How to Open a Daycare in New Jersey: DCF Child Care Center License (6+ Children)

If you plan to care for six or more children under age 13 for less than 24 hours a day, New Jersey treats your program as a child care center. That means you need a license from the Department of Children and Families (DCF) Office of Licensing before you open. The rules come from N.J.S.A. 30:5B and N.J.A.C. 3A:52. This guide covers how to open a daycare in NJ at the center level, in the order most operators handle the work, along with the state costs you can verify and the mistakes that push openings back.

Informational content only, not legal or tax advice. Rules, fees, and agency procedures change. Confirm current requirements with DCF and the other agencies named below, and talk with a New Jersey attorney and a certified public accountant (CPA) before you sign a lease, form an entity, or hire staff.

Center or family child care: confirm which license applies

The number of children sets the license type. A child care center in New Jersey cares for six or more children under 13 for less than 24 hours a day. A program with fewer than six children is family child care. That is not a center license, and this article does not cover it. Settle the count before you choose a building, because a larger licensed capacity changes your space, your staffing, and your fee.

Ask DCF how the count applies to your plan before you finalize it, especially if your own children will be in the building during the same hours.

Materials and documents to gather

Pull these together before you start the application. Missing paperwork is one of the most common reasons a file stalls.

• A formed business entity, such as an LLC or corporation, with its formation certificate
• Proof of your NJ-REG tax and employer registration, including your Business Registration Certificate (BRC)
• A federal employer identification number (EIN) from the IRS
• A signed lease or deed for the building, with the street address you will operate from
• Written zoning approval for child care use from your municipality
• A certificate of occupancy (CO) for the building or the child care use
• A floor plan showing rooms, play areas, bathrooms, and exits
• A list of owners and staff, with background check paperwork for each person
• Your proposed licensed capacity and daily schedule
• The program documents DCF requires under N.J.A.C. 3A:52, which you should request as a current checklist from the Office of Licensing
• Payment for the license fee in the amount that matches your capacity

Step-by-step: how to start a daycare in NJ as a center

Step 1: Set your licensed capacity

Your licensed capacity is the maximum number of children you plan to serve at one time. It drives your license fee, your floor space, and your staffing. Choose a number you can house and staff legally from the first day, not the largest number that looks good in a business plan. The DCF license fee is set by capacity band and paid for each three-year term:

Licensed capacity (children)	DCF license fee per 3-year term
6 to 15	$110
16 to 30	$140
31 to 60	$165
61 to 100	$195
101 to 180	$220
181 or more	$250

The fee is refunded if DCF denies the license or if the center never opens. Confirm the current schedule with the DCF Office of Licensing before you submit payment.

Step 2: Form your business entity

Most operators form an LLC or corporation before applying, so the license, lease, and bank account sit in the business name. Formation is handled by the New Jersey Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services (DORES) in the Department of the Treasury.

• Filing fee: $100 for an LLC or a corporation. This is the fee in effect since July 1, 2026, so disregard the older $125 figure you may still see on other sites.
• Name: An LLC name must carry a designator such as LLC, L.L.C., Limited Liability Co., or Limited Liability Company. The name must be distinguishable from every other name on the state business database. Check availability at https://www.njportal.com/DOR/BusinessNameSearch/Search/Availability before you file.
• Name reservation: $50 for 120 days, renewable, if you need time to finish your paperwork.
• Registered office and agent: The registered office must be a New Jersey street address. A PO box may be listed only if the street address is listed too. Changing the registered office or agent costs $25.
• Filing method: File online through the NJ Business Portal at https://www.njportal.com/DOR/BusinessFormation/. Online filings are usually reflected in state records in about one business day. Expedited service applies only to over-the-counter and fax filings, so it does not speed up an online filing.
• Publication: New Jersey has no publication requirement for new LLCs or corporations.

An LLC files a $75 annual report every year by the last day of the month in which it was formed. A corporation also pays $75 each year, due by the last day of its incorporation anniversary month. A nonprofit corporation pays $30. New Jersey has no franchise tax on LLCs. Profits pass through to the members and are taxed under the New Jersey Gross Income Tax. An LLC treated as a partnership with more than two owners and New Jersey source income owes a partnership filing fee of $150 per owner, capped at $250,000, plus a 50% installment prepayment, reported on Form NJ-1065. An LLC that elects corporate treatment pays the Corporation Business Tax instead. Ask a CPA which treatment fits your ownership.

Step 3: Register with NJ-REG

After you form your entity, complete tax and employer registration with the Division of Revenue using Form NJ-REG. The registration produces your New Jersey tax identification number and, where it applies, a sales tax certificate of authority. New Jersey issues no general statewide business license, so NJ-REG does not give your daycare permission to operate.

The Business Registration Certificate (BRC) is proof of NJ-REG tax registration. It is not a child care license, and it does not replace the DCF license. Ask the New Jersey Division of Taxation at https://www.nj.gov/treasury/taxation/ whether any of your charges create sales tax obligations, since that depends on the services you sell.

Step 4: Secure the building with zoning and a certificate of occupancy

Zoning and the certificate of occupancy are local decisions. Before you sign a lease or purchase agreement, get written zoning approval for a child care use at that exact address. Then apply for the CO through your municipal building department. Local procedures and timing vary by town, so confirm them with the municipal zoning and construction officials. If the lease depends on approval, have your attorney add a contingency clause that lets you exit if approval is denied.

Step 5: Clear background checks for owners and staff

DCF requires background checks for the people who will work in or own the center. Collect the paperwork for every person on your staff and ownership list, have each person complete the process, and keep records of who has cleared. Confirm with DCF which checks apply, what each person must submit, and whether anyone may be present with children before clearance is complete. Hiring someone before a check clears can hold up your application, so build the timing into your staffing plan.

Step 6: Arrange health and fire inspections

The center must pass health and fire inspections, and DCF needs to see the results. Schedule these after your floor plan, equipment, and furnishings are final, because changes made after an inspection can require another visit. Ask the Office of Licensing which local health and fire officials must sign off and in what order, since the sequence affects when you can submit a complete application.

Step 7: Submit the DCF application and pay the fee

Send your complete application to the DCF Office of Licensing with the license fee for your capacity band. Start from the DCF website at https://www.nj.gov/dcf/ and find the child care licensing pages, since form names and submission methods can change. This guide does not state a processing time, so ask the Office of Licensing for its current estimate and for how it handles incomplete files. Keep a complete copy of everything you submit.

Step 8: Open only after the license is issued

Do not enroll children or begin care until you hold the license. Post it where families can see it, and calendar the three-year renewal date. Keep the LLC or corporation annual report on a separate calendar. The state annual report and the DCF renewal are different filings with different due dates, and missing either one creates its own problem.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Opening before the license is issued. Enrolling children early puts your license, your funds, and your families at risk.
• Treating the BRC as your license. The BRC is proof of tax registration. The DCF license is the document that allows you to care for children.
• Looking for a county or statewide business license. New Jersey has no general statewide business license, and counties do not issue one either. Your DCF license and local permits are the approvals that matter here.
• Using an outdated formation fee. The LLC and corporation filing fee is $100 under the current schedule, not $125.
• Signing a lease before zoning and CO are confirmed. A building that cannot be approved for child care use can cost you deposits, rent, and renovation money.
• Mixing up family child care and a center. Under six children is family child care. Six or more under 13 is a center, with a different license, capacity band, and set of requirements.
• Hiring before background checks clear. Staff timing is one of the easiest things to fix in advance and one of the hardest to fix after you have a signed lease and a start date.
• Forgetting the annual report. The $75 state annual report applies to LLCs and corporations every year, separate from your DCF renewal.
• Assuming New Jersey requires a newspaper notice. New Jersey has no publication requirement for new LLCs or corporations.

State costs at a glance

The table below covers the state-level costs in this guide that apply to most center operators. The DCF license fee appears in Step 1 by capacity band.

Item	Amount	Notes
LLC or corporation filing fee	$100	Fee in effect since July 1, 2026
Annual report, LLC or corporation	$75	Due yearly by the last day of the anniversary month
Annual report, nonprofit corporation	$30	Nonprofit corporations only
Name reservation	$50	120 days, renewable
Change of registered office or agent	$25	Also applies if an agent resigns without a successor
NJ-REG registration	Not listed in this guide	Confirm with the Division of Revenue
Municipal zoning and CO	Not listed in this guide	Confirm with your municipality
Health and fire inspections	Not listed in this guide	Confirm with the local officials who inspect

What to expect after you apply

A complete, well-organized application may help you move through review with fewer requests for missing items, although DCF controls the timing and the outcome. If DCF approves the license and your building, staff, and inspections are in order, the center may be able to enroll children and operate under the three-year license term. Results depend on your building, your staffing, and the inspection outcomes, and no approval is guaranteed. Plan your budget and your opening date with enough room for delays.

Where to confirm current requirements

• New Jersey Department of Children and Families: https://www.nj.gov/dcf/ (find the Office of Licensing child care pages)
• NJ Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services: https://www.nj.gov/treasury/revenue/
• NJ Business Portal, online business formation: https://www.njportal.com/DOR/BusinessFormation/
• NJ business name availability search: https://www.njportal.com/DOR/BusinessNameSearch/Search/Availability
• New Jersey Division of Taxation: https://www.nj.gov/treasury/taxation/
• New Jersey Small Business Development Centers (NJSBDC), free advising: https://njsbdc.com/
• U.S. Small Business Administration, New Jersey district: https://www.sba.gov/district/new-jersey

Next steps

Start with the capacity decision, since it sets your fee, space, and staffing. Form your entity and complete NJ-REG. Then secure a building only after zoning and the CO path are confirmed in writing. Clear background checks, schedule inspections, and submit the DCF application with the correct fee. Open the doors only after the license is in hand.

Disclaimer: This article is informational content, not legal or tax advice. Fees and procedures described here reflect the information available when this guide was prepared, and agencies may change them. For your specific situation, consult a qualified New Jersey attorney and a CPA before you form your business, sign a lease, or hire staff.