Issaquah, WA Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)

LUC 18.522.010 adds City standards on top of State law for day care operations and adult family homes. Its stated purposes are to encourage day care operations and adult family homes throughout the City while keeping them compatible with adjoining properties, and to protect the health, safety and welfare of children, disabled adults, employees and the community. Day care operations include day care centers, family day care centers, and adult day care centers.

The review step comes first. Day care operations and adult family homes are subject to licensing by the State under Chapter 43.216 RCW and must be reviewed according to IMC 18.402.020, the table of permitted uses, and IMC 18.204.020, review levels. Each use must provide proof of State licensing prior to receiving a City of Issaquah business license.

A family day care is a narrower category than a center. Chapter 18.102 IMC defines a family day care center as a State-licensed operation located in the family residence that provides regularly scheduled temporary care for 12 or fewer children, or six or fewer developmentally or physically disabled adults, including those children or adults who reside in the home. A day care center, by contrast, is a State-licensed facility caring for 13 or more children during part of the 24-hour day. Under LUC 18.522.010(D)(3), a family child care center must be located in the provider's family living quarters, not a separate building.

Every day care operation, family or center, must enclose all outdoor play areas entirely with a solid wall or fence a minimum of six feet in height, with gated openings only. Centers carry extra duties: an on-site vehicle turnaround or separate entrance and exit points, and a passenger loading area. An adult family home must have no more than six residents, or up to eight adults on State approval under RCW 70.128.066. Where conflicting rules apply, the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services rules and regulations shall apply.