Hialeah, FL Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)

Sec. 98-2031 of Hialeah's zoning code defines a family day care home as an occupied residence providing regular child care for children from at least two unrelated families in exchange for payment, fee or grant, whether or not run for profit. The section caps enrollment by age mix: a maximum of four children from birth to 12 months; or three infants under 12 months plus other children up to six total; or six preschool children if all are older than 12 months; or up to ten children where no more than five are preschool age and, of those five, no more than two are under 12 months.

A larger tier, the large family child care home, requires at least two full-time child care personnel on site, one of whom must be the owner or occupant, two years of prior operation as a licensed family day care home, and a caregiver with a child development associate credential or its equivalent for at least a year before that higher licensure; it may then serve up to eight children under 24 months, or up to 12 children with no more than four under 24 months.

Sec. 98-2032 makes operating either type, once licensed or registered with the state department of children and family services, a valid residential use on residentially zoned and classified property, so no separate conditional use permit is needed, but the home must still comply with all zoning regulations of its residential district and cannot change the residential character of the property. The same section requires play areas to be designed and located to reduce noise impact on surrounding properties, and Sec. 98-2033 layers on a separate fire-code compliance and inspection requirement.