Nevada rulebook · checked October 2026
Watching Kids at Home in Nevada: How Many Before You Need a License?
In Nevada, you may watch up to 4 counted children before a license is required.
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The Nevada line, in facts
Licensing agency: Nevada Department of Human Services — Division of Child and Family Services, Child Care Licensing
The line: In Nevada, you may watch up to 4 counted children before a license is required.
The categories above the line
| Category | Capacity | What it means |
|---|
| Family Home | up to 6 | At least 5 and not more than 6 children; you must live in the home and provide direct care. A resident child of yours counts for ratio compliance only if under age 4 (NAC 432A.534(4)). With the licensing chief's written permission, up to 3 additional children ages 6 to under 16 may attend for before/after-school care (NAC 432A.538). |
| Group Home | up to 12 | 7 to 12 children; the licensee or authorized operator must live in the home and provide direct care, with added caregivers as ratios demand. |
What comes with the license
- Ratios: Family home: 1 caregiver on duty at all times, no more than 6 children per caregiver, at most 2 children under 1 year of age or at most 4 under 2 years of age at any time (NAC 432A.534). Group home: 1 caregiver per 2 children under 1; 1 per 4 children ages 1 to under 3; 2 caregivers per 6 children age 3 and older (NAC 432A.536).
- Training before you open: The rule's initial courses — CPR, first aid, illness and bloodborne pathogens, abuse/neglect recognition and prevention, SIDS/safe sleep, child development, wellness, shaken baby prevention, premises safety, emergency preparedness, medication and food allergy, transportation safety — completed within 90 days of starting (NAC 432A.323).
- Training to stay open: 24 hours of training each year, at least 12 of them specific to the age group served and at least 2 on lifelong wellness, health and safety (NRS 432A.1775; NAC 432A.326).
- State fees: State initial license application fee: $20 for a family home (5–6 children); $60 for a group home (7–12) (NAC 432A.200). Local licensors differ — Washoe County lists $30 / $60 a year.
- Realistic timeline:
The local check you cannot skip
Nevada licenses locally where a county or city has its own licensing agency and ordinance — Washoe County is the principal local licensor. A local agency may also REGISTER (not license) homes under 5 children under its own standards, so license-exempt at the state level does not always mean paperwork-free at home.
What catches people in Nevada
- The honest gap: whether your OWN children count toward the 5-child facility trigger is not stated on the face of NRS 432A.024 — if your own young children will be home plus 4 paid children, get the licensing agency's answer in writing before you rely on the 4-or-fewer line.
- Nevada's trigger is 'compensation for ANY of those children' — four paying children and a fifth unpaid one is still a facility at 5 children present.
Rules checked October 2026 · Sources: NRS 432A.024 (child care facility = 5 or more children with compensation for any; related-only and short-term friend/neighbor exclusions); NRS 432A.131 (state vs. local licensing; local registration of under-5 facilities); NRS 432A.1775 (annual training); NAC 432A.100 / .110 (family and group homes), .200 (fees), .534 / .536 (ratios). This page reads the published rules; it is not legal advice, and the Nevada Department of Human Services — Division of Child and Family Services, Child Care Licensing is the final word.
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