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. Section 8.08.020 defines a 'Large Family Day Care Home' as one providing care 'to up to 14 children, inclusive, including children under the age of 10 years who reside in the home,' and a 'Small Family Day Care Home' as one providing care 'to up to 8 children, including children under the age of 10 who reside in the home,' adding that a small home 'shall be considered a residential use of property' for which 'no permits or business license are required.' Neither definition is buried in a table; both are plain-text entries in the alphabetical definitions chapter.
That treatment carries through to the permitted-use lists: Section 8.20.020.A.2 names 'Small Family Day Care Home' and 'Large Family Day Care Home' among the use types permitted outright in the R-1 (Single Family) zoning district, alongside 'Single-Family Residence' itself, with parallel listings for R-2 and R-M under subsections B.2 and C.2 of the same section, and for the Agricultural district under Section 8.16.020.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.
This is distinct from Chapter 8.82's 'Day Care Center' rules, which the code's own definitions chapter states apply to 'a child day care facility other than a family day care home,' so the hours, noise buffers, and Zoning Clearance process built for institutional day care centers in Chapter 8.82 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.