Regulations for licensing family child care

Current licensing requirements

The following rules and statutes guide licensing activities for family child care programs:

• Licensed Family Child Care: Minnesota Rules, chapter 9502
• Children, Youth, and Families Licensing: Minnesota Statutes, chapter 142B
• Human Services Background Studies Act: Minnesota Statutes, chapter 245C
• Maltreatment of Minors Act: Minnesota Statutes, chapter 260E

Minnesota Statutes, Laws and Rules are published by the Office of the Revisor of Statutes. The website is updated after each legislative session, as updates or changes to requirements occur.

Recent updates

• 2025 Implementation Plan for Legislative Changes (PDF)
• Guide to renumbered statutes (PDF)
• Child Care Regulation Modernization Project

Help implementing legislative changes

When legislative updates impact DCYF-licensed programs, including licensed family child care, DCYF creates implementation plans to help providers learn about and implement changes.

• 2025 legislative session Implementation Plan (PDF)
• 2024 legislative session Implementation Plan (PDF)
• DCYF/DHS licensing statute crosswalk (PDF)
• 2023 legislative session Implementation Plan (PDF)
• 2022 legislative session Implementation Plan (PDF)
• 2021 legislative session Implementation Plan (PDF)
• 2020 legislative session Implementation Plan (PDF)
• 2019 legislative session Implementation Plan (PDF)
• 2018 legislative session Implementation Plan (PDF)
• 2017 legislative session Implementation Plan (PDF)

Role of counties in licensing family child care

Minnesota counties perform the major functions related to licensing of family child care programs. County responsibilities include:

• Accepting and processing family child care license applications
• Conducting, inspecting, studying and evaluating license applications
• Recommending to the commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families the approval or denial of license applications
• Processing requests for variances from rules
• Monitoring compliance with applicable rules
• Investigating allegations of license violations
• Issuing correction orders
• Recommending forfeiture orders and licensing sanctions
• Enforcing orders of the DCYF commissioner
• Representing DCYF in contested hearing cases conducted under Minnesota's Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 14)

Licensing actions

DCYF, in partnership with county and private licensing agencies, reviews licensed programs, investigates complaints, and issues licensing actions when providers are out of compliance. Types of licensing actions include correction orders, conditional licenses, suspensions, fines, and revocations.

Find answers to frequently asked questions about licensing actions.

Family Child Care Task Force

The 2019 Legislature established and directed the Family Child Care Task Force to discuss and make recommendations related to family child care licensing and the Parent Aware program. Task force members included family child care providers, parents, legislators, the Department of Human Services, and appointees from various child care-related organizations.