District of Columbia Childcare Center Director License Requirements
What the state board actually requires: fees, renewal cycle, and requirements from official records.
Manages childcare facilities providing care for young children.
What the District of Columbia data shows for Childcare Center Directors
District of Columbia's path to childcare center director licensure runs through 69 hours of approved instruction with no mandatory state exam, plus a criminal history screening before applicants younger than 18 can be licensed. District of Columbia folds the credential into its broader occupational licensing statute, which classifies the training track as "Education or Training Requirements".
Budget $125 to get started, plus $97 at each renewal on a 2-year cycle. The license also carries an ongoing 24-hour continuing-education requirement per 2-year cycle that adds to the true cost of staying licensed.
For childcare center directors, the reciprocity picture is: Not typically reciprocal.
Licensing Ease Score
A higher score means this specific license is LESS burdensome to obtain and maintain here than the national requirement corpus, based on education hours, fees, continuing education, and experience requirements, not an overall judgment of the profession or the state.
Licensing Requirements in District of Columbia
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Frequently Asked Questions
What license do I need for Childcare Center Director in District of Columbia? ▼
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Related Guides
What to do with this childcare center director license
Childcare Center Director in District of Columbia, with a documented reciprocity path, is one requirement row in a childcare center director-wide, 50-state comparison.
- See how District of Columbia's childcare center director requirements compare to every other state before relocating. Childcare Center Director in every state
- Confirm whether your out-of-state childcare center director license transfers under an interstate compact before starting a new application. Reciprocity guide
- See how District of Columbia's overall licensing burden compares to other states, not just this one profession. District of Columbia overview
Requirements shown are compiled from NCSL and Institute for Justice research; verify current rules with the District of Columbia licensing board before making career decisions.
Source: NCSL Occupational Licensing Database, Institute for Justice License to Work (3rd Ed.), state licensing board websites
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures and the Institute for Justice, the PlainCredential comparison corpus (current as of May 15, 2026) maps 4,947 state licensing requirement records; see the methodology.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.