Clark County, IN Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)
Key Facts
- Threshold to qualify
- 6 or more unrelated children
- Class I cap
- 12 children plus 3 school-age
- Class II/III cap
- 16 children combined
- Zoning classification
- Special Use 38, Sec. 156.48
- Approval body
- Board of Zoning Appeals
- Civil penalty
- Up to $2,500 per Sec. 156.99
Summary
Clark County's zoning code classifies an in-home daycare serving six or more unrelated children as a Child Care Home under Section 156.05, and the zoning table lists 'Child care home' as Special Use 38, meaning it needs Board of Zoning Appeals approval rather than being allowed by right. A Class I home tops out at 12 children plus three school-age children.
CHILD CARE HOME. (a) A residential structure in which at least six children (not including the children for whom the provider is a parent, stepparent, guardian, custodian or other relative) at any time receive "child care" from a provider. 1. While unattended by a parent, legal guardian or custodian; and 2. For regular compensation. (b) For more than four hours but less than 24 hours in each of ten consecutive days per year, excluding intervening Saturdays, Sundays and holidays; ... (d)1. CHILD CARE HOME CLASS I - NONRESIDENT OPERATOR. A child care home that serves any combination of full-time and part-time children, not to exceed at any one time 12 children plus three children during the school year only who are enrolled in at least grade 1.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2019 S-0: Code: Local legislation current through Ordinance 31-2014, passed 12-18-2014).
Full Breakdown
05's definitions split home-based child care into tiers borrowed from state law. A Child Care Home is a residential structure where at least six children, not counting the provider's own kids, stepchildren, or other relatives, receive child care while unattended by a parent or guardian and for regular compensation, for more than four hours but less than 24 hours across at least ten days a year, excluding weekends and holidays. C. C. 36-7-4-1108. Class II and Class III homes step the cap up to 16 children, again split by whether the operator lives on site. 48(C). An operation with fewer than six children falls outside the Child Care Home definition entirely and is treated as an ordinary residential use.
Violations & Fines
Operating a Class I, II, or III child care home in Clark County without first obtaining the Special Use 38 classification from the Board of Zoning Appeals is a Chapter 156 zoning violation. Under Section 156.99, that exposes the operator to a civil penalty of up to $2,500 payable to the Plan Commission, with each day of unpermitted operation counted as a separate offense, and the Plan Commission's attorney may seek an injunction to stop the use.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many kids can I watch before I need a zoning permit in Clark County?
What is the difference between a Class I and Class II child care home?
Does the operator have to live in the home?
How do I get Special Use 38 approval?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Clark County
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