Texas child care center license: the HHSC permit, step by step
In Texas, caring for seven or more children under 14 away from the operator's home, for at least two hours a day on three or more days a week, takes a Licensed Child Care Center permit from HHSC Child Care Regulation (CCR). You start with a required orientation, apply to your local CCR office, pass fire and sanitation inspections, and operate on an initial license, which the statute has set at 12 months since September 1, 2025. A full license follows. As published on 2026-10-12, state fees start at $35 and the annual fee is $35 plus $1 per child of licensed capacity.
Contents13 sections
Key takeaways
- A center license is needed for 7 or more children under 14, at a location other than the operator's residence, for at least 2 hours a day on 3 or more days a week. The same group in the operator's own home is a licensed child care home instead.1
- The orientation (pre-application interview) is mandatory. CCR then has 21 days to tell you whether your application is complete.4
- You need a fire marshal inspection and a local sanitation inspection before CCR issues the initial permit, and both again every 12 months.3
- The director must be at least 21 and meet one of seven education-and-experience combinations. Every caregiver needs 24 hours of pre-service training (8 before counting in ratio) and 24 hours a year after that.3
- Since September 1, 2025, an initial license lasts 12 months and can be renewed once for 6 months. Since January 1, 2026, the required liability insurance is $100,000 per occurrence, not $300,000. The written rules have not caught up yet.18
- HHSC proposed cutting outdoor space from 80 to 75 square feet per child in August 2026. As of the October 9, 2026 Texas Register, that rule had not been adopted.9
Quick facts
| Who needs it | 7+ children under 14, away from the operator's home, 2+ hours a day, 3+ days a week |
|---|---|
| Agency | HHSC Child Care Regulation (CCR), through your local CCR office |
| First step | Required orientation (pre-application interview) |
| Space per child | 30 sq ft indoors; 80 sq ft outdoors for each child outside at one time |
| Initial license | 12 months, renewable once for 6 (statute since Sept. 1, 2025) |
| Annual fee | $35 plus $1 per child of licensed capacity |
Fees as published in the CCR Handbook, section 5210 (Revision 25-3, effective August 15, 2025), checked on 2026-10-12. Space figures are from 26 TAC chapter 746 as revised December 2025. A pending proposal would lower the outdoor figure to 75 sq ft.
Texas licenses child care centers through one statewide office, Child Care Regulation (CCR) at the Health and Human Services Commission. The center rules sit in 26 TAC chapter 746. Four features shape the Texas process. The director’s qualifications change depending on whether your licensed capacity is 12 or fewer or 13 or more. You start with a probationary “initial license” before CCR issues a full one. A 2025 law changed the initial-license term and the insurance amount before the rules were rewritten. And in 2026 HHSC opened a regulatory-reform rewrite of chapter 746 that had not been adopted when this guide was checked.1389
Does your program need a center license?
The Human Resources Code defines a day-care center as care “at a location other than the residence of the director, owner, or operator” for seven or more children under 14, for less than 24 hours a day but at least two hours a day, on three or more days a week. No one may run such a facility without a license.1 HHSC calls the permit a Licensed Child Care Center.2
Three tests decide whether you are in or out: where the care happens, how many children there are, and how often care is given.
- Where. The same 7+ children at the operator’s own residence make a group day-care home, which CCR licenses as a licensed child care home under different rules (chapter 747). If you plan to start at home, see the Texas child care home permit guide.111
- Ages and hours. If you serve only school-age children before and after school, CCR has two separate permit types under chapter 744. A before or after-school program provides care around the school day and on school holidays. A school-age program provides supervision, recreation or skills instruction. Both cover children in pre-kindergarten through grade six, for at least two hours a day, three days a week.15 HHSC lists them alongside the licensed center as the three center-based permit types. Chapter 746 does not govern them.215
- How long the program runs. A child care facility that operates for fewer than three consecutive weeks and fewer than 40 days in 12 months is exempt.1
Section 42.041(b) lists the other exemptions. These are the ones founders ask about most:1
- Short-term care while parents shop, attend religious services or take classes on or near the premises. The program must not advertise as child care and must tell parents it is not state-licensed.
- Religious summer schools that last no longer than two weeks.
- Educational facilities accredited by TEA, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, or a member of the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission that operate primarily for education from pre-K up.
- Single-skill programs, such as one sport or one art, that do not market themselves as child care, warn parents they are unlicensed, and run DPS background checks.
- Facilities licensed by another state agency, and (added by HB 4529 in 2025) child care on federal property certified by the U.S. Department of Defense. CCR’s matching exemption rules took effect July 20, 2026.18
An exemption is something you request from CCR, not a label you give yourself. HHSC’s exemption page and 26 TAC §745.131 set out the process.218
Before you apply: orientation, a building and local sign-offs
Orientation comes first. CCR requires a pre-application interview, also called orientation or an inquiry meeting, for anyone applying for a license. You schedule a Licensed Center Orientation Class, receive an information packet with supplemental forms and local office contacts, and leave with a certificate of completion.24 After that, HHSC says CCR staff will assist you whenever you need it, and its online Technical Assistance Library holds forms and documents prepared for providers.2
Local approvals are yours to obtain. HHSC says zoning, building codes, homeowner-association covenants and similar location rules “are not CCR requirements,” but local authorities may require them before they will do your fire and sanitation inspections.2 CCR cannot license you without those two inspections, so in practice the city or county sign-offs come first.
Two inspections CCR requires before the initial permit:
- Fire. A state or local fire marshal must inspect the center before CCR issues the initial permit and at least once every 12 months after that. You must make every correction the inspector lists. If no inspection is available locally, you need written proof of that from a fire marshal or county judge.3
- Sanitation. A local sanitation official must inspect on the same schedule. If none is available, you need a letter from the sanitation official or county judge saying so, kept at the center.3
Centers in a public school facility operated by the local independent school district are exempt from both annual inspections.3 Keep the latest reports on site during operating hours, with the inspector’s name and phone number.3
Space: how the building limits your capacity
Chapter 746 ties licensed capacity to square footage, so measure before you sign a lease.
| Requirement | Standard |
|---|---|
| Indoor activity space | At least 30 sq ft per child you are licensed to serve |
| Outdoor activity space | 80 sq ft per child using the outdoor area at one time |
| Outdoor area size | Large enough for at least 25% of licensed indoor capacity |
| Children under 18 months | Separate rooms and outdoor areas from older children, unless 12 or fewer children are in the center |
| Fire and sanitation | Inspection before the initial permit, then every 12 months |
Programs licensed only for alternate care or get-well care are exempt from the 80-square-foot outdoor rule. Centers licensed before September 1, 2003 keep some older allowances, such as 20 square feet indoors for certain kindergartens and nursery schools, only while that original permit stays valid.3
HHSC’s August 2026 proposal would reduce outdoor space to 75 sq ft per child and merge the indoor-space rules into one section that keeps the 30 sq ft figure. Until adoption, plan to the current 80 sq ft.9
The director: two qualification tables
Texas sets director qualifications by licensed capacity. In either case the director must be at least 21 and have a high school diploma or equivalent.3 You may be both owner and director if you qualify.3 The owner (or the governing body) designates the director. The director then sends transcripts, training certificates and forms to the CCR representative.11
| Education | Centers licensed for 13+ | Centers licensed for 12 or fewer |
|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree with 12 college hours in child development | Plus 6 hours management and 1 year in a licensed center | Plus 3 hours management and 1 year in a licensed center or licensed/registered home |
| Associate of applied science in child development or related field (6 hours child development) | Plus 6 hours management and 2 years | Plus 3 hours management and 1 year |
| CDA or Certified Child-Care Professional credential | Plus 6 hours management and 2 years | Plus 6 hours management and 1 year |
| CCR-recognized day-care administrator’s credential | Plus 2 years | Plus 2 years |
| Non-degree route | 9 college hours child development, 9 college hours management, 3 years | 72 clock hours child development, 30 clock hours management, 3 years |
Both tables have seven options in all; the rule text lists the rest, including 60-college-hour and community-college certificate routes.3 For 12-or-fewer centers, experience in a licensed or registered child care home also counts, which matters if you are moving up from a home program.3 The CDA/CCP and administrator’s-credential routes need periodic renewal to stay valid.3 While a center holds an initial license, it may designate an interim director who meets every director requirement except the education piece. Once the full license issues, that person must fully qualify or the center needs a CCR waiver or variance; otherwise it must hire a new director (§§746.1067, 746.1069).311
Staff: qualifications, training and background checks
Caregivers must be at least 18 and have a high school diploma, an equivalent, or a certificate of coursework completion. A 16- or 17-year-old with a diploma can count in ratio if never left alone with children and supervised in the same room.3 Before hiring anyone, collect a notarized Form 2985 affidavit and a Form 2912 pre-employment affidavit.3
| Training | Who | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Orientation to your center | Every employee | Within 7 days of hire, before unsupervised access |
| 24 clock hours pre-service | Nonexempt caregivers | 8 hours before counting in ratio; the other 16 within 90 days |
| Pediatric first aid with rescue breathing, pediatric CPR | Caregivers and director | Within 90 days; kept current |
| Annual training | Each caregiver | 24 clock hours every 12 months |
| Annual training | Director | 30 clock hours every 12 months |
Caregivers with two years in a regulated center, or 24 documented pre-service hours from another regulated center, are exempt from pre-service training.3 Caregivers’ annual hours must include at least 6 hours on child growth and development, guidance and discipline, curriculum, or teacher-child interaction, and at least 1 hour on recognizing and reporting child maltreatment. Anyone who cares for children under 24 months needs one hour on shaken baby syndrome, safe sleep and early brain development.3 The 24- and 30-hour totals, the six-hour topic minimum and the infant-care hour are also written into statute, section 42.0421.1 Under SB 571 (2025), staff must report suspected abuse or neglect within 24 hours.8
Background checks. The director, owner and operator, every employee and contractor, and anyone 14 or older who counts in ratio or has unsupervised access must have a background check.1 CCR’s Centralized Background Check Unit runs up to eight check types, including FBI fingerprints and the Texas Central Registry. Checks must be completed before a person provides direct care or has direct access to children, and they repeat on a schedule.212 Starting September 1, 2026, every check also includes a SEMARC search of reportable-conduct records held by TEA, the HHS Employee Misconduct Registry and TJJD. CCR told providers not to resubmit checks early because of it.13 CCR charges $2 per check.7
Ratios and group sizes
Texas sets ratios by the “specified age” of a group. List the children from youngest to oldest, divide the count by two (rounding .5 up), and the child at that position sets the age.3
| Specified age | Children per caregiver | Maximum group size |
|---|---|---|
| 0-11 months | 4 | 10 |
| 12-17 months | 5 | 13 |
| 18-23 months | 9 | 18 |
| 2 years | 11 | 22 |
| 3 years | 15 | 30 |
| 4 years | 18 | 35 |
| 5 years | 22 | 35 |
| 6-13 years | 26 | 35 |
Adding a second caregiver does not double the ratio past the group-size cap.3 With 13 or more children in care, an infant group can include older children only if the oldest is no more than 18 months older than the youngest.3 Groups may be combined above the cap for limited periods: up to 30 minutes for children 18 months through four years, up to 1.5 hours for children five and older, and for the full length of meals, field trips, outdoor play and naps. Ratios still apply.3 When 12 or fewer children are present, a separate mixed-age chart applies, with a ceiling of 12 children per caregiver that drops as you add infants.3
Applying: forms, review and the initial license
Attend orientation
Keep the certificate of completion.4
Build the application packet
HHSC names Form 2910 (application), Form 2948 (Plan of Operation), Form 2911 (governing body and director designation) and Form 2760 (controlling persons), sent to your local CCR office with the application fee.2 The Plan of Operation is your written plan for meeting the minimum standards: who is responsible, the facility, activities, ratios, safety and sanitation.2 The chapter 745 application rules also require you to show that the governing body is not behind on the Texas franchise tax.17
Line up insurance
CCR requires proof of liability coverage before it issues the permit.2
Wait for the 21-day decision
CCR has 21 days to tell you in writing whether the application is complete and accepted, incomplete, ineligible, or delayed for good cause. Good cause includes a 15% jump in applications over the same quarter a year earlier.4
Open your provider account
Once CCR accepts the application and assigns an operation number, register for an online Child Care Regulation account. You use it for background checks, director and controlling-person changes, and later renewals.24614
Pass the application inspection
CCR inspects the site. When you show compliance, it issues the initial license after you pay the initial license fee.27
CCR returns applications when you are ineligible. A substantive denial or revocation bars you for five years, and three incomplete applications returned within a year bar you for one.4 The application fee is not refundable. The initial license fee is refunded if you withdraw before the license issues.4
Initial license, then full license. Since HB 2789 took effect on September 1, 2025, the statute says an initial license is valid for 12 months and may be renewed for 6 more. HHSC says CCR follows the statute until the rules are updated.18 The CCR Handbook still describes a six-month term, with at least three unannounced inspections while children are in care. Ask your inspector how many visits to expect during the longer term.5 You must pay the full-license fee before the initial license expires, or CCR denies the full license.7
Buying an existing center? A Texas license cannot be transferred, and a change of ownership automatically revokes it. Since March 6, 2026, CCR offers an expedited process. The buyer attends a pre-application interview (or gets a variance), files a complete application at least 60 days before closing, opens a new provider account and submits background checks. If the new license is not issued by the ownership date, care must stop.14
Fees as published on 2026-10-12
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Application | $35 |
| Initial license | $35 |
| Initial license renewal | $35 |
| Full license | $35 plus $1 per child of licensed capacity |
| Annual fee | $35 plus $1 per child of licensed capacity |
| Capacity increase | $1 per added child |
| Background check (CCR fee) | $2 per check |
For example, a center licensed for 100 children pays $135 for the full license and $135 each year. The annual fee is due on the anniversary of the full permit, and CCR’s system issues the invoice 35 days before.7 Annual fees are not refundable, and a capacity reduction is reflected only in the next annual fee.7 If you miss the annual fee, the license is suspended automatically, and it is revoked if the fee is still unpaid six months later.1
After licensing: inspections, renewal and records
- Inspections. CCR must inspect every licensed center at least once a year, and at least one visit must be unannounced. A center with a history of substantial compliance can be moved to an unannounced inspection every two years. During unannounced visits the inspector meets the on-site director to check qualifications.1 Inspection results appear on the public Search Texas Child Care site.2
- Permit renewal every two years. A full license expires unless renewed on its second anniversary and every two years after that. The renewal window opens 60 days before the anniversary, followed by a 30-day late period. You can renew online through your CCR account or on paper, and CCR has 30 days to act.6
- Fire and sanitation, every 12 months.3
- Insurance proof every year. The statute requires annual proof of coverage. If you cannot get coverage, you must notify every parent in writing and tell CCR.1
- Director and controlling-person changes. Report changes to the governing body or controlling persons within two days, and submit a new director designation (Form 2911 or your online account) within 10 days of designating the director.4
If you plan to accept children paid for through the Texas Workforce Commission’s Child Care Services scholarships, the program must also take part in Texas Rising Star, TWC’s quality rating system, which is separate from the CCR license.16
What changed in 2025 and what is pending in 2026
Changes already in force:
- Initial license: 12 months instead of 6, renewable once for 6 months (HB 2789, effective September 1, 2025).18
- Liability insurance: $100,000 per occurrence instead of $300,000, effective January 1, 2026. Chapter 746 (§746.203) still prints $300,000. HHSC says carrying $100,000 or more complies and that CCR follows the statute until the rules change.138
- TB screening dropped. CCR no longer requires TB screening for anyone. Centers also no longer have to keep vision and hearing screening records.8
- Epinephrine. Centers may stock unassigned epinephrine nasal spray or auto-injectors (SB 1619).8
- DoD-certified child care is exempt from CCR licensing (HB 4529; rules effective July 20, 2026).18
- SEMARC check added to every background check from September 1, 2026.13
- Expedited change of ownership, effective March 6, 2026.14
Proposals HHSC published but had not adopted as of the October 9, 2026 Texas Register:
- Chapter 746 regulatory reform (published August 14, 2026; comments closed September 13). It would cut outdoor space to 75 sq ft per child and consolidate indoor-space, sink and toilet rules. It would rewrite annual training to require at least two hours on abuse, neglect and exploitation for every employee, and it would require centers that take CCS subsidies to follow those program rules.9
- Licensure, screening and insurance cleanup (published August 28, 2026; comments closed September 28). It would write the $100,000 insurance amount into chapters 745 and 746, write the 12-month initial license into chapter 745 (§745.347), and remove the remaining TB rules.10
Check the CCR minimum-standards page for adoption notices before you finalize floor plans or training schedules.
Common questions
Where can I get HHSC CCR licensing assistance for a child care center?
From your local Child Care Regulation office: the mandatory Licensed Center Orientation Class gives you an information packet with local CCR staff contacts. HHSC says CCR staff will assist you whenever you need it, and its online Technical Assistance Library has forms and documents for providers.2
How long does it take to get a child care center license in Texas?
CCR has 21 days to tell you whether each application submission is complete, and once it accepts the application the inspector has two months to decide whether to issue or deny the permit. You then operate on an initial license, which HHSC says has been valid for 12 months since September 1, 2025 and can be renewed once for six months, before the full license.418
How much does a child care center license cost in Texas?
As published on 2026-10-12, CCR charges $35 to apply and $35 for the initial license, then $35 plus $1 per child of licensed capacity for the full license and every year after (a 100-child center pays $135). Each background check carries a $2 CCR fee.7
Does a church or private school preschool need a child care license in Texas?
Not if it is an educational facility accredited by TEA, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools or a Texas Private School Accreditation Commission member that operates primarily for education from pre-K up, or if it only watches children for short periods while parents attend religious services, shopping or similar activities on or near the premises, does not advertise as a child-care facility and tells parents it is not licensed by the state. CCR handles exemptions through request forms and an exemption determination process rather than a permit application.119
How often does HHSC inspect a licensed child care center?
At least once a year, and at least one of those visits must be unannounced; a center with a history of substantial compliance may be designated for a biennial inspection, which must be unannounced. Separately, the fire marshal and the local sanitation official must re-inspect the center every 12 months.13
Sources
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- 11
- 12
- 13
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- 16 Texas Workforce Commission, Texas Rising Star Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
- 17
- 18
- 19 HHSC Child Care Regulation, CCR Licensing Exemptions Checked 11 Nov 2026 · Back to text ↑
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Related guides
Texas and neighboring states
Compare all 51| State | License | Who needs it | State fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas (this guide) | Licensed Child Care Center | 7+ children under 14, away from the operator's home | $35 plus $1 per child of licensed capacity |
| New Mexico | Child Care Center license | Children cared for under 24 hours a day in a non-residential setting | $0 since November 1, 2025 |
| Oklahoma | Child Care Center license | Program open 30+ hours a week; no child-count threshold | See guide |
| Arkansas | Licensed Child Care Center | 6+ children from more than one family, outside a family home | $15 (up to 17), $50 (17-99), $100 (100+) |
| Louisiana | Early Learning Center License (Type I, II or III) | 7 or more unrelated children, 12.5+ hours in a week | $25 (15 or fewer children) to $250 (101+) |
Shortened from each state's guide and our 51-state table, as of each guide's last review. Fees are the state's own; local permits and background checks cost extra.