What is Occupational Licensing?
An “occupational license” is, put simply, government permission to work in a particular field. To earn the license, an aspiring worker must clear various hurdles, such as earning a certain amount of education or training or passing an exam. In the 1950s, only one in 20 U.S. workers needed the government’s permission to pursue their chosen occupation. Today, that figure stands at almost one in four.
Child Care Home, Family Occupational Licensing
License required in 44 states
70th most burdensome licensing requirements among moderate-income occupations
Average Fee for License:$92
What They Do
Family child care homes attend to children at the operator’s residence and perform a variety of tasks, such as dressing, feeding, bathing and overseeing play. This report looks at what is required to run a child care business out of one’s home only.
Child Care Home, Family Licensing Overview
Forty-four states (more than half of states) require a licence to work as a Child Care Home, Family. On average, these laws require $92 in fees, 58 days of education and no exams. Child Care Home, Family Licenses have the 70th most burdensome requirements of the 102 occupations studied.
Where is a Child Care Home, Family the most regulated?
Out of the 44 states that require an occupational license, an occupational license for a Child Care Home, Family has the highest burden in Mississippi. Mississippi requires $190 in fees, no exams, no experience, and 9 clock hours & 2 years education.
Where is a Child Care Home, Family the least regulated?
Out of the 44 states that require an occupational license, an occupational license for a Child Care Home, Family has the lowest burden in North Dakota. North Dakota requires $20 in fees, no exams, no experience, and no education.
Where is a Child Care Home, Family license the most expensive?
An occupational license for a Child Care Home, Family costs the most in Nevada. Nevada requires $481 in fees, no exams, no experience, and 2142 clock hours education.
Where is a Child Care Home, Family license the least expensive?
An occupational license for a Child Care Home, Family costs the least in Montana, Utah where the license costs $0.
Where does it take the longest to obtain a Child Care Home, Family license?
An occupational license for a Child Care Home, Family takes the longest to obtain in Mississippi. It takes 732 days (2 years and 2 days). Mississippi requires $190 in fees, no exams, no experience, and 9 clock hours & 2 years education.
Where is it fastest to obtain a Child Care Home, Family license?
An occupational license for a Child Care Home, Family takes the least time to obtain in Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, North Dakota, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, West Virginia (0 days).
What states require exams for a Child Care Home, Family license?
To obtain an occupational license for a Child Care Home, Family there is at least one exam required in: Colorado, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Oregon.
Forty-four states require a license for family child care homes. On average, these licenses require $79 in fees and 48 days of education and experience, making family child care home the 70th most burdensome occupation of the 102 studied. However, because most states license the occupation, it ranks as the 25th most widely and onerously licensed.
License requirements vary widely across states. North Carolina requires operators of child family care homes to dedicate about 401 days to education and experience (one year of child care experience, 36 hours of training and a four-credit-hour class). However, 21 states require fewer than 10 days of education or experience, and another nine require none at all. Similarly, fees range from $0 in Vermont to $300 in D.C.
States Ranked by Average Licensing Burden for 102 Lower-Income Occupations
More Burdensome Less Burdensome
Based on data released in November 2022| Burden Rank | State | Occupations Licensed | Fees | Estimated Calendar Days Lost | Education | Experience | Exams | Minimum Grade | Minimum Age |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | Alaska | 64 | $40 | 28 | 120 clock hours | None | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| 25 | Alabama | 63 | $47 | 4 | 26 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 18 |
| 13 | Arkansas | 72 | $176 | 3 | 16 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 18 |
| 29 | California | 75 | $284 | 4 | 22.5 clock hours | None | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 18 | Colorado | 34 | $100 | 4 | 21.5 clock hours | None | 1 | 0 | 18 |
| 35 | Connecticut | 65 | $40 | 0 | None | None | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| 8 | District of Columbia | 61 | $300 | 2 | 13 clock hours | None | 1 | 12 | 18 |
| 24 | Delaware | 42 | $65 | 3 | 18 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 18 |
| 14 | Florida | 55 | $87 | 8 | 35 clock hours | None | 1 | 0 | 18 |
| 9 | Georgia | 41 | $50 | 7 | 30 clock hours | None | 1 | 12 | 21 |
| 40 | Hawaii | 64 | $22 | 0 | None | None | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 27 | Illinois | 41 | $28 | 4 | 23 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 18 |
| 43 | Indiana | 37 | $39 | 1 | 7.5 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 0 |
| 22 | Kansas | 35 | $85 | 3 | 16 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 18 |
| 30 | Kentucky | 38 | $40 | 1 | 6 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 18 |
| 5 | Massachusetts | 50 | $135 | 190 | 33 clock hours | 6 months | 0 | 12 | 18 |
| 33 | Maryland | 58 | $51 | 6 | 36 clock hours | None | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 32 | Maine | 46 | $160 | 0 | None | None | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 28 | Michigan | 48 | $50 | 1 | 6 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 18 |
| 34 | Minnesota | 35 | $90 | 2 | 10 clock hours | None | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 38 | Missouri | 33 | $42 | 0.20 | 1 clock hours | None | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 1 | Mississippi | 65 | $190 | 732 | 9 clock hours & 2 years | None | 0 | 12 | 21 |
| 37 | Montana | 32 | $0 | 4 | 25 clock hours | None | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 3 | North Carolina | 66 | $154 | 375 | 50 clock hours | 1 years | 0 | 12 | 21 |
| 44 | North Dakota | 65 | $20 | 0 | None | None | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 21 | Nebraska | 61 | $95 | 0.20 | 1 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 19 |
| 39 | New Hampshire | 37 | $43 | 0 | None | None | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 31 | New Mexico | 66 | $59 | 11 | 45 clock hours | None | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 2 | Nevada | 75 | $481 | 499 | 2142 clock hours | None | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| 4 | New York | 41 | $25 | 369 | 21 clock hours | 1 years | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 10 | Ohio | 40 | $250 | 8 | 37 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 18 |
| 19 | Oklahoma | 42 | $64 | 0 | None | None | 0 | 12 | 21 |
| 20 | Oregon | 69 | $88 | 2 | 10.5 clock hours | None | 1 | 0 | 18 |
| 6 | Pennsylvania | 50 | $59 | 140 | 600 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 18 |
| 12 | Rhode Island | 70 | $110 | 4 | 24 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 21 |
| 41 | Tennessee | 69 | $5 | 0.30 | 2 clock hours | None | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 11 | Texas | 38 | $112 | 7 | 32 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 21 |
| 42 | Utah | 64 | $0 | 0.40 | 2.5 clock hours | None | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 7 | Virginia | 72 | $83 | 91 | None | 3 months | 0 | 12 | 18 |
| 17 | Vermont | 31 | $20 | 12 | 54 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 18 |
| 23 | Washington | 76 | $12 | 3 | 16 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 21 |
| 26 | Wisconsin | 42 | $100 | 22 | 3 credit hours & 7 clock hours | None | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 36 | West Virginia | 67 | $55 | 0 | None | None | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 15 | Wyoming | 26 | $89 | 7 | 32 clock hours | None | 0 | 12 | 18 |
License to Work
The data and information here come from IJ’s License to Work report, released in November 2022.
View Report