Dublin, CA Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)
Key Facts
- Small family day care
- Up to 8 children, no permit required
- Large family day care
- Up to 14 children, listed permitted use
- Permitted zones
- A, R-1, R-2, R-M districts
- Governing sections
- §§ 8.08.020, 8.20.020.A.2
Summary
Dublin treats a small family day care home, caring for up to 8 children, as an outright residential use requiring no permit or business license at all. A large family day care home, up to 14 children, is likewise listed as a permitted use type in every residential zoning district under Municipal Code Sections 8.08.020 and 8.20.020.A.2.
Family Day Care Home/ Large (use type). The term Large Family Day Care Home shall mean a home which provides family day care to up to 14 children, inclusive, including children under the age of 10 years who reside in the home.
Family Day Care Home/ Small (use type). The term Small Family Day Care Home shall mean a home which provides family day care to up to 8 children, including children under the age of 10 who reside in the home. A Small Family Day Care Home shall be considered a residential use of property. No permits or business license are required.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 2-26, passed March 3, 2026).
Full Breakdown
The Zoning Ordinance's definitions chapter draws the capacity line explicitly. ' Neither definition is buried in a table; both are plain-text entries in the alphabetical definitions chapter. A. None of those listings requires a Conditional Use Permit for either day-care type; they sit in the same 'permitted' category as the residential use itself. 82 do not govern a home-based family day care.
Violations & Fines
A family day care operation loses its by-right zoning status if it exceeds the 8-child or 14-child caps set in Section 8.08.020's definitions, since a use above those thresholds no longer matches either defined use type listed as permitted in the A, R-1, R-2, and R-M district use tables and would need a different land-use approval to continue operating. Operating a home day care in a zoning district where neither use type is listed as permitted would likewise fall outside the ordinance's by-right treatment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a permit to run a home day care in Dublin?
How many children can a large family day care home in Dublin serve?
Which residential zones allow family day care homes in Dublin?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Dublin
California rules heatmap·Compare Dublin to another location·View the California home business overview
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Home Daycare in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Alameda County handle home daycare.