Queen Anne's County, MD Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)

Family day care is a use the County Commissioners allow by right in the Agricultural (AG) District. Section 18:1-14B lists it as item (12) among the permitted uses, ahead of farm employee dwellings, farmers markets and home occupations. The permitted-use lists for the Countryside (CS, § 18:1-15), Estate (E, § 18:1-16), Suburban Estate (SE, § 18:1-17), Suburban Residential (SR, § 18:1-18), Neighborhood Conservation (NC, § 18:1-19) and Urban Residential (UR, § 18:1-20) Districts each carry a family day-care center, so a provider in unincorporated Queen Anne's County does not need conditional use approval in any of them.

The size line comes from the glossary in Chapter 18App. A day-care center is a building that provides day care for children or adults on a regular basis. A family day-care center is one that, including any relatives of the care provider, cares for no more than eight children or adults. A group day-care center cares for nine or more.

The distinction matters because a group day-care center is a conditional use in the AG, CS, E, SE, SR and UR Districts. Section 18:1-95I attaches three standards: meet all state requirements for day-care and/or child-care facilities, provide off-street parking and loading areas, and be located on streets that have adequate capacity to accommodate the volume of traffic generated by the proposed use. Any conditional use approval also needs findings under § 18:1-123B that the conditions in the chapter exist, that the use conforms to the Comprehensive Plan, and that it is compatible with the existing neighborhood.

Family day care sits on its own line, apart from home occupations, which carry their own zoning certificate requirement under § 18:1-56. Section 18:1-13G adds that a permitted use is not permitted on every parcel unless it can be located in full compliance with the density and dimensional requirements of Chapter 18 that apply to the use and parcel.