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12 permits · verified 2026-10-02

What permits do you need to open a childcare centre in Dekalb County Ga?

In short

A childcare centre in Dekalb County Ga, GA has 5 permits that apply to every business of this type, plus 7 more that depend on your premises, signage or how you are set up. DeKalb County Department of Planning & Sustainability, Zoning Division charges $400 flat, per SLUP application for the special land use permit (slup) - childcare / personal care home. 6 of the 12 are charged as a range or formula rather than a flat fee. Verified 2026-10-02 against the issuing agencies’ published fee schedules.

Permits particular to a childcare centre in Dekalb County Ga

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Special Land Use Permit (SLUP) - Childcare / Personal Care Homeonly if it applies to youDeKalb County Department of Planning & Sustainability, Zoning Division$400 flat, per SLUP applicationper application2026-10-02
Child Care Learning Centre LicenseBright from the Start: Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning$50–$250 a year, banded by licensed capacitythe license runs one year and the fee recurs annually2026-09-03

Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.

Local permits that apply to every type of business in Dekalb County Ga

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Business and Occupational Tax CertificateDeKalb County Department of Planning & Sustainability, Business & Alcohol License OfficeVaries — formula on the Dekalb County Ga pageannual, calendar year2026-10-02
Building Permitonly if it applies to youDeKalb County Department of Planning & Sustainability, Permits, Plan Review & Inspections DivisionVaries — formula on the Dekalb County Ga pageper project2026-10-02
Septic / Land Use Permitonly if it applies to youDeKalb Public Health (DKPH), Environmental Health DivisionVaries — formula on the Dekalb County Ga pageper project2026-10-02
Certificate of OccupancyDeKalb County Department of Planning & Sustainability, Permits, Plan Review & Inspections DivisionVaries — formula on the Dekalb County Ga pagenot applicable (one-time, before a new commercial business license is processed)2026-10-02
Commercial Sanitation Account and Dumpster Prepayment FeeDeKalb County Department of Public Works, Sanitation DivisionVaries — formula on the Dekalb County Ga pageone-time account setup and dumpster prepayment, then ongoing monthly collection service2026-10-02

Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.

GA registrations that apply to every type of business

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Sales and Use Tax Certificate of RegistrationGeorgia Department of Revenue, Taxpayer Services DivisionNo feeno renewal — valid until cancelled, suspended or revoked2026-09-03
General Business License — Georgia state position (local occupation tax certificate)only if it applies to youGeorgia Secretary of State, Corporations DivisionNo feeset by the issuing city or county, usually annual2026-09-03
Articles of Incorporationonly if it applies to youGeorgia Secretary of State, Corporations Division$110 one-time — $100 filing fee plus a $10 service chargeno expiry, but an annual registration is due each year2026-09-03
Articles of Organization (LLC)only if it applies to youGeorgia Secretary of State, Corporations Division$110 one-time — $100 filing fee plus a $10 service chargeno expiry, but an annual registration is due each year2026-09-03
Annual Registrationonly if it applies to youGeorgia Secretary of State, Corporations Division$60 a year — $50 plus a $10 service charge; $40 for a nonprofitannual — filed between 1 January and 1 April2026-09-03

Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.

How much does it actually cost to permit a childcare centre in Dekalb County Ga?

There is no single figure, and any site quoting one is rounding away the part that matters. Of the 12 records listed for a childcare centre in Dekalb County Ga, GA, 5 apply to every business of this type and 7 are conditional. Adding every fee on the page together would overstate what most operators pay, because it would include permits they never need.

6 of the 12 are charged as a range or a formula set by the issuing agency, and 2 have no fee published at all. The ones particular to this business that vary:

Child Care Learning Centre License: $50–$250 a year, banded by licensed capacity

The other 5 variable fees belong to permits that apply to every type of business here; their formulas are set out on the Dekalb County Ga permits page and the GA state page.

Which offices issue these permits in Dekalb County Ga?

Permits for a childcare centre in Dekalb County Ga, GA come from 8 separate offices: DeKalb County Department of Planning & Sustainability, Business & Alcohol License Office, DeKalb County Department of Planning & Sustainability, Permits, Plan Review & Inspections Division, DeKalb Public Health (DKPH), Environmental Health Division, DeKalb County Department of Planning & Sustainability, Zoning Division, DeKalb County Department of Public Works, Sanitation Division, Georgia Department of Revenue, Taxpayer Services Division, Georgia Secretary of State, Corporations Division, Bright from the Start: Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning. No single office issues them all, which is why an opening means filing in several places rather than one.

What does a childcare centre need in Dekalb County Ga that other businesses do not?

2 of the 2 permits particular to a childcare centre here apply to no other business type we cover in Dekalb County Ga: Special Land Use Permit (SLUP) - Childcare / Personal Care Home and Child Care Learning Centre License.

Special Land Use Permit (SLUP) - Childcare / Personal Care Home

A Personal Care Home (including a Community Living Arrangement) or a Child Care Institution serving 4-6 persons with no new construction needs a Special Land Use Permit ('SLUP PCH-CCI 4-6') from the Zoning Division, in unincorporated DeKalb County, before a business license issues — a zoning-level requirement separate from, and in addition to, the state DECAL childcare license. The county's own Business Registration Application Check List independently corroborates this from a second document: its 'Day Cares, Personal Care Homes' row marks a Special Administrative Permit (SAP) as required, the same zoning-level control point. The $400 flat fee is published in the 'Planning Fee Schedule' section of the county's 2026 Permit Fee Schedule (last updated 6/8/2026); neither SLUP checklist document itself states a dollar figure, and no separate, higher fee specific to the childcare/PCH-CCI subtype is published.

Child Care Learning Centre License

Five bands — $50 up to twenty-five children, then $100, $150, $200 and $250 above two hundred — and that annual fee is the whole cost: the rule creates no separate application fee and no separate renewal fee, and the words application fee appear nowhere in the chapter. A centre is any place taking seven or more children for pay; a family child care learning home, three to six children in a private residence, pays a flat $50. Georgia has only those two categories — the old group day care home was folded into the centre license, so a home programme with seven children is licensed and priced as a centre. Miss the payment date and the department may add a late fee of up to $250, and thirty days after that it must revoke the license.

The other 5 local permits in the tables apply to every type of business in Dekalb County Ga, GA; what each one involves is set out on the Dekalb County Ga permits page. The 5 state-level registrations apply to every type of business across GA and are covered on the GA state page.

How does a childcare centre compare with other businesses in Dekalb County Ga?

The closest match is a auto repair shop, which shares 0 of these permits. A childcare centre also needs Special Land Use Permit (SLUP) - Childcare / Personal Care Home and Child Care Learning Centre License. A auto repair shop needs Automotive Repair Shop License — Georgia state position, which a childcare centre does not.

Permits particular to each business type in Dekalb County Ga, GA, compared with a childcare centre
BusinessIts own permitsShared with a childcare centreOnly a childcare centre needsOnly it needs
Auto repair shops1021
Coffee shops6026
Contractors and trades3023
Fitness studios1021
Food trucks5025
Restaurants7027
Retail stores2022
Salons and barbers2022
Veterinary clinics1021

Sources

Every figure for the permits explained on this page was read from one of these government pages on the date shown. Sources for the permits that apply to every type of business are listed on the Dekalb County Ga permits page and the GA state page. Confirmed by Editorial Team.

  1. DeKalb County 2026 Building/Development Services Fee Schedule (last updated 6/8/2026), including the Planning Fee Schedule (SLUP fee) sectionDeKalb County Department of Planning & Sustainability · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-02
  2. DeKalb County Zoning pageDeKalb County Department of Planning & Sustainability · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-02
  3. Special Land Use Permit (SLUP) PCH-CCI 4-6 Application Checklist 2026DeKalb County Department of Planning & Sustainability · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-02
  4. DeKalb County Business Registration Application Check List — read directly from a rendered image of the icon-coded matrixDeKalb County Department of Planning & Sustainability · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-02
  5. Georgia Comp. R. & Regs. rule 591-1-1-.16 — child care learning centre license fees by capacityBright from the Start: Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-03
  6. Georgia Comp. R. & Regs. chapter 290-2-3 — family child care learning home license feeBright from the Start: Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-03

Related

Commercial Compliance Hub publishes information, not legal advice. Requirements change — confirm anything you rely on with the issuing agency before you file.