An official State of Texas website.
Child Day Care: Child day care centers or in-home child care operations care for children 13 or younger while parents or guardians are at work or school. The care provided is less than 24 hours a day.
What is a Licensed Child Care Center?
A Licensed Child Care Center:
- Provides care and supervision to seven or more children 13 or younger.
- Provides care at least two hours, but less than 24 hours, per day, for three or more days a week.
- Provides care at a location other than the license holder’s home.
- Must meet minimum standards.
- Receives at least one unannounced inspection per year.
What is a Licensed Before or After-School Program?
A Licensed Before or After-School Program:
- Provides care and supervision, including the supervision of recreation or skills instruction or training, to children attending pre-kindergarten through sixth grade.
- Provides care at least two hours per day, three or more days a week, before or after, or before and after the customary school day and during school holidays.
- Must meet minimum standards.
- Receives at least one unannounced inspection per year.
What is a Licensed School-Age Program?
A Licensed School-Age Program:
- Provides care and supervision, including the supervision of recreation or skills instruction or training, to children attending pre-kindergarten through sixth grade.
- Provides care at least two hours per day, three or more days a week, before or after, or before and after the customary school day and during school holidays, the summer period or any other time when school is not in session.
- Must meet minimum standards.
- Receives at least one unannounced inspection per year.
What is a Licensed Child-Care Home?
A Licensed Child-Care Home:
- Provides care and supervision to seven to 12 children 13 or younger (no more than 12 children can be in care at any time, including children related to the caregiver).
- Provides care at least two hours, but less than 24 hours, per day, for three or more days a week.
- Provides care in the primary caregiver’s home.
- Must meet minimum standards.
- Receives at least one unannounced inspection per year.
What is a Registered Child-Care Home?
A Registered Child-Care Home:
- Provides care and supervision for up to six unrelated children 13 or younger during school hours, and can also provide care and supervision for six additional school-age children after school hours (no more than 12 children can be in care at any time, including children related to the caregiver).
- Provides care at least four hours a day, three or more days a week, for three or more consecutive weeks; or four hours a day for 40 or more days in a 12-month period.
- Provides care in the primary caregiver’s home.
- Must meet minimum standards.
- Receives at least one unannounced inspection every one to two years.
What is a Listed Family Home?
A Listed Family Home:
- Provides care and supervision for up to three unrelated children.
- Provides care at least four hours a day, three or more days a week, for three or more consecutive weeks; or four hours a day for 40 or more days in a 12-month period.
- Provides care in the primary caregiver’s home.
- Must meet minimum standards.
- Is not routinely inspected unless a report is received alleging child abuse or neglect, an immediate risk of danger to the health or safety of a child, or the caregiver is caring for too many children.
What is a Small Employer Based Child Care Operation?
A Small Employer-Based Child Care Operation:
- Is located on the employer’s premises.
- Employs less than 100 full-time employees.
- Provides care and supervision for up to 12 children of the employer’s employees.
- Has no minimum standards.
- Is not routinely inspected unless a report alleging child abuse or neglect is received.
24-hour Residential Child Care: Around-the-clock child care for children 17 or younger whose parents or guardians are temporarily or permanently unable to care for them. This may include agencies providing adoption services.
What is a General Residential Operation?
A General Residential Operation:
- Provides 24-hour care and supervision for seven or more children 17 and under.
- May provide any of the following services:
- Child care services.
- Programmatic services, including emergency short-term care services, therapeutic camp services, a transitional living program or assessment services.
- Treatment services for children with an emotional disorder, an intellectual disability, an autism spectrum disorder or a primary medical need.
- Must meet minimum standards.
- Receives at least one unannounced inspection per year.
What is a Child-Placing Agency?
A Child-Placing Agency:
- Is a person or entity other than a child’s parent who places or plans for the placement of a child in a foster family home, adoptive home or other residential child care setting.
- Does not provide direct care for children.
- Evaluates the home before verifying a foster family home or approving an adoptive home.
- Is responsible for supervising and regulating the foster and adoptive homes.
- Must meet minimum standards.
- Receives at least one unannounced inspection per year.
What is a Child-Placing Agency Foster Family Home?
A Child-Placing Agency Foster Family Home:
- Provides care for six or fewer children (in some instances a home can provide care for up to eight children) age 17 and younger.
- Is issued a verification after a child-placing agency evaluates the home, including interviews with the household members, a review of the background check results and an inspection of the home to make sure the home meets minimum standards.
Note: The Search Texas Child Care application does not allow a person to search for a Child-Placing Agency Foster Family Home. The application only allows a search for a Child-Placing Agency.
What is a Child-Placing Agency Adoptive Home?
A Child-Placing Agency Adoptive Home:
- Is issued an approval to accept adoptive placements after a child-placing agency evaluates the home, including interviews with the household members, a review of the background check results and an inspection of the home to make sure the home meets minimum standards.
Note: The Search Texas Child Care application does not allow a person to search for a Child-Placing Agency Adoptive Home. The application only allows a search for a Child-Placing Agency.