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Interested in learning more about becoming a child care provider in North Dakota? Please read through EACH STEP before applying for your child care license or self-declaration. A team of Licensing Specialists is available to support you every step of the way, helping you to ensure your new child care business complies with all health, safety and local requirements.

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Additional Resources

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Additional Resources

North Dakota child care rules and regulations authorize Licensing Specialists to require non-compliant licensed and self-declared child care programs to correct identified issues. The goal of this process is to help programs access consultation and support services to make improvements.

Compliance plans are based on program corrective actions issued by child care licensing.

The services required fall on a continuum of strategies, some necessitating minimal communication and others requiring a more coordinated approach to correct the non-compliances.

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Correction Orders may be issued to licensed or self-declared providers for violations of law or rules. Corrections must be made within the time frame listed on the Correction Order. The child care program owner or director may submit a refutation request regarding a Correction Order via the online Child Care Licensing system.

Child Care and Development Fund regulations require information about substantiated parental complaints be made available to the public. ​​​​​​The public can view Correction Orders for the past 3 years, including those issued as a result of a monitoring visit due to a substantiated complaint, within the child care licensing report in each program’s profile using North Dakota’s online search tool.

Do I need a food establishment license?

You do not need a food establishment license if your child care program is located in an occupied private residence.

You may need a food establishment license if your child care program is located in a facility which is not occupied as a private residence.

  • To determine food licensing requirements, it is important to contact the food licensing authority for your location as soon as possible and prior to any construction, remodel, conversion, or renovation.

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As a mandated reporter, child care providers are required to report immediately suspected child abuse or neglect as required by North Dakota Century Code section 50-25.1-03.

To report suspected child abuse and neglect, call the statewide toll-free Child Abuse & Neglect Reporting Line 1-833-958-3500, between 8 a.m.–5 p.m. Central Time, Monday-Friday (7 a.m.– 4 p.m. Mountain Time).

  • A dedicated team of specialized child protection intake professionals will answer and gather all needed facts so local CPS workers in the human service zones can act more quickly to protect children.
  • Please know that calls to local human service zone offices to report suspected child abuse and neglect are rerouted to the centralized Child Abuse & Neglect Reporting Line.

IMPORTANT: If it's an EMERGENCY and a child is in immediate DANGER, CALL 9-1-1 NOW.

To ensure health and safety standards are being met by child care providers, Licensing Specialists will conduct, at a minimum, one announced and one unannounced monitoring visit annually.

Child Care and Development Fund regulations require 3 years of monitoring visit results be made available to the public. The public can view the monitoring results within the child care licensing report in each program’s profile using North Dakota’s online search tool.

Questions? Contact Us

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Questions? Contact Us

Early Childhood
600 E. Boulevard Avenue, Dept. 325
Bismarck, ND 58505-0250

Phone: (701) 328-2115
Toll-Free: (800) 997-8516
Relay ND TTY: 711
Email: dhsec@nd.gov