Default Style Register
Daycare.com Forum
Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>Unlicensed Day Care Question ...
rhondawarren 11:56 AM 04-09-2014
Okay ... I need someone that can answer this for me.

I am currently an unlicensed child care provider. I recently built a new home with a child care room on it and am getting the room in my new home ready to re-open. So I will soon be filling my spots available as an unlicensed provider.

In the state of Indiana we are legally allowed to keep 5 unrelated children. I have three children of my own that are over 7 years of age but ... I am 5 months pregnant. Someone told me they believe my baby will count for one of those spots once she is born. Does anyone know if this is true???

I have always only been told I can watch 5 unrelated children and my own do not count ...
Reply
Leigh 01:25 PM 04-09-2014
I can not answer for YOUR state, but in mine, a provider's own children or foster children count in the numbers up to age 2.
Reply
rhondawarren 01:29 PM 04-09-2014
Originally Posted by Leigh:
I can not answer for YOUR state, but in mine, a provider's own children or foster children count in the numbers up to age 2.
Okay, thanks Leigh!
Reply
Cradle2crayons 01:37 PM 04-09-2014
In my state, my own do NOT count at all, regardless of age or how many here are.

I can watch 5 unrelated children also.
Reply
Blackcat31 01:39 PM 04-09-2014
Indiana rules say

470 IAC 3-1.1-26 Exemption from licensure
Authority: IC 12-13-5-3
Affected: IC 12-17.2
Sec. 26. Licensing is not required for a child care home if the provider:
(1) does not receive regular compensation;
(2) cares only for children who are related to the provider;
(3) cares for less than six (6) children, not including children for whom the provider is a parent, stepparent, guardian, custodian, or other relative; or
(4) operates to serve migrant children

I read that as your own children do NOT count in your ratios. However, I would maybe consider contacting the licensing agency and double check just to be sure.
Reply
rhondawarren 01:46 PM 04-09-2014
Originally Posted by rhondawarren:
Okay ... I need someone that can answer this for me.

I am currently an unlicensed child care provider. I recently built a new home with a child care room on it and am getting the room in my new home ready to re-open. So I will soon be filling my spots available as an unlicensed provider.

In the state of Indiana we are legally allowed to keep 5 unrelated children. I have three children of my own that are over 7 years of age but ... I am 5 months pregnant. Someone told me they believe my baby will count for one of those spots once she is born. Does anyone know if this is true???

I have always only been told I can watch 5 unrelated children and my own do not count ...

Okay .... I called the Licensing Consultant for my county. She said that as an unlicensed day care none of my children will count against my five. That would only change if I were to become licensed. So as long as I am not licensed I am perfectly legal keeping all of my children plus five unrelated children!

Good to know!! Just thought I would share that with all of you!

I am looking into becoming licensed but ... not sure I will decide to go that route simply because of a few hurdles I would have to jump through like planning and zoning etc for my area. So I may stay unlicensed. Still looking into everything and trying to decide.
Reply
rhondawarren 01:49 PM 04-09-2014
Originally Posted by Cradle2crayons:
In my state, my own do NOT count at all, regardless of age or how many here are.

I can watch 5 unrelated children also.
Thanks so much! I just got a call from our Licensing Consultant in our county and she said that my children do NOT count toward my five either! I can legally watch five children unrelated to me since I am unlicensed. If I were to get licensed then that would change and my unborn child once born would count.
But ... as long as I remain unlicensed they do not count!
Reply
KIDZRMYBIZ 02:42 PM 04-09-2014
What a dream! I wouldn't bother with licensing if I could have income for 5 kids, do things MY way, and not have all the extra expense of the license and its (often silly) requirements. Especially when my own kids were little. Here, we can only have 3 without a license. If Indiana were south of me, I'd be moving!
Reply
KidGrind 03:05 PM 04-09-2014
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
Indiana rules say

470 IAC 3-1.1-26 Exemption from licensure
Authority: IC 12-13-5-3
Affected: IC 12-17.2
Sec. 26. Licensing is not required for a child care home if the provider:
(1) does not receive regular compensation;
(2) cares only for children who are related to the provider;
(3) cares for less than six (6) children, not including children for whom the provider is a parent, stepparent, guardian, custodian, or other relative; or
(4) operates to serve migrant children

I read that as your own children do NOT count in your ratios. However, I would maybe consider contacting the licensing agency and double check just to be sure.
at the bolded part!
Reply
NeedaVaca 03:05 PM 04-09-2014
Originally Posted by KIDZRMYBIZ:
What a dream! I wouldn't bother with licensing if I could have income for 5 kids, do things MY way, and not have all the extra expense of the license and its (often silly) requirements. Especially when my own kids were little. Here, we can only have 3 without a license. If Indiana were south of me, I'd be moving!
Plus, I believe in Indiana once you are licensed it only allows you 1 more child-you can watch 6 kids instead of 5. Doesn't seem worth the effort for just 1 more child... (I might be wrong on this but I think I read that somewhere.)
Reply
rhondawarren 04:12 PM 04-09-2014
Originally Posted by KIDZRMYBIZ:
What a dream! I wouldn't bother with licensing if I could have income for 5 kids, do things MY way, and not have all the extra expense of the license and its (often silly) requirements. Especially when my own kids were little. Here, we can only have 3 without a license. If Indiana were south of me, I'd be moving!
LOL, I hear ya! That is why its tough for me to make the decision about getting licensed. They don't make it easy. I have to go to planning and zoning to obtain a Specialty Use Petition and all kinds of stuff. It is easier to just remain unlicensed for sure.

I have a nice room set up with its own entrance and bathroom off of my house. We built it especially for child care when we built our new house Either way licensed or not licensed it will be nice for the kids to have centers and things to play
Reply
rhondawarren 04:14 PM 04-09-2014
Originally Posted by NeedaVaca:
Plus, I believe in Indiana once you are licensed it only allows you 1 more child-you can watch 6 kids instead of 5. Doesn't seem worth the effort for just 1 more child... (I might be wrong on this but I think I read that somewhere.)
No, once you are licensed you can keep 12 and I believe if you have an assistant it may be a couple more. If it were only six I probably wouldn't consider it.
Reply
katzan 08:51 PM 04-13-2014
Wow, those rules are definitely different than my own here. I can only watch 1 child that is unrelated to me or I need to be licensed. My own kids under 13 also count :S At this point, I can ONLY take 1 child that is unrelated to me because I babysit one that IS related to me and I have 4 kids of my own under the age of 13.
Reply
TwinKristi 09:28 PM 04-13-2014
Originally Posted by KIDZRMYBIZ:
What a dream! I wouldn't bother with licensing if I could have income for 5 kids, do things MY way, and not have all the extra expense of the license and its (often silly) requirements. Especially when my own kids were little. Here, we can only have 3 without a license. If Indiana were south of me, I'd be moving!
Amen!!! I try not to watch more than 5 personally (2 of my own count) so it would be perfect. I could still participate in the FP too!
Reply
Laurel 04:41 AM 04-14-2014
Originally Posted by katzan:
Wow, those rules are definitely different than my own here. I can only watch 1 child that is unrelated to me or I need to be licensed. My own kids under 13 also count :S At this point, I can ONLY take 1 child that is unrelated to me because I babysit one that IS related to me and I have 4 kids of my own under the age of 13.
Same here.

Some people have all the luck.

Laurel

Edited to add: But licensing isn't that hard to get here either. No zoning stuff at all. We have a "state" law that we are allowed to operate. The only thing cities or counties get a say over is a large family child care home and the counties can add more regulations than the mimimum state standards (our county does that). A regular one is legal everywhere in Florida.
Reply
rhondawarren 09:53 AM 04-14-2014
Originally Posted by TwinKristi:
Amen!!! I try not to watch more than 5 personally (2 of my own count) so it would be perfect. I could still participate in the FP too!
Don't you have to be licensed in order to participate in the food program?

My children do not count. In the state of Indiana as an unlicensed provider I am allowed to keep 5 unrelated children at a time. So I my own do not count. Thank goodness because I have three and one more on the way!
Reply
rhondawarren 09:54 AM 04-14-2014
Originally Posted by katzan:
Wow, those rules are definitely different than my own here. I can only watch 1 child that is unrelated to me or I need to be licensed. My own kids under 13 also count :S At this point, I can ONLY take 1 child that is unrelated to me because I babysit one that IS related to me and I have 4 kids of my own under the age of 13.
That bites What state do you live in?
Reply
rhondawarren 09:56 AM 04-14-2014
Originally Posted by Laurel:
Same here.

Some people have all the luck.

Laurel

Edited to add: But licensing isn't that hard to get here either. No zoning stuff at all. We have a "state" law that we are allowed to operate. The only thing cities or counties get a say over is a large family child care home and the counties can add more regulations than the mimimum state standards (our county does that). A regular one is legal everywhere in Florida.
I wouldn't say all the luck seeing that in order for me to get licensed I have to go through zoning and meet in front of a board. So making the decision as to whether or not its worth me doing is the question I have to ask myself.
Reply
angiescott 08:56 PM 04-15-2014
To be on the food prigram you can do a license exempt route. The applications is on the indiana childcare website. You can also apply to accept state vouchers.
Reply
rhondawarren 05:54 AM 04-16-2014
Originally Posted by angiescott:
To be on the food prigram you can do a license exempt route. The applications is on the indiana childcare website. You can also apply to accept state vouchers.
Do you happen to know the link I would go to??

Also do you know if you are unlicensed do they change the number of children you are able to watch if you get onto the food program?
Reply
proudarmywifewith4 06:15 AM 04-16-2014
In Indiana your own children under age seven do count if you are licensed but they do not count if you aren't. You could also keep a relatives child and they would not count if you are unlicensed. And yes you can have 5 children.

When you get licensed (which is a fairly easy process in Indiana) you can have up to ten children alone. 12 with an assistant but all of your children that are under the age of 7 count in those numbers. If you have an infant in care 10 is the limit. If they are all over the age of three you can have 12. An infant counts as under 16 months. If they are over 16 months they must be walking to no longer be considered an infant.

If you have more questions I would be happy to try to answer them.
Reply
rhondawarren 06:21 AM 04-16-2014
Originally Posted by proudarmywifewith4:
In Indiana your own children under age seven do count if you are licensed but they do not count if you aren't. You could also keep a relatives child and they would not count if you are unlicensed. And yes you can have 5 children.

When you get licensed (which is a fairly easy process in Indiana) you can have up to ten children alone. 12 with an assistant but all of your children that are under the age of 7 count in those numbers. If you have an infant in care 10 is the limit. If they are all over the age of three you can have 12. An infant counts as under 16 months. If they are over 16 months they must be walking to no longer be considered an infant.

If you have more questions I would be happy to try to answer them.
Thank you very much! That helps clear up things

I was thinking about getting licensed but ... I do not currently have my GED so I would have to cross that hurdle. Another is where I live we would have to go through planning and zoning. So we really are trying to decide if I should just remain unlicensed instead. For now ... I will ... not sure about the future.

As for watching a relatives kid ... can you watch a relatives child if you are being paid and it does not count toward your 5 because they are related? Correct?
Reply
proudarmywifewith4 08:40 AM 04-16-2014
Originally Posted by rhondawarren:
Thank you very much! That helps clear up things

I was thinking about getting licensed but ... I do not currently have my GED so I would have to cross that hurdle. Another is where I live we would have to go through planning and zoning. So we really are trying to decide if I should just remain unlicensed instead. For now ... I will ... not sure about the future.

As for watching a relatives kid ... can you watch a relatives child if you are being paid and it does not count toward your 5 because they are related? Correct?
Correct. I dont know how closely related.
Reply
Reply Up