 18 for a child with special needs.⁠² Neither the statute nor the rule adds a school-age allowance on top of the six.

Infants change your staffing. When four or more of the children in attendance are younger than 12 months, a second adult (an additional caregiver, a household member 18 or older, staff, your emergency person, or a volunteer) must be on the premises.⁠² Your registration certificate states your maximum, and having more children present than that number is grounds for withdrawal.⁠²

At seven children you are no longer a family home. A residence caring for 7 to 12 children is a group child care home, which must be licensed under Regs. 114-510 to 114-519; its applicant must be at least 21, and health and fire officials inspect the home before a license is issued.⁠¹⁠² At 13 children you need a child care center license.⁠¹

Who can run the home

The operator must be at least 18, must live in the home, and must be the person in charge of supervising the children.⁠² Reg. 114-532 adds a high school diploma or GED, clean results on every background check, and the required training.⁠² Assistants aged 15 to 17 are allowed if the operator supervises them at all times and they are never the person in authority.⁠² Volunteers must be at least 16, and they are held to the same rules as paid caregivers.⁠²

Every operator and caregiver needs a health assessment from a health care provider, done within three months before registration or employment or within the first month after. It must cover health history, a physical exam, vision and hearing screening, TB screening and an immunization review that includes a discussion of a one-time adult Tdap dose, and it must be repeated at least every four years.⁠² Staff records must also hold written evidence from a physician or health resource that each person is free from communicable tuberculosis.⁠²

Background checks reach everyone in the house aged 15 and up

South Carolina’s checks are wider than many owners expect because they cover the household, not just the people doing the caregiving:⁠¹⁠²

• The operator and every household member 18 or older (including anyone who moves in after you are registered): SLED state fingerprints, FBI fingerprints, a DSS Central Registry of Child Abuse and Neglect check, and searches of the national (NCIC) and state sex offender registries, plus abuse and neglect registry checks in every state where the person lived in the previous five years.
• Household members aged 15 through 17: SLED and FBI fingerprint checks.
• Substitutes, your emergency person, staff regularly present and volunteers: the same fingerprint, Central Registry and sex offender checks.

Fingerprints are repeated every five years, and again if a person has been out of regulated child care for six months or longer.⁠² You cannot be registered if you, a caregiver, an employee, or anyone 15 or older living in the home has been convicted of an offense listed in S.C. Code 63-13-40(A)(1), which includes any offense against the person under Title 16, Chapter 3, offenses against morality and decency, and contributing to the delinquency of a minor, or appears on a sex offender registry or the Central Registry.⁠¹ Certified teachers and licensed foster parents whose recent fingerprint results are on file with DSS may be exempt from repeating fingerprints.⁠¹

Practical sequencing matters here. DSS accepts electronic fingerprints only through IdentoGo, and you schedule them after the regional office gives you a facility ID number. The Central Registry request uses DSS Form 2924 for you and each household member over 18, submitted through DSS’s online Central Registry portal or by mail.⁠⁶ By law SLED may not charge more for its fingerprint check than the FBI charges for its own.⁠¹

Getting registered, in order

1. Attend an orientation

   The rule requires it; orientation is where you receive the application packet, the suggested standards, a copy of the child care statute and the Children’s Code sections on abuse and neglect.⁠² DSS runs separate family child care home (FCCH) sessions, held virtually by region. The schedule published for October 2026 listed FCCH sessions for the Upstate, Midlands, Florence and Lowcountry offices on October 14, 2026 at 1:30 p.m.; the Midlands contact number shown was (803) 898-9001.⁠⁵

2. Get zoning approval

   Submit an original zoning approval letter from your city or county zoning office.⁠² Registered homes must comply with all zoning ordinances, and zoning can cut your capacity below six.⁠²

3. Set up a listed phone line

   You need a working telephone in the home, listed in the appropriate directories so emergency responders can identify the home, with the number given to parents and DSS.⁠²

4. Complete the forms

   Application to Operate a Child Care Facility (DSS 2902), Original or Renewal of Registration of Family Child Care Home (DSS 2922), and the Household Member List (DSS 2927), plus anything else the region requests.⁠²

5. Run the background checks

   for every person listed in the section above, with the DSS 2924 fee for South Carolina and for each other state where a person lived in the last five years.⁠²

6. Collect three references

   Three original Child Care Reference Release Statements (DSS 2908) from people unrelated to you by blood or marriage. DSS telephones each reference within 30 days of receiving them.⁠²

7. Get parent statements

   Before registration the statute requires a signed statement from each consumer parent that you gave them a copy of the suggested standards and the complaint procedure.⁠¹ Once a child enrolls, the parent completes a Consumer Parent Statement (DSS 2909) and you send it to DSS.⁠²

8. The pre-registration visit

   DSS offers consultation, then visits the home with at least two business days’ notice. It reviews your application, the visit report and the references, and it weighs any earlier applications, inspections or withdrawals in your name.⁠²

9. Registration issued

   If everything is met, DSS mails a regular registration to you. If minor deviations remain that do not seriously threaten children, DSS can issue a provisional registration, with the deficiencies listed on the back, for no longer than one year.⁠²

A denial comes by certified or registered mail with the reasons. You have 30 days from receipt to appeal under DSS’s fair hearing rules, and if you keep operating after a denial and a completed appeal, DSS must seek an injunction.⁠² If you are denied registration, the statute lets you try the licensing route instead by demonstrating compliance with the licensing article and the suggested standards.⁠¹

The licensing route adds four items

A licensed applicant attends the same orientation and files the same forms, checks, zoning letter and references, and also submits a Fire/Health Inspection Report (DSS 2905), a health professional’s TB certification and a Staff Health Assessment (DSS 2926) for the operator, household members 15 and older, staff and emergency persons, a Medical Statement (DSS 2901), and proof of infant/child CPR and first aid covering every hour of operation.⁠² DSS reviews the health and fire officials’ reports, makes its own visit, and issues a provisional license first.⁠²

What the house has to have

The physical rules in Reg. 114-535 are specific. Among them:⁠²

• Covered electrical outlets, a barrier and nonskid surface on open interior stairs, and a floor area away from walkways where crawling babies can explore.
• No playpens, Pack ’n Plays or mobile walkers; no toys small enough to swallow within reach of infants and toddlers; and no Consumer Product Safety Commission-recalled products accessible to children.
• Barriers around hot water pipes, fireplaces, fixed space heaters, wood stoves, water heaters and radiators; poisons locked and labeled in original containers.
• Firearms, weapons and ammunition in a locked drawer or cabinet, and not kept in any room where children are cared for.
• Fencing or a barrier where outdoor play space is near traffic, parking, ditches, water or steep slopes; controlled access to swimming and wading pools; decals at children’s eye level on glass and sliding patio doors.
• Pets with required vaccinations and kept away from litter and waste; reptiles, amphibians and rodents not accessible to children.
• At least one flush toilet and one sink available to children, liquid or granular soap and disposable towels.
• Indoor temperature between 68 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit while children are present. If you cannot hold that range for more than four hours, or you lose water for four hours, you must call DSS and may have to close.⁠²

During operating hours no one may smoke or vape inside or where children are, drink alcohol on the premises, or be present under the influence.⁠²

The daily rules DSS checks on its visits

Supervision. You or a caregiver must be in the same general area as the children, directly overseeing them and watching by sight, and outside with all of them during outdoor play.⁠² At nap time the caregiver must stay awake, on the same floor as the sleeping children, keep doors open and look at each child every 15 minutes.⁠²

Infants. Babies sleep on their backs in a crib meeting U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission requirements, with the crib compliance certificate on file, and nothing else in the crib. Car seats, swings, bean bags and play pens are not acceptable sleep places. Bottles are never propped, and breast milk or formula may not be microwaved.⁠²

Food. Meals or snacks every four hours, milk (or an equivalent) at least once a day, and no round, firm foods such as whole grapes, nuts or uncut hot dogs for children under four.⁠² Homes offering overnight care (defined as care between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m.) also serve dinner and an evening snack.⁠²

Discipline. Corporal punishment is banned, and every operator, caregiver and household member signs an agreement to follow your discipline policy.⁠²

Medication. You need a signed and dated parent consent good for no more than one year, an electronic authorization, or phone permission for a single dose, and you log each dose.⁠² Giving medication in violation of S.C. Code 63-13-185 is a separate misdemeanor carrying up to one year in jail or a $2,000 fine.⁠¹

Written plans. A posted emergency evacuation plan that names your emergency person, and a written emergency medical plan.⁠²

Incident reports. Tell parents immediately and DSS within 24 hours of events including a child’s death, a missing child or one left in a vehicle, injuries needing medical treatment, a fire or police response, closures of more than a day for a disaster, and arrests or convictions involving you, a staff member or a household member.⁠²

Parent paperwork the law requires

Beyond the enrollment records in Reg. 114-532(F), South Carolina requires three specific parent notices:⁠¹⁠²

• Liability insurance. If you do not carry liability insurance for the child care business, each parent must sign a statement acknowledging that, kept on file while the child is enrolled. If a policy lapses, you have 30 days to collect the statements.
• Provisional employees. Signed statements that the home may provisionally employ a person to fill an unexpected vacancy under S.C. Code 63-13-40(D).
• Policies. Parents and staff sign an agreement, updated each year, that they have read your operating policies, including release of children, discipline and medication.

You must also show your registration number in every advertisement for the home and display the certificate prominently.⁠¹

Training: 10 hours every year

S.C. Code 63-13-825 requires the operator and anyone employed or contracted to provide direct care to complete and document at least 10 hours of DSS-approved training each year; the minimum was raised from two hours by 2016 Act No. 263, effective July 1, 2017.⁠¹ Reg. 114-532(H) sets the content: at least four hours in child growth and development, one hour of safe sleep if you serve infants 12 months and under, and the rest from program administration, safety, health, nutrition, physical activity, guidance, CPR and first aid, or bloodborne pathogens.⁠² Up to five hours over the 10 can carry into the next year in the same category.⁠² DSS may post on its website which homes are and are not in compliance with the training rule, and falling short is grounds to deny or withdraw a registration.⁠¹

Fees

Neither the statute nor Regs. 114-530 to 114-537 sets a registration or license fee, and DSS’s brochure and licensing pages list none (checked 2026-10-12).⁠¹⁠²⁠³⁠⁴ The sources do not say whether DSS charges a registration fee, so ask your regional office before you apply. The costs that are written into the rules are background check fees: the DSS 2924 Central Registry form must go in “along with the appropriate fee” for South Carolina and each other state of residence in the past five years, and fingerprints are taken by IdentoGo.⁠²⁠⁶ Neither the rules nor DSS’s background check page (checked 2026-10-12) states the DSS 2924 or IdentoGo fingerprint fee amounts; the statute caps SLED’s fee at the FBI’s fee and limits fees to actual processing cost, so confirm the totals with DSS and IdentoGo when you schedule.

Inspections, renewal and withdrawal

DSS makes one unannounced inspection of every registered or licensed home each calendar year, at any time during operating hours. It checks health and safety, signs of child abuse, and whether enrollment is within your limit. Complaints trigger additional unannounced inspections.⁠² Refusing access to any part of the home, premises or business during a visit is grounds for withdrawal.⁠²

Registration is valid for one year.⁠¹⁠² DSS writes to you 120 days before expiry with the renewal date and requirements, then visits with two business days’ notice. Your renewal packet repeats DSS 2902, 2922 and 2927, adds checks on anyone new in the household or on staff, DSS 2924 forms, DSS 2909 statements from all current parents, and proof that all caregivers have their training.⁠² If you fall short, DSS can put you on a corrective action plan rather than deny the renewal.⁠²

A registration cannot be sold or transferred, and moving to a new address voids it. If you close, return the certificate to DSS within 30 days.⁠² DSS must withdraw a registration for a risk to children’s health or safety, over-enrollment, failing the registration procedures, a disqualified household member or knowingly hiring a disqualified person, or refusing access; you have 30 calendar days from the notice to appeal in writing.⁠¹⁠²

Getting paid through SC Voucher and ABC Quality

Families using South Carolina’s income-based child care scholarship (SC Voucher, funded by the federal Child Care and Development Fund) can use it at a family home only if the home is enrolled in ABC Quality (the manual excepts family, friend and neighbor providers who become registered or licensed), the state’s quality rating system; payment levels rise with the home’s ABC Quality level.⁠⁷⁠⁸ A family or group home can apply to ABC Quality once it has operated for at least six months, holds a current regular registration or license (a provisional one does not qualify), has six months of clean licensing history, and is not on a corrective action plan.⁠⁷ As of October 1, 2026, DSS lists a wait list for families applying to the Child Care Scholarship Program, so new scholarship families may not arrive quickly.⁠⁸

Recent changes

• May 24, 2024: the current family child care home rules, Regs. 114-530 to 114-537, took effect (SCSR 48-5, Doc. No. 5229). They include the four-infant second-adult rule, the ban on playpens and walkers, and the four-year health assessment.⁠²
• 2024 Act No. 195: amended S.C. Code 63-13-820 and 63-13-830, replacing “fingerprint review” with “fingerprint-based background check” and rewriting the provision that requires SLED and FBI fingerprint checks for household members aged 15 through 17.⁠¹
• October 1, 2026: DSS opened a Child Care Scholarship Program wait list for families.⁠⁸

Child care centers of 13 or more children are covered in the child care center license guide.

Sources

1. 1
   South Carolina Legislature, S.C. Code of Laws, Title 63, Chapter 13 (Childcare Facilities) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
2. 2
   South Carolina Legislature, S.C. Code of Regulations, Chapter 114 (Regs. 114-510 to 114-519 group homes; 114-530 to 114-537 family child care homes, eff. May 24, 2024) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
3. 3
   South Carolina Department of Social Services, DSS Brochure 501, Child Care Issue Brief (Jan 2024) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
4. 4
   South Carolina Department of Social Services, SC Child Care Services, Licensing Requirements Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
5. 5
   South Carolina Department of Social Services, SC Child Care Services, New Applicant Orientation Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
6. 6
   South Carolina Department of Social Services, SC Child Care Services, In-State Background Check Requirements Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
7. 7
   South Carolina Department of Social Services, ABC Quality, ABC Quality Family and Group Child Care Home Manual (Feb 2023) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
8. 8
   South Carolina Department of Social Services, SC Child Care Services, ABC Quality Enrollment Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑

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