Capacity and ratios in a Maine day care home

The ceiling: twelve children, ages on the license

Maine's family child care rule licenses a home for between three and twelve children under thirteen. The licensed capacity — the number and ages of children allowed on the premises at any one time — is printed on the license itself.

Two authorities set the number, not one. The fire marshal's office determines capacity at its inspection, and licensing checks it against the space: thirty-five square feet of usable indoor space per child.

The state can cut below what the building allows. The department may restrict the number of children when space is limited or unusually configured, when the provider has physical limitations, or when a child in care requires exceptional amounts of care.

3 to 12 childrenMaine's family child care rule licenses care for 3 to 12 children under 13 years of age in the provider's home, and licensed capacity is the number and ages specified on the license. — Maine DHHS, 10-148 CMR Ch. 33, retrieved 2026-09-29

The department may restrict the number of children licensed when space is limited or unusually configured, the provider has physical limitations, or a child requires exceptional amounts of care. — Maine DHHS, 10-148 CMR Ch. 33, retrieved 2026-09-29

The ratio table, straight from the rule

Ratios are set by the ages present, not by the average age of the group. One provider may care for four children between six weeks and two years old; the same provider may care for twelve children over five.

Two providers may care for eight children under two, or twelve children between two and five. Three providers together may care for twelve children, of which no more than nine may be under two years old.

Read the mixed-age row carefully — it is where most homes actually operate. The full table from the rule:

1 provider : 4 childrenMaine's rule sets the family child care ratio for children six weeks to two years old at one provider for four children, two providers for eight children, and three providers for twelve children. — Maine DHHS, 10-148 CMR Ch. 33, retrieved 2026-09-29

Filling spaces: older into younger, never the reverse

The rule allows one substitution and forbids its mirror. Older children may fill younger children's spaces; younger children may not fill older children's spaces.

A licensed space for a preschooler can be taken by a school-aged child. A space licensed for a school-aged child cannot be taken by a toddler — that changes the ratio the license was built on.

This is the line to check before accepting a sibling pair into a full home. Two school-aged children into two preschool spaces is a paperwork question; a two-year-old into a five-year-old space is a ratio violation.

Maine's family child care rule states older children may fill younger children's spaces, but younger children may not fill older children's spaces. — Maine DHHS, 10-148 CMR Ch. 33, retrieved 2026-09-29

Your own children count, until they turn four

Children living with the provider who are over four years of age are not counted in determining the staff-child ratio. Children living with the provider under four are counted.

The distinction runs one direction only: living with you, not merely visiting. A grandchild who is with you four days a week and does not live in the home is a child in care, counted in the ratios like any other enrolled child.

Staff members' own children in care count too, in their age groups, with one exception the rule carves out for a specific staffing configuration. Plan your own under-four count into the licensed capacity before you advertise the spaces it removes.

age fourChildren living with the provider who are over four years of age are not counted in the staff-child ratio, and those under four are counted. — Maine DHHS, 10-148 CMR Ch. 33, retrieved 2026-09-29

No child under six weeks, except your own

No child under six weeks of age, other than the provider's own children, may be cared for by the provider — verified against a birth certificate. The rule puts the age floor before the ratio table for a reason. A two-week-old is not a ratio question, it is out of scope entirely.

This matters for word-of-mouth enrollment. A maternity-leave neighbor asking for three weeks of newborn care is not a child you can enroll, whatever the licensed capacity says.

At the other end, children over five who attend school full time still count when they are on the premises. The school-age ratio row exists for exactly the after-school hours a home provider sells.

six weeksNo child under six weeks of age, other than the provider's own children, may be cared for by a Maine family child care provider, as verified by a birth certificate. — Maine DHHS, 10-148 CMR Ch. 33, retrieved 2026-09-29

When capacity can be exceeded, and how to record it

Capacity may only be exceeded under two conditions: family emergencies or emergency school closings. Planned school closures are predictable, and the rule says they do not qualify.

When an emergency does put you over, ratios must still be maintained, the event must be explained in the written emergency plan, and the reasons for exceeding capacity must be documented on the attendance record.

Set this up before the snow day, not during it. Write the emergency plan with the exceed-capacity paragraph in it, and keep the attendance record format ready. Then confirm every enrolled child against the exemption line and the inspection standards that set your capacity in the first place.

Maine's rule allows licensed capacity to be exceeded only for family emergencies or emergency school closings, with ratios maintained and the reasons documented on the attendance record. — Maine DHHS, 10-148 CMR Ch. 33, retrieved 2026-09-29

Questions