Maryland Child Care Licensing: Training, Inspection, and Approval

To run a child care program legally in Maryland, you must be licensed or registered through the Maryland State Department of Education’s Office of Child Care (OCC), which handles all Maryland child care licensing requirements through 13 regional offices.¹ Operating without that approval is a misdemeanor carrying fines up to $1,500 for a first offense and $2,500 for repeat violations.² Getting approved means completing background checks, passing a facility inspection, finishing required training, lining up specific policies, and submitting the right application for the type of program you intend to run.

First, Identify Your Program Type

Your category sets the regulations that apply to you and controls everything from capacity to staffing to the application form you file.

A family child care home operates out of your primary residence and serves up to eight children, with no more than four under age two. It falls under COMAR 13A.15, and you must actually live in the home where you provide care.³⁴
A large family child care home is also residential but approved for nine to twelve children, with additional staff and tighter space and safety requirements under COMAR 13A.18.⁵
A child care center typically runs out of a non-residential building, offers care at least twice a week for part or all of a day, and is licensed under COMAR 13A.16.⁶

Who Can Be Licensed

Family child care providers must be at least 18.⁷ Child care center directors face a higher bar. You must be at least 21, hold a high school diploma or equivalent, and complete 90 clock hours (or 6 semester hours) of approved preservice training in child development, plus 9 clock hours of training in communication with staff and parents, 3 semester hours of administrative training, and 3 clock hours on Americans with Disabilities Act compliance.⁸

Experience thresholds scale with program size. A preschool center with 20 or fewer children requires one year of experience working primarily with preschoolers. A center of 21 to 40 children requires 30 semester hours of coursework (with 20 in early childhood education) or 60 semester hours from an accredited institution, plus two years of experience. Centers over 40 children require an associate’s degree with at least 15 semester hours in early childhood education, or a bachelor’s degree in any field, along with two years of experience.⁸

Background Checks and Health Clearance

Everyone who works or lives in a Maryland child care facility must complete a comprehensive background check. Federal law requires eight components, including fingerprint-based state and FBI criminal history checks, state and national sex offender registry searches, and child abuse and neglect clearances in every state where the person has lived in the past five years. The full check must be repeated at least every five years, but Maryland requires child protective services clearance every two years, and you must follow whichever timeline is shorter.⁹

Every prospective staff member also needs a medical evaluation on a form supplied or approved by the OCC, signed by a physician, physician assistant, or certified nurse practitioner, completed within six months before the person starts working in the program. After hire, the evaluation updates every two years.¹⁰

Training You Need Before You Open

At least one staff member or the provider must hold current first aid certification through the American Red Cross (or equivalent) and CPR certification through the American Heart Association (or equivalent) whenever children are present.¹¹ Anyone caring for children under two must also complete approved SIDS prevention training.¹²

Medication Administration Training (MAT) is a separate pre-service requirement for anyone seeking a center license or family child care registration. It runs six hours in a classroom setting, covers both theory and hands-on practice, and ends with content and skills tests. Only licensed Maryland registered nurses who have completed MAT trainer certification and been approved by the OCC’s Nurse Consultant can teach the course.¹³

Training continues after you open. Family child care providers, center directors, and teachers must complete at least 12 clock hours of continued training each year, with at least 6 hours in core knowledge areas such as child development, curriculum, and health and safety. Aides must complete 6 clock hours annually, with at least 3 in core areas.¹⁴

Staffing Ratios and Group Size

Maryland sets strict limits on how many children one adult can supervise, and the limits tighten sharply for younger ages. Build your staffing plan around these numbers from the start, because mis-staffing is one of the fastest routes to an enforcement action.

For same-age groups in child care centers:

Infants under 1 year: 1 adult for every 3 children, maximum group size 6.
Toddlers age 1: 1 adult for every 3 children, maximum group size 9.
Two-year-olds: 1 adult for every 6 children, maximum group size 12.
Three- and four-year-olds: 1 adult for every 10 children, maximum group size 20.
Five and older: 1 adult for every 15 children, maximum group size 30.¹⁵

Mixed-age groups that include three-year-olds or older children follow a 1-to-10 ratio with a cap of 20 children. When the mix includes two-year-olds, staffing increases based on how many two-year-olds are present; the OCC publishes a staffing chart that covers each configuration.¹⁶

Facility and Safety Standards

Indoor space must provide at least 35 square feet of usable floor space per child.¹⁷ For outdoor play, centers that filed their notice of intent on or after January 1, 2009 must provide at least 75 square feet of usable play space for half of the center’s approved capacity, or for each child if the center serves 20 or fewer.¹⁸

If your building was constructed before 1978, no surface in areas used for child care may have chipping, peeling, or deteriorating paint. If paint deterioration is found or renovation disturbs a painted surface, an accredited inspector must conduct a lead dust test and the facility must receive a passing score before operating.¹⁹ Facilities on a private well instead of a municipal water system are generally required to have the water tested for bacteria and nitrates, with the exact protocol depending on provider category.

Your facility must also pass a fire inspection by the local fire authority, and you must keep documentation of the most recent passing inspection on hand.²⁰

Insurance and Tax Identification

Maryland law requires homeowners insurance companies to offer registered family child care providers liability coverage of at least $300,000 for bodily injury, property damage, or personal injury arising from child care activities in the home. If you transport children in your car during child care hours, your auto insurer must offer you at least $30,000 per person and $60,000 per occurrence for bodily injury, plus $15,000 for property damage. The insurer is required to offer the coverage, but you still have to request it and confirm the policy covers child care activities specifically.²¹

On the tax side, parents claiming the federal Child and Dependent Care Credit have to identify you by name, address, and either an Employer Identification Number (EIN) or Social Security number. To keep your Social Security number off those forms, apply for an EIN through the IRS at no cost; the IRS provides Form W-10 for documenting your identification for the families you serve.²²

Submitting the Application

Child care centers apply using form OCC 1200, available on the MSDE Division of Early Childhood website.²³ Family child care homes use form OCC 1230.²⁴ The center application asks for proposed hours of operation, the capacity you’re requesting, and information about your facility’s usable space. Changes to your operation after licensure, such as capacity increases or altered hours, require written OCC approval before you implement them.

There is no application fee for child care licensing in Maryland.¹ Send your completed packet to the regional Office of Child Care serving your area; contacting that office early is one of the smartest moves you can make, since they run orientation sessions and can flag problems before you spend money on facility changes.²⁵

Written Policies to Include

Two written policies belong in your application materials. The first is an emergency and disaster plan with procedures for evacuating the building, relocating children to a designated safe site, sheltering in place when evacuation isn’t feasible, notifying parents, and addressing the individual needs of children with special needs.²⁶

The second is a written child discipline policy spelling out the behavior management methods you use and when you use them. You must share it with parents of enrolled children, prospective families, and the OCC. Corporal punishment is prohibited: no spanking, hitting, shaking, or any other physical discipline. You also cannot force children to eat or drink, punish them for refusing food, or withhold meals as a consequence.²⁷

Inspection and the License You Receive

Once your application is in, a licensing specialist conducts an on-site inspection covering physical space measurements, paperwork, fire inspection documentation, and staff qualifications. After the initial visit, the OCC inspects licensed facilities at least annually.¹

If everything checks out, you get a full license. If an applicant still has outstanding requirements but children are not in imminent danger, the OCC may issue a provisional license for up to 120 days. Provisional status can be extended in 120-day increments when delays are beyond the provider’s control, but the total provisional period cannot exceed 24 months.²⁸

What Happens If You Skip Licensing

Running a child care program without the required license or registration is a misdemeanor. For child care centers, a first conviction carries a fine of up to $1,500, and a second or subsequent violation raises the maximum to $2,500.² The same fine structure applies to unregistered family child care homes, and the OCC can go to court to shut down an unlicensed operation and seek the maximum fines allowed by law.²⁹ On top of that, families using an unlicensed provider cannot claim the Child and Dependent Care Credit.

If Your Application Is Denied

If the OCC denies your application, suspends your license, or takes other enforcement action, you can appeal by submitting a Request for Hearing form to the OCC. The hearing itself is held through the Office of Administrative Hearings. The appeal regulations depend on your facility type: COMAR 13A.16.18 for child care centers, COMAR 13A.15.14 for family child care homes, and COMAR 13A.18.15 for large family child care homes.³⁰ Move quickly after an adverse decision, and don’t keep operating a suspended or revoked program while an appeal is pending, since doing so can expose you to additional penalties.

1
Maryland OneStop. Child Care Licensing and Registration
2
Cornell Law Institute. Maryland Code of Regulations 13A.16.17.08 – Penalties
3
Library of Maryland Regulations. COMAR 13A.15.04.03 – Child Capacity
4
Cornell Law Institute. Maryland Code of Regulations 13A.15.02.01 – Registration General Requirements
5
Library of Maryland Regulations. COMAR 13A.18 Large Family Child Care Homes
6
Maryland State Department of Education. Child Care Centers
7
Library of Maryland Regulations. COMAR 13A.15 – Family Child Care, Subtitle 15
8
Library of Maryland Regulations. COMAR 13A.16.06.05 – Directors of All Child Care Centers, General Requirements
9
Maryland State Department of Education. Background Checks and Fingerprinting
10
Cornell Law Institute. Maryland Code of Regulations 13A.18.06.04 – Staff Health
11
Library of Maryland Regulations. COMAR 13A.18.10.02 – First Aid and CPR
12
Maryland State Department of Education. MSDE OCC Approved CPR, First Aid, AED and SIDS Trainers and Businesses
13
Maryland State Department of Education. Licensing
14
Maryland State Department of Education. Office of Child Care Record of Professional Development Coursework
15
Cornell Law Institute. Maryland Code of Regulations 13A.16.08.03 – Group Size and Staffing
16
Maryland State Department of Education. Staff Child Ratio Chart, Child Care Centers
17
Library of Maryland Regulations. COMAR 13A.17.05.03 – Indoor Space
18
Library of Maryland Regulations. COMAR 13A.16.05.12 – Outdoor Activity Area
19
Cornell Law Institute. Maryland Code of Regulations 13A.18.05.05 – Lead-Safe Environment
20
Library of Maryland Regulations. COMAR 13A.16.02.03 – Continuing License
21
Maryland Insurance Administration. Consumer Advisory, Liability Insurance Coverage for Registered Family Child Care Providers
22
Internal Revenue Service. Child and Dependent Care Credit Information
23
Maryland State Department of Education. Licensing Forms
24
Maryland State Department of Education. OCC 1230 Family Child Care Home Application
25
Maryland State Department of Education. Regional Licensing Offices
26
Cornell Law Institute. Maryland Code of Regulations 13A.18.10.01 – Emergency Safety Requirements
27
Library of Maryland Regulations. COMAR 13A.18.07.03 – Child Discipline
28
Cornell Law Institute. Maryland Code of Regulations 13A.16.02.04 – Provisional and Conditional Status
29
Cornell Law Institute. Maryland Code of Regulations 13A.15.13.08 – Penalties
30
Maryland State Department of Education. Enforcement Actions and Appeals