Home daycare is the fastest, lowest-capital way into child care — and Ontario's rules are strict but simple once translated. (Binding source: the CCEYA and ontario.ca's rules for unlicensed child care.)
The unlicensed limits, precisely
- Maximum five children under 13 at any one time — including your own children under four.
- Of those five, no more than three may be under two years old.
- You must not advertise or operate as "licensed", and you must follow basic safety rules (e.g., you can't care for children in a home where someone is on the child abuse registry; serious occurrences have reporting obligations).
These limits are per-premises and enforced — operating over them risks orders, fines and shutdown, and it voids most insurance.
Unlicensed vs. licensed agency: the real decision
Stay unlicensed for maximum autonomy: you set fees, choose families, answer to no agency — but you're capped at five, outside CWELCC (your families pay full fee with after-tax dollars they can partly deduct), and you carry compliance alone.
Join a licensed home child care agency to care for up to six children, give your families CWELCC-reduced fees (a massive competitive edge when the centre down the road charges $19/day), and get inspections, training, backup and referrals — in exchange for agency oversight and their slice of the economics. As CWELCC matures, the agency route keeps getting relatively stronger.
Set up like a business from day one
- Insurance — home daycare liability coverage (your home policy alone does not cover this; tell your insurer or get a specialized policy).
- Contracts — fees, hours, late pickup, holidays, termination notice, illness policy. In writing, signed before the first day.
- Receipts & taxes — issue receipts (with your SIN), report income, and deduct aggressively-but-correctly: a share of rent/mortgage interest, utilities and food, supplies, toys, insurance. Full details in our daycare tax guide and receipts guide.
- Records — daily attendance, signed agreements, incident notes. Protects you in disputes and substantiates your income and deductions.
What you can earn
Five full-time spots at typical unlicensed Ontario rates ($45–$65/day depending on region and age mix) gross roughly $55k–$80k/year before expenses; the agency route trades a little per-spot revenue for a sixth spot and zero-vacancy referrals. The killers are vacancy gaps and unpaid invoices — which is why waitlists and clean invoicing matter as much as craft skills. Mitten is free at home-daycare scale (up to five children) and handles daily photo updates, attendance, invoicing and receipts — the professional polish that justifies your rate.
Run your daycare on Mitten — free to start
Mitten does everything in this guide — daily reports, photos, messaging, billing, even payroll prep — free for your first 5 children, then just $20/mo + $2 per child.
Start free — no card needed → See the live demoFrequently asked questions
- How many children can I care for without a licence in Ontario?
- At most five children under 13 — and your own children under four count toward the five. Within that, no more than three children may be under two years old. Care for a sixth (non-relative) child and you are operating illegally.
- What is licensed home child care in Ontario?
- Home providers contracted with a ministry-licensed home child care agency. The agency screens, trains, inspects and supports you; in exchange you can care for up to six children, access CWELCC reduced fees for your families, and get referrals.
- Do home daycare parents get tax receipts?
- Yes — you must issue receipts. Parents claim child care expenses on their returns, and as an individual provider your receipt must include your SIN. See our receipts guide for exactly what goes on one.