Snohomish County, WA Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing definition
- SCC 30.91F.100
- Occupant cap
- 12 or fewer, children and adults combined
- Waiver above cap
- RCW 43.216.692 (DCYF)
- Play area rule
- Fenced/controlled, SCC 30.22.130(8)
- Street setback rule
- No play equipment in street setback
Summary
SCC 30.91F.100 caps a family day care home at 12 or fewer people total, counting both children and adults in care, unless the operator gets a state DCYF waiver under RCW 43.216.692. Zoning conditions in SCC 30.22.130(8) also require fenced or controlled outdoor play areas.
"Family day care home" means an occupied dwelling unit in which the full-time occupant provides day care for persons other than from his/her own family and the family of close relatives. Such care in a family day care home is limited to 12 or fewer persons, including children living in the home or children and other close relatives cared for in the home. The numerical limitation for the facility shall be determined by totaling the number of children and adults being cared for within the home. However, a family day care home may serve more than 12 children if a waiver is obtained from the Washington State Department of Children, Youth, and Families pursuant to RCW 43.216.692. (Added by Amended Ord. 02-064, Dec. 9, 2002, Eff date Feb. 1, 2003; Amended by Amended Ord. 04-010, Mar. 3, 2004, Eff date Mar. 15, 2004; Amended by Ord. 25-015, Mar. 19, 2025, Eff date Mar. 30, 2025).
30.91F.120 Farm.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through legislation passed August 12, 2026).
Full Breakdown
100 as an occupied dwelling unit where the full-time occupant provides day care to persons outside their own family and close relatives. The numerical limit is set at 12 or fewer persons, and the code is specific that this count is not just children: it totals every child and adult being cared for within the home, including children living in the home itself or close relatives being cared for there. 692, meaning the county's zoning cap is directly tied to the state licensing waiver process rather than something the county can adjust on its own.
130(8): no play yard or play equipment may be located within any required setback from a street, and outdoor play areas must be fenced or otherwise controlled so children cannot wander off the property. 030(5); a family day care home operating inside a single dwelling is regulated primarily through the definitional cap and the play-area conditions rather than the center-specific performance standards chapter.
Violations & Fines
Operating a family day care home above the 12-person cap without a DCYF waiver, or with an unfenced or unsecured outdoor play area, is enforced as a Title 30 zoning violation under chapter 30.85 SCC, carrying a $500 monetary penalty for a first noncommercial notice of violation that can climb under the SCC 30.85.170 schedule toward a $10,000 cap if left uncorrected.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many children can a home daycare in Snohomish County care for?
Does a home daycare need a fenced yard in unincorporated Snohomish County?
Is a family day care home regulated the same as a day care center?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Snohomish County
Compare Snohomish County to another location·View the Washington home business overview
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