Apply for or renew a child care licence

Overview

Child care providers must follow the rules set out in the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014 (CCEYA) and its regulations, which set out the standards, rules and regulations that must be met to ensure the safety and well-being of children.

The process to get a child care licence takes approximately 4 to 6 months, depending on the time it takes to:

• complete renovations
• incorporate a corporation
• obtain police record checks
• purchase equipment
• hire necessary staff, including a supervisor or
• home visitors
• develop policies and procedures
• obtain all required approvals, such as fire and health approval

The “Tools and Resources” section of the Child Care Licensing System has additional resources to help you get started, such as sample policies.

Types of child care that must be licensed

A child care licence is required for all child care programs that provides care to more than 5 children younger than 13 years old. This includes :

• child care centres
• daycares
• home child care overseen by a licensed home child care agency

Types of programs that do not need a licence

Programs that do not need a child care licence include:

• nannies or babysitters that provide care to children from one family in the children’s home
• relatives that provide care for children
• camps that only care for children 4 years old and older
• programs with a primary purpose of academic study or skill-based recreation
• private schools that only care for children ages 4 years and older

Before you apply

Before you apply for a licence, you should:

• review the manual or guideline about your application:
  • child care centre licensing manual
  • home child care licensing manual
  • before and after school program licensing guideline
• review the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014 (CCEYA) and Ontario Regulation 137/15 to understand the licensing requirements
• contact your First Nation or the local service system manager that is responsible for planning, managing and coordinating child care in your area to learn about:
  • child care needs in your community
  • opportunities to apply for funding, including eligibility for funding under the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care system

You do not need to rent or own the child care centre location before you apply. However, you must give an address for the proposed location and upload proof that this location is zoned for use as a child care centre. You must provide this information before you can submit your application and pay your fee deposit.

Required approvals for the building

To open a child care centre or daycare, you must provide proof that the building where you want to operate complies with:

• the laws about health of residents of the municipality or of the reserve of a First Nation
• any rule, regulation, direction or order of the local board of health
• any direction or order of the local medical officer of health
• local bylaws
• the Building Code
• the Fire Code
• the requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act, 2002

You may be able to operate a child care centre from your home if the:

• house has been zoned for use as a child care centre and approved by the local fire department
• space meets all the requirements set out under the CCEYA, such as adequate outdoor play space

Find our guidelines for planning and designing a licensed child care centre.

Apply online

To apply for a licence for your child care centre, daycare, or home child care agency, you will need to:

1. Register for the Child Care Licensing System (CCLS).
2. Submit your application and pay your non-refundable fee deposit.
3. Gather and submit any required supporting documents , for example:
   • policies and procedures
   • relevant approvals
   • floor plans

Learn how to use the Child Care Licensing System.

While your application is being processed

Before your licence is issued, you may operate as an unlicensed child care provider.

You can provide care for a maximum of 5 children including:

• your own children under the age of 4
• no more than 3 children under the age of 2

This limit on the number of children applies regardless of how many adults are present at the home or centre. Unlicensed providers may not operate at more than 1 location.

After you apply

After you submit your application, the ministry will:

• review your application and supporting documents, including your:
  • policies, procedures and other required documents
  • proof of compliance with building code and fire code requirements
  • request for director approval for a supervisor or home visitors
• answer questions you have about your application
• schedule a site inspection to check that you are in compliance with all requirements

Your initial fee deposit is non-refundable. If you withdraw your application you will not get a refund.

If your application is approved

You will be notified by email  that your application is approved and issued. Once we issue your licence, you may operate a licensed child care program according to the rules set out in the CCEYA and its regulations.

After your application is approved:

1. Download your licence from the Child Care Licensing System.
2. Print and post your licence in a location that is clearly visible to parents and guardians at the child care centre or home child care agency head office. You must do this before you start providing licensed child care.
3. Contact your First Nation or your local service system manager to notify them of your licence status.

At this time, you may also finalize your application for funding under the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care system if you are eligible to apply.

If your application is not approved

We will notify you by email if your application is not approved to tell you that we are refusing to issue the licence.

You may appeal this decision by requesting a hearing before the Licence Appeal Tribunal within 15 calendar days of receiving the notice of proposal.

If you do not request a hearing, we will carry out the proposal and refuse to issue the licence.

Plan and design a licensed child care centre

Find out how to plan, apply for and design a licensed child care centre by following our guidelines.

Download our planning and design guidelines.

These guidelines will help you plan, design, construct, renovate and maintain a licensed child care centre. They include information on:

• planning a licensed child care centre
• applying for a child care centre licence
• the design process for licensed child care spaces, interior and exterior design elements and related resources
• requirements as set out in the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014 (CCEYA) and Ontario Regulation 137/15 related to the design of licensed child care centres
• developing positive learning environments that meet requirements
• additional recommendations for enhancing program quality

Renew your licence

You must renew your child care licenc e every year to be able to continue operating your program. Your renewal date is based on your expiry date outlined on your licence.

The Child Care Licensing System (CCLS) will send out an email reminder to the individual or licensee roles 3 months before the licence expires and up until the date of expiry. Email alerts are sent if the renewal application and fee have not been submitted.

To renew your licence, you must:

• submit a renewal application form in the CCLS
• complete an attestation that the licensee is not prohibited from operating a child care centre or home child care agency
• pay a licence renewal fee

Renew your child care licence.

Fees

The application and renewal fees you will have to pay depend on how many children you want to provide care for or how many home child care premises you want to oversee. These fees are set out in regulation under the CCEYA.

The tables below show fees for:

• getting a new licence
• renewing a licence
• revising a licence if your program advisor has to conduct an inspection

Child care centre fees

Home child care agency fees

Contact us

If you have general questions about licensing requirements or the process for applying, please call Toll-free: 1-877-510-5333 or email childcare_ontario@ontario.ca.