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DaycareRules

Hawaii DHS Child Care Program Office

Hawaii home daycare ratios by age

Verified September 5, 2026

Hawaii caps a registered family child care home at six children, counting the provider’s own under six who are in care, with no more than two under eighteen months, or four under eighteen months when an additional adult assists, per 17-891.2-36. A licensed group child care home of seven to twelve takes children from twenty-four months and staffs by the group center chart: one staff member for up to eight two-year-olds, twelve three-year-olds, sixteen four-year-olds and twenty five-year-olds, with the youngest child in a mixed group setting the ratio. Because the home is capped at twelve, only the two- and three-year-old rows bind.

Every tier, every cap

Family Child Care Home

  • No more than 6 children in care at once Haw. Admin. R. §17-891.2-10 (eff. Sept. 22, 2023)
  • No more than 2 under 18 months Haw. Admin. R. §17-891.2-36(b) (eff. Sept. 22, 2023)

With an assistant: No more than 6 children in care at once; No more than 4 under 18 months

Your own children: count toward these caps (under 6 years).

Group Child Care Home

  • No more than 12 children in care at once Haw. Admin. R. §17-892.2-1 (Definitions)
  • No more than 12 children in care at once Haw. Rev. Stat. §346-151, definition of "Group child care home"

Your own children: see the cited rule.

How Hawaii defines the age bands

  • Infant (newborn through the twelfth month): 0 to 12 months
  • Children under eighteen months of age: 0 to 18 months
  • Provider's children under six years of age: 0 to 72 months
  • Provider's children six years of age or older: 72 to open months
  • Children aged two years (twenty four months) and older (minimum age for a group child care home): 24 to open months
  • 2 year olds: 24 to 36 months
  • 3 yr olds: 36 to 48 months
  • 4 yr olds: 48 to 60 months
  • 5 yr olds (Chart I row header reads "5 year and older"): 60 to open months

Mixed ages in one room

Under eighteen months is the binding band in a family home. In a group home the youngest child sets the ratio unless a mixing curriculum applies.

Real questions, short answers

How many children under 18 months can a Hawaii family home have?

Two, or four with an additional adult, per 17-891.2-36(b).

What is the ratio in a Hawaii group child care home?

One to eight for two-year-olds and one to twelve for three-year-olds, per 17-892.2-36(f) and Ratio Chart II; the youngest child sets the ratio in a mixed group.

Can a Hawaii group child care home take infants?

No. 17-892.2-10 limits a group child care home to children twenty-four months and older.

Keep reading

Sources for Hawaii

  • Haw. Rev. Stat. chapter 346, part VIII, sections 346-151 and 346-152 346-151, 346-152
  • Haw. Admin. R. chapter 17-891.2, Registration of Family Child Care Homes, effective September 22, 2023 17-891.2-4, 17-891.2-10, 17-891.2-36
  • Haw. Admin. R. chapter 17-892.2, Licensing of Group Child Care Homes and Centers, 2024 edition 17-892.2-1, 17-892.2-10, 17-892.2-36

DaycareRules is an informational reference about home child care licensing rules in the United States. It reprints thresholds, capacity limits, ratios and citations from state statutes and regulations, together with the date each state was last verified. Nothing on this site is legal advice, and rules change. Confirm with your state licensing agency before acting on any number printed here.