Wyoming Launch Guide

How to Start a Daycare in Wyoming (2026)

Last updated: June 2026

Researched by the TotReady Research Team

Opening a licensed daycare in Wyoming means applying to the Wyoming Department of Family Services (DFS), Child Care Licensing, clearing fingerprint-based background checks, meeting facility and staff-to-child ratio rules, and passing a licensing inspection. This guide walks the process end to end, grounded in Wyoming's licensing statutes.

Wyoming Daycare Licensing: Fees & Key Numbers

The statute-cited figures that shape your Wyoming launch budget and timeline.

Application fee
Wyoming charges a nonrefundable initial licensing (application) fee of $25.00, submitted by all applicants regardless of facility type (WY Child Care Licensing Rules, Chapter 2 'Licensing Process,' Section 9(a), effective April 2026). NOTE: the draft's $50.00 figure reflects the superseded 2012/2014 rules (then Ch.3 Sec.7); the current .gov rule sets the fee at $25.00.
Annual renewal fee
Wyoming charges a nonrefundable license renewal fee of $25.00 for all licensed facilities, due upon the expiration date of the current license (WY Child Care Licensing Rules, Chapter 2 'Licensing Process,' Section 9(b), effective April 2026). The license is issued for a one (1) year term/period (Chapter 2, Sections 4 and 8), not a biennial cycle; the draft's 'biennial (two-year) licensure cycle' characterization could not be confirmed and conflicts with the one-year-license language in the current rules (the two-year 'biennium' applies to staff training cycles, not the license term).
Pre-service training
Contact your Wyoming licensing office to confirm.
Annual training
Wyoming requires any person who provides direct care or is counted in staff:child ratios for more than 24 hours in any month to complete a minimum of 12 training credits annually in early learning/early childhood/child development, of which 8 health-and-safety credits must be taken every two years (WY Child Care Licensing Rules, Chapter 11, Section 4(c), effective April 2026). NOTE: the draft's '30 hours per biennium, 15 in the first year' reflects the superseded 2014 rules; the current annual requirement is 12 credits per year.
License-exempt threshold
A Wyoming child care license is required when caring for more than two children who are not related to the caregiver; care for no more than two unrelated children is exempt, as are care by legal parents/relatives, occasional (non-regular) neighbor or friend care, parent cooperatives, in-home care by a hired employee, state/local government and school-district programs, certain ranch/farm care, nonprofit summer camps, facilities serving only one immediate family unit, and qualifying after-school programs (Wyoming Dept. of Family Services, 'Who Needs to be Licensed'; W.S. 14-4-101 et seq.).
Family child care capacity
A Wyoming Family Child Care Home is located in the owner's primary residence and may be licensed for up to 10 children (WY Child Care Licensing Rules, Chapter 11, Section 2(a)(i), effective April 2026). Children of the home owner/director under five (5) years old are counted in capacity and ratios; the owner's own children 5+ are generally not counted (Sec.2(a)(vi)). Infant staff:child ratios are 1:4 (one staff), 2:8 (two staff), and 3:10 (three staff), giving a maximum infant group size of 10 (Sec.2(b) ratio table). NOTE: the draft's infant 'maximum group size of 8' reflects the superseded 2014 Table 6-1; the current table permits up to 10 infants with three staff. The 10-child FCCH cap itself is confirmed unchanged.
Indoor square footage
Wyoming requires a minimum of 35 square feet of usable indoor play space per child (excluding hallways, stairways, closets, furnace rooms, storage, food-preparation areas, bathrooms, offices, and other areas not available to children; 50 sq ft per infant/toddler where play and sleep space are combined with standing cribs/pack-'n-plays) and a minimum of 75 square feet of outdoor play space per child (WY Child Care Licensing Rules, Chapter 11, Sections 13 and 14, effective April 2026). NOTE: the current outdoor rule provides only a single reduced tier of 50 sq ft for spaces used solely by children 24 months and younger; the draft's three-tier 35/50/75 outdoor scheme reflects the superseded 2014 rules.
Inspection schedule
A minimum of 2 licensing inspections per facility per year — one annual unannounced and one annual announced (Ch. 2 Section 5(a); confirmed by the DFS Child Care Licensing FAQ: 'a minimum of 2 visits to each facility per year. One visit is unannounced and one visit is scheduled'). Additional scheduled or unscheduled visits may occur for compliance monitoring, technical assistance, complaint investigation, or follow-up (Ch. 2 Section 5(b),(d)). Annual fire, food-safety, and health/sanitation inspections are also required (Ch. 2 Section 5(c)). Statutory right of entry/inspection: W.S. § 14-4-107. Licenses are renewed periodically with a renewal fee due upon expiration of the current license (Ch. 2 Section 9(b); statute frames continuation fees as due on the anniversary date per W.S. § 14-4-104(e)).

The 8 Steps to Open a Daycare in Wyoming

Follow these in order. Each step is grounded in Wyoming's childcare licensing rules.

  1. Research your state's rules

    Confirm whether your program needs a license in Wyoming. A Wyoming child care license is required when caring for more than two children who are not related to the caregiver; care for no more than two unrelated children is exempt, as are care by legal parents/relatives, occasional (non-regular) neighbor or friend care, parent cooperatives, in-home care by a hired employee, state/local government and school-district programs, certain ranch/farm care, nonprofit summer camps, facilities serving only one immediate family unit, and qualifying after-school programs (Wyoming Dept. of Family Services, 'Who Needs to be Licensed'; W.S. 14-4-101 et seq.).

    Read the rule that defines license-exempt care before you do anything else — it determines whether you operate as a family child care home, a center, or an exempt arrangement.

  2. Complete pre-service training & CPR

    Finish the required pre-service training and certifications. Contact your Wyoming licensing office to confirm.

    Plan for ongoing training too: Wyoming requires any person who provides direct care or is counted in staff:child ratios for more than 24 hours in any month to complete a minimum of 12 training credits annually in early learning/early childhood/child development, of which 8 health-and-safety credits must be taken every two years (WY Child Care Licensing Rules, Chapter 11, Section 4(c), effective April 2026). NOTE: the draft's '30 hours per biennium, 15 in the first year' reflects the superseded 2014 rules; the current annual requirement is 12 credits per year.

  3. Pass background checks

    Submit fingerprint-based background checks for yourself and every staff member, volunteer, and (where applicable) household member before anyone has unsupervised access to children.

    Background-check clearance often takes the longest of any single step — start it early so it doesn't gate your opening date.

  4. Prepare your facility

    Set up a space that meets Wyoming's facility standards. Wyoming requires a minimum of 35 square feet of usable indoor play space per child (excluding hallways, stairways, closets, furnace rooms, storage, food-preparation areas, bathrooms, offices, and other areas not available to children; 50 sq ft per infant/toddler where play and sleep space are combined with standing cribs/pack-'n-plays) and a minimum of 75 square feet of outdoor play space per child (WY Child Care Licensing Rules, Chapter 11, Sections 13 and 14, effective April 2026). NOTE: the current outdoor rule provides only a single reduced tier of 50 sq ft for spaces used solely by children 24 months and younger; the draft's three-tier 35/50/75 outdoor scheme reflects the superseded 2014 rules.

    Match your enrollment plan to capacity limits: A Wyoming Family Child Care Home is located in the owner's primary residence and may be licensed for up to 10 children (WY Child Care Licensing Rules, Chapter 11, Section 2(a)(i), effective April 2026). Children of the home owner/director under five (5) years old are counted in capacity and ratios; the owner's own children 5+ are generally not counted (Sec.2(a)(vi)). Infant staff:child ratios are 1:4 (one staff), 2:8 (two staff), and 3:10 (three staff), giving a maximum infant group size of 10 (Sec.2(b) ratio table). NOTE: the draft's infant 'maximum group size of 8' reflects the superseded 2014 Table 6-1; the current table permits up to 10 infants with three staff. The 10-child FCCH cap itself is confirmed unchanged.

  5. Submit your license application & fee

    File your application with the Wyoming Department of Family Services (DFS), Child Care Licensing and pay the licensing fee. Wyoming charges a nonrefundable initial licensing (application) fee of $25.00, submitted by all applicants regardless of facility type (WY Child Care Licensing Rules, Chapter 2 'Licensing Process,' Section 9(a), effective April 2026). NOTE: the draft's $50.00 figure reflects the superseded 2012/2014 rules (then Ch.3 Sec.7); the current .gov rule sets the fee at $25.00.

    Include your parent handbook, staff policies, enrollment forms, and operations manual — inspectors ask for these at the initial visit.

  6. Pass the licensing inspection

    Schedule and pass your pre-licensing inspection. A minimum of 2 licensing inspections per facility per year — one annual unannounced and one annual announced (Ch. 2 Section 5(a); confirmed by the DFS Child Care Licensing FAQ: 'a minimum of 2 visits to each facility per year. One visit is unannounced and one visit is scheduled'). Additional scheduled or unscheduled visits may occur for compliance monitoring, technical assistance, complaint investigation, or follow-up (Ch. 2 Section 5(b),(d)). Annual fire, food-safety, and health/sanitation inspections are also required (Ch. 2 Section 5(c)). Statutory right of entry/inspection: W.S. § 14-4-107. Licenses are renewed periodically with a renewal fee due upon expiration of the current license (Ch. 2 Section 9(b); statute frames continuation fees as due on the anniversary date per W.S. § 14-4-104(e)).

    The inspector checks ratios, square footage, sanitation, emergency preparedness, and your written policies against the regulations.

  7. Open your doors

    Once your license is issued, you can legally begin caring for children under Wyoming rules. Maintain the staff-to-child ratios at all times: Infants (birth to 12 months) 1:4 (1 staff); 2:8 (2 staff); 3:10 max group size, One-year-olds 1:5 (1 staff); 2:10 (2 staff); 3:12 max group size, Two-year-olds 1:8 (1 staff); 2:16 (2 staff); 3:18 max group size, Three- and four-year-olds 1:12 (1 staff); 2:24 (2 staff); 3:30 max group size, School age (5+ years) 1:18 (1 staff); 2:32 (2 staff); 3:40 max group size, Mixed Age Option 1 1 staff: 1:8, no more than 2 infants and 2 one-year-olds. 2 staff: 2:15, no more than 4 infants / 4 one-year-olds / 4 two-year-olds / 3 three-year-olds or older, Mixed Age Option 2 1 staff: 1:10, no more than 2 children under age 2, Water/swimming — infants & toddlers (birth to 36 months) 1:1 while in the water (adult in direct physical contact with infants; not more than an arm's length from one-year-olds), Water/swimming — three to four years old 1:4 while in the water, Water/swimming — five years or older 1:6 while in the water

    Keep certifications current and your handbook updated — these are the items most often cited at renewal.

  8. Enroll families

    Use your compliant enrollment paperwork to bring in families. A complete, Wyoming-specific parent handbook signals professionalism and keeps you inspection-ready from day one.

    Required enrollment and admission forms must be signed before a child's first day — have them ready before you advertise open spots.

What You Need to Apply in Wyoming

Wyoming licensing requires these documents and forms at the initial application and inspection.

  • DFS-205 — Facility Staff Record (owner/director/staff/employees/household members/substitutes/volunteers; name/DOB, qualifications, training, and background-check results) — Ch. 11 Section 6(c)
  • CCL-605 (or equivalent) — Serious Injury/Illness Report (incidents resulting in medical care; reportable to Licensing within 24 hours and filed on CCL-605 within 3 days) — Ch. 11 Section 7(a)(ii)
  • Child Care License Application packet (initial license; submitted to the local DFS Child Care Licenser; includes a $25 application fee) — Ch. 2 Section 2 (Application Process)
  • Request for Renewal of a License (with $25 renewal fee) — Ch. 2 Section 9 (Licensure Fees) & Ch. 2 Section 10 (Renewal of a License)
  • Wyoming Department of Health immunization record / approved Religious or Medical Waiver Request form (child immunization documentation and exemptions) — Ch. 11 Section 16(f); statutory basis W.S. § 14-4-116
  • Allergy emergency care plan (Ch. 11 Section 16(c)) and special-health-care-needs care plan (Ch. 11 Section 16(d)), documented in the child's record (Ch. 11 Section 6(d)(viii))

Staff-to-child ratios you must maintain

Wyoming requires these maximum staff-to-child ratios, enforced by the Wyoming Department of Family Services (DFS), Child Care Licensing: Infants (birth to 12 months) 1:4 (1 staff); 2:8 (2 staff); 3:10 max group size, One-year-olds 1:5 (1 staff); 2:10 (2 staff); 3:12 max group size, Two-year-olds 1:8 (1 staff); 2:16 (2 staff); 3:18 max group size, Three- and four-year-olds 1:12 (1 staff); 2:24 (2 staff); 3:30 max group size, School age (5+ years) 1:18 (1 staff); 2:32 (2 staff); 3:40 max group size, Mixed Age Option 1 1 staff: 1:8, no more than 2 infants and 2 one-year-olds. 2 staff: 2:15, no more than 4 infants / 4 one-year-olds / 4 two-year-olds / 3 three-year-olds or older, Mixed Age Option 2 1 staff: 1:10, no more than 2 children under age 2, Water/swimming — infants & toddlers (birth to 36 months) 1:1 while in the water (adult in direct physical contact with infants; not more than an arm's length from one-year-olds), Water/swimming — three to four years old 1:4 while in the water, Water/swimming — five years or older 1:6 while in the water.

Skip the 80-hour paperwork grind

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The inspector asks for a parent handbook, staff policies, enrollment forms, and an operations manual — all Wyoming-specific. The TotReady Startup Bundle gives you every document you need to apply, ready to customize in about 30 minutes.

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Starting a Daycare in Wyoming: FAQs

Do I need a license to start a daycare in Wyoming?
A Wyoming child care license is required when caring for more than two children who are not related to the caregiver; care for no more than two unrelated children is exempt, as are care by legal parents/relatives, occasional (non-regular) neighbor or friend care, parent cooperatives, in-home care by a hired employee, state/local government and school-district programs, certain ranch/farm care, nonprofit summer camps, facilities serving only one immediate family unit, and qualifying after-school programs (Wyoming Dept. of Family Services, 'Who Needs to be Licensed'; W.S. 14-4-101 et seq.).
How much does it cost to get a daycare license in Wyoming?
Wyoming charges a nonrefundable initial licensing (application) fee of $25.00, submitted by all applicants regardless of facility type (WY Child Care Licensing Rules, Chapter 2 'Licensing Process,' Section 9(a), effective April 2026). NOTE: the draft's $50.00 figure reflects the superseded 2012/2014 rules (then Ch.3 Sec.7); the current .gov rule sets the fee at $25.00. Renewal: Wyoming charges a nonrefundable license renewal fee of $25.00 for all licensed facilities, due upon the expiration date of the current license (WY Child Care Licensing Rules, Chapter 2 'Licensing Process,' Section 9(b), effective April 2026). The license is issued for a one (1) year term/period (Chapter 2, Sections 4 and 8), not a biennial cycle; the draft's 'biennial (two-year) licensure cycle' characterization could not be confirmed and conflicts with the one-year-license language in the current rules (the two-year 'biennium' applies to staff training cycles, not the license term).
Who issues daycare licenses in Wyoming?
Childcare licensing in Wyoming is handled by the Wyoming Department of Family Services (DFS), Child Care Licensing. You apply to this agency, pay the licensing fee, and schedule your inspection through them.
What training do I need before opening a daycare in Wyoming?
Contact your Wyoming licensing office to confirm.

Keep researching Wyoming

Wyoming Licensing Requirements

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License-Exemption Thresholds by State

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Licensing Fees by State

Application and renewal fee data for every state we track.

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Licensing rules change. The figures above are compiled from Wyoming statutes and agency materials and are provided for informational purposes only — always verify current requirements with the Wyoming Department of Family Services (DFS), Child Care Licensing before applying. TotReady provides information and document templates, not legal advice.