How to start a home daycare in Massachusetts (2026 guide)

First, the quick overview

Step 1: Confirm you and your home are eligible

Before any paperwork, check the basics. To apply for an EEC family child care license you generally need to:

• Be an adult who will personally provide care in the home where you live
• Have a home that can pass health and safety review: working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, safe egress, a fenced or supervised outdoor play space (or a plan for outdoor time), safe water, and no obvious hazards
• Be able to pass a comprehensive background record check, along with everyone in your household age 15 and older

Renters can absolutely get licensed, but talk to your landlord first. Some leases restrict running a business, and your licensor may want documentation.

Step 2: Contact EEC and attend an orientation

Start at the Mass.gov EEC family child care pages and request information about becoming a provider. EEC runs orientation and information sessions for prospective FCC providers that walk through the regulations (606 CMR 7), the application, and what licensors look for during the home visit. This is also where you will set up access to EEC's online licensing portal (LEAD), which is where the actual application lives.

Step 3: Background record checks for the whole household

The Background Record Check (BRC) is usually the longest single step, so start it early. It covers you plus every household member age 15 and older, and anyone regularly on the premises during child care hours. The BRC includes:

• CORI (Massachusetts criminal records)
• DCF check (supported findings of abuse or neglect)
• SORI (sex offender registry)
• Fingerprint-based national checks for adults

Budget a few weeks for everyone's results to come back, and longer if anyone has lived out of state recently.

Step 4: Complete the required trainings

Exact requirements are listed in your application packet, but plan on:

• Pediatric First Aid and CPR certification (in person or blended; keep it current, your licensor will check expiration dates)
• EEC pre-licensing training covering the FCC regulations, safe sleep, shaken baby syndrome prevention, and medication administration basics
• Any additional health and safety trainings EEC currently requires for new providers

Step 5: Get your home inspection-ready

Your licensor will do a pre-licensing visit. Walk your home with the regulations in hand and fix things before they get flagged:

• Smoke and CO detectors on every level, tested
• Outlet covers, gates at stairs, cords and blind strings out of reach
• Medications, cleaning chemicals, and sharp objects locked or out of reach
• A written emergency evacuation plan and a posted exit diagram
• First aid kit stocked and accessible
• Safe sleep setup for infants: one crib or pack-and-play per infant, no soft bedding
• Documented monthly fire drills once you open (our free compliance calendar tracks these)

Step 6: Submit the application and fee

With trainings done and BRCs in motion, submit your application through EEC's portal with the license fee (around $100 for the multi-year licensing period; confirm the current amount in your packet). You will document your program details: ages served, capacity requested, daily schedule, meals, and your physical space.

Step 7: Pass the pre-licensing visit

The licensor visits your home, walks every space children will use, checks your documentation binder, and reviews health and safety items. If something needs fixing, you get a list, you fix it, and you confirm back. This visit is collaborative, not adversarial. Licensors want you to succeed; they just need everything on the list to be true.

Step 8: Receive your license and set up operations

Once approved, your license arrives with your capacity and any conditions. Before your first family walks in, set up the business side:

• Liability insurance, and the required insurance disclosure to parents
• Contracts and policies: rates, hours, sick policy, vacation, late pickup. Our free welcome packet template covers this
• Record keeping: enrollment paperwork, emergency contacts, immunization records, attendance, and incident reports (EEC checks these at every visit)
• CACFP enrollment (optional but valuable): the federal food program reimburses home providers for meals and snacks, often $2,000 to $5,000+ per year

Step 9: Fill your spots

Most new MA providers fill their first spots through word of mouth, neighborhood Facebook groups, church and school communities, and care marketplaces. A public enrollment form helps you look professional from day one and capture waitlist interest while you finish licensing. If you serve Spanish- or Portuguese-speaking families (huge communities in Lawrence, Springfield, Framingham, Lowell, Everett, and Brockton), advertise in their language; it is your biggest differentiator.

Step 10: Stay compliant without drowning in paper

Once you open, EEC compliance is a daily rhythm: attendance records, daily reports to parents, medication logs, fire drills, training renewals, and being inspection-ready at all times. This is the part that buries providers in paper, and the part software was made for.

DaycarePro was built in Massachusetts specifically for EEC-licensed family child care: digital check-in with parent signatures, attendance exports your licensor can read in 30 seconds, daily reports in English, Spanish, or Portuguese, and a compliance calendar that remembers your drill and renewal dates for you. Flat $12 to $47 per month, no per-child fees.

Realistic startup budget

FAQ: starting a home daycare in MA

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