Indiana child care, camp and ratio rules

Child care licensing

Child care centers (a nonresidential building where at least one child gets paid care for more than 4 hours a day for 10 consecutive days) and child care homes must be licensed by FSSA; church-run programs may instead register as unlicensed registered child care ministries (IC 12-17.2; 470 IAC 3-4.7).

After-school and recreation programs: Programs that meet an exemption in IC 12-17.2-2-8 do not need a license. Since July 1, 2025, programs run by public or private schools on school property for their own students can qualify if they meet health, safety, and fire standards (House Bill 1253), and certain school-age child care programs are listed as exempt (IC 12-17.2-2-8(10)); exempt programs that accept CCDF child care vouchers must still meet state health and safety standards as Legally Licensed Exempt Providers.

Licensing agency: Indiana Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA), Office of Early Childhood and Out-of-School Learning (OECOSL)

Sources: FSSA: Licensed child care center ratio chart (2026); FSSA: 2025 early childhood legislative and rule changes; FSSA: Laws, rules and related policies; FSSA: Indiana child care program matrix; 470 IAC 3-4.7-48 Child/staff ratios and supervision (LII mirror)

Staff-to-child ratios in licensed centers

Rule: IC 12-17.2-4-14.5 (in effect December 1, 2025), as posted in FSSA's Licensed Child Care Center ratio chart. Indiana's bands are by months: 3 years = 36 to 47 months, 4 years = 48 to 59, 5 years = 60 to 71, and 6 years and over = 72 months and up. The youngest child in the group sets the ratio (470 IAC 3-4.7-48). Younger groups: infants 1:5 (max 12), 12 to 17 months 1:5 (12), 18 to 23 months 1:6 (14), 2 years 1:8 (16), 30 to 35 months 1:9 (17). Group-size exceptions are in IC 12-17.2-4-14.5(l) and (m). The older chart in 470 IAC 3-4.7-47 (3s at 1:10, 4s at 1:12, 5 and up at 1:15) is out of date.

Work out your staffing with the ratio calculator

Summer camps

IDOH regulates youth camps under 410 IAC 6-7.2, which covers places giving more than 72 continuous hours of outdoor group living to 10 or more children under 18 without a parent (in practice, overnight camps); IDOH inspects these camps and must approve plans before a camp is built or altered. Day camps are not covered by that rule; a day camp may need an FSSA child care license if it meets the child care center definition and no exemption applies.

Camp agency: Indiana Department of Health (IDOH), Environmental Public Health

Sources: IDOH: Youth camps; 410 IAC 6-7.2 Youth camps (PDF)

Background checks

Child care staff and volunteers in licensed centers and homes, registered ministries, and exempt providers that take vouchers need a federal and an Indiana fingerprint-based criminal history check (including juvenile history), plus checks of the Indiana Child Protection Index and the Indiana Sex Offender Registry, and out-of-state checks if they lived elsewhere. The fingerprint check is redone every 3 years (or after more than 180 days out of Indiana child care work), and the registry checks every year. Indiana's youth camp rule (410 IAC 6-7.2) has no background check requirement.

Sources: FSSA: Background check requirements; 410 IAC 6-7.2 Youth camps (PDF)

Giving medication

Medicine must be in its original container and given only with written parent permission and, except for a few over-the-counter products named in the center's approved health plan, a written order or prescription from a licensed prescriber. It must be locked up (not in the kitchen or a bathroom), and each dose is recorded with the child's name, medicine, dose, date, time, and caregiver's name; sunscreen, insect repellent, and similar products need written parent approval (470 IAC 3-4.7-88, 3-4.7-40).

Free medication administration log

Sources: 470 IAC 3-4.7-88 Medication (LII mirror); 470 IAC 3-4.7-40 Children's medication records (LII mirror)

Reporting child abuse

Indiana requires anyone who suspects a child is being abused or neglected to report it to the DCS hotline or police (IC 31-33-5); child care center staff must report immediately (470 IAC 3-4.7-13).

Indiana child abuse hotline: 1-800-800-5556 (how to report). In an emergency, call 911.

Sources: Indiana DCS: Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline; 470 IAC 3-4.7-13 Reporting child abuse or neglect (LII mirror); Child Welfare Information Gateway: Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse and Neglect