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14 permits · verified 2026-09-09

What permits do you need to open a childcare centre in Portland?

In short

A childcare centre in Portland, OR has 5 permits that apply to every business of this type, plus 9 more that depend on your premises, signage or how you are set up. Portland Permitting & Development charges $701 flat — Change of Occupancy or Use Review Fee, charged when a space's occupancy classification or use changes without a concurrent new building permit for the change of occupancy / certificate of occupancy review. 7 of the 14 are charged as a range or formula rather than a flat fee. Verified 2026-09-09 against the issuing agencies’ published fee schedules.

Permits particular to a childcare centre in Portland

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Child Care Facility Health & Safety InspectionMultnomah County Health Department, Environmental Health ServicesBy enrollment, for a certified child care center: 1-12 children $370; 13-20 children $390; 21 or more $410. A certified family child care home is $385; a before/after-school program is $370. Where a facility participates in CACFP, kitchen inspection fees also apply: full-service kitchen $425, satellite kitchen $390, serving kitchen $345, school-program kitchen $220; consultation is $265/hour and a recheck after a failed inspection is $270.aligned with the Oregon Department of Early Learning and Care license renewal cycle — request the county inspection at least 30 days before the state license expires2026-09-09
Certified Child Care Centre LicenseOregon Department of Early Learning and Care, Child Care Licensing Division$100 plus $2 for each licensed place to open, then $2 a place each year to renew — so a sixty-child centre pays $220 then $120annual for a certified centre; two years for a registered family home2026-09-03

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 Portland

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Zoning Confirmation Letteronly if it applies to youPortland Permitting & DevelopmentVaries — formula on the Portland pageone-time, per request2026-09-09
Fire Alarm / Suppression System Permitonly if it applies to youPortland Fire & Rescue, Fire Marshal's OfficeVaries — formula on the Portland pageone-time, per system installed2026-09-09
Portland Business License Tax & Multnomah County Business Income TaxCity of Portland Revenue DivisionVaries — formula on the Portland pageannual — calendar-year filers file by April 15 (the 15th day of the 4th month after the tax year ends), matching the federal/Oregon income tax deadline; registration is due within 60 days of starting business activity in Portland or Multnomah County2026-09-09
Commercial Building PermitPortland Permitting & DevelopmentVaries — formula on the Portland pageone-time, per project2026-09-09
Change of Occupancy / Certificate of Occupancy Reviewonly if it applies to youPortland Permitting & Development$701 flat — Change of Occupancy or Use Review Fee, charged when a space's occupancy classification or use changes without a concurrent new building permitone-time, per issuance2026-09-09
Fire Safety Inspection Program — Existing Commercial OccupancyPortland Fire & Rescue, Fire Marshal's OfficeVaries — formula on the Portland pagerecurring — every two years for most commercial occupancies; annually for a state-licensed institution such as a child care centre2026-09-09

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

OR 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
Business Identification Number (payroll)only if it applies to youOregon Department of RevenueNo feeone-time registration, with quarterly reporting after that2026-09-03
Articles of Organization (LLC)only if it applies to youOregon Secretary of State, Corporation Division$100 one-time filingperpetual, but an annual report is due every year2026-09-03
Corporate Activity Tax Registrationonly if it applies to youOregon Department of RevenueNo feeone-time registration, with annual returns after that2026-09-03
Articles of Incorporationonly if it applies to youOregon Secretary of State, Corporation Division$100 one-time filingperpetual, but an annual report is due every year2026-09-03
Annual Reportonly if it applies to youOregon Secretary of State, Corporation Division$100 a year for a domestic entity; $275 for a foreign oneannual — due on the anniversary of the original filing date2026-09-03
General Business License — Oregon position (local, not state)only if it applies to youOregon Secretary of State, Corporation DivisionNo feeset by the city or county2026-09-03

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 Portland?

There is no single figure, and any site quoting one is rounding away the part that matters. Of the 14 records listed for a childcare centre in Portland, OR, 5 apply to every business of this type and 9 are conditional. Adding every fee on the page together would overstate what most operators pay, because it would include permits they never need.

7 of the 14 are charged as a range or a formula set by the issuing agency, and 3 have no fee published at all. The ones particular to this business that vary:

Child Care Facility Health & Safety Inspection: By enrollment, for a certified child care center: 1-12 children $370; 13-20 children $390; 21 or more $410. A certified family child care home is $385; a before/after-school program is $370. Where a facility participates in CACFP, kitchen inspection fees also apply: full-service kitchen $425, satellite kitchen $390, serving kitchen $345, school-program kitchen $220; consultation is $265/hour and a recheck after a failed inspection is $270.

Certified Child Care Centre License: $100 plus $2 for each licensed place to open, then $2 a place each year to renew — so a sixty-child centre pays $220 then $120

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

Which offices issue these permits in Portland?

Permits for a childcare centre in Portland, OR come from 7 separate offices: Portland Permitting & Development, Portland Fire & Rescue, Fire Marshal's Office, City of Portland Revenue Division, Multnomah County Health Department, Environmental Health Services, Oregon Department of Revenue, Oregon Department of Early Learning and Care, Child Care Licensing Division, Oregon Secretary of State, Corporation Division. 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 Portland 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 Portland: Child Care Facility Health & Safety Inspection and Certified Child Care Centre License.

Child Care Facility Health & Safety Inspection

Distinct from and additional to the Oregon Department of Early Learning and Care's own state child care license — Multnomah County Environmental Health performs the health, safety and sanitation inspection a Portland child care centre or family home needs before the state license can be issued or renewed. Easy to miss because it is filed with the county health department rather than the state licensing agency.

Certified Child Care Centre License

The fee scales with capacity and has no ceiling, so it grows in a straight line — $220 to open a sixty-child centre and $120 a year afterwards, $300 and $200 for a hundred children. There are three license types rather than two: a certified centre on this annual capacity-scaled fee; a certified family child care home for up to sixteen children, also annual; and a registered family child care home in the provider's own residence for up to ten children, of whom at most six may be preschool age and at most two under two years, which runs two years for a flat $30 and may be reduced for applicants below the federal poverty level. The fee is the small part of the cost. Before a license issues you need a fire marshal inspection, a county environmental health inspection, a floor plan review, lead testing of the drinking water with fixtures retested every six years, and background registry enrolment for every member of staff. Apply at least forty-five days before opening, and renew at least thirty days before expiry to count as timely.

The other 6 local permits in the tables apply to every type of business in Portland, OR; what each one involves is set out on the Portland permits page. The 6 state-level registrations apply to every type of business across OR and are covered on the OR state page.

How does a childcare centre compare with other businesses in Portland?

The closest match is a auto repair shop, which shares 0 of these permits. A childcare centre also needs Child Care Facility Health & Safety Inspection and Certified Child Care Centre License. A auto repair shop needs Sign & Awning Permit, Auto Repair Shop Licensing — City of Portland Position and Automotive Repair Shop — Oregon license directory position, which a childcare centre does not.

Permits particular to each business type in Portland, OR, compared with a childcare centre
BusinessIts own permitsShared with a childcare centreOnly a childcare centre needsOnly it needs
Auto repair shops3023
Coffee shops4024
Contractors and trades2022
Fitness studios1021
Food trucks6026
Restaurants4024
Retail stores1021
Salons and barbers3023
Veterinary clinics2022

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 Portland permits page and the OR state page. Confirmed by Editorial Team.

  1. Child and Adult Care Facility InspectionsMultnomah County Health Department, Environmental Health Services · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-09
  2. Oregon Department of Early Learning and Care — certified child care centre licensing and its capacity-scaled feeOregon Department of Early Learning and Care · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-03
  3. Oregon Department of Early Learning and Care — registered family child care home, $30 for a two-year licenseOregon Department of Early Learning and Care · 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.