Nebraska DHHS Child Care Licensing
Nebraska prints its number in the statute. Neb. Rev. Stat. 71-1911(1) says a person may operate child care for three or fewer children without a license, and 71-1911(2) says no person shall operate a program for four or more children from families other than the provider’s own without one. A Family Child Care Home I is licensed for four to eight children in the licensee’s residence, with two additional school-age children on approval for ten. A Family Child Care Home II is licensed for four to twelve, in the residence or another location. Grandparents caring only for their grandchildren, and care given without any compensation, are outside mandatory licensing.
| Tier | Children | Age limits | Your own kids |
|---|---|---|---|
| Family Child Care Home Ilicense | 4 to 10 |
| Count |
| Family Child Care Home IIlicense | 4 to 12 |
| Count |
Age limits and totals for every tier, with row-level citations, live on the Nebraska home daycare ratios page.
A program is care averaging less than twelve hours a day but more than two hours a week. Care under two hours a week on average is exempt, and so is casual care at irregular intervals with no established pattern.
391 NAC Chapter 1 excludes own children age eight or older from the Home I count, while Chapter 2 excludes own children over age eight from the Home II count, so an eight-year-old own child is outside a Home I and inside a Home II. Either exclusion falls away if the licensee is paid for that child.
A Home I with one provider may have four infants alone, or eight children with no more than three infants, and two of those under twelve months. A Home II runs the same infant rows and reaches twelve children, with two providers required above ten and up to eight infants when two providers are present.
Providing unlicensed child care when a license is required is a Class IV misdemeanor under Neb. Rev. Stat. 71-1914.03(1), and each day the violation continues is a separate offense.
Three or fewer, per Neb. Rev. Stat. 71-1911(1). The trigger at four counts children from families other than your own, so your own children are outside it.
A license for four to eight children in the licensee’s residence under 391 NAC Chapter 1, with two additional school-age children on approval for a maximum of ten.
A license for four to twelve children under 391 NAC Chapter 2, in the licensee’s residence or another location, with two providers required above ten children.
Four with one provider if no other children are present, or three in a group of eight with no more than two of them under twelve months. With two providers a Home II may have up to eight infants.
Yes. A person not required to be licensed may choose a license under 71-1911(1), and a separate voluntary registration exists for providers paid through the subsidy program.
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.