Daycare / Child Care Center Permit Requirements in Aberdeen, SD

1. EIN (Employer Identification Number)

   Required if you have employees or operate as an LLC or corporation. Free from the IRS.

   Official government source

   Free·Immediate (online application)

   Free

   Immediate (online application)

1. South Dakota Department of Revenue - Sales Tax License

   Any business with a physical presence in South Dakota must be licensed for sales tax collection, and South Dakota taxes services as well as tangible personal property and products transferred electronically. The state sales and use tax rate is 4.2 percent (reduced from 4.5 percent), and municipal sales and use tax of generally 1 to 2 percent applies where the purchaser receives the product or service. Remote sellers and marketplace providers with more than $100,000 in gross sales into South Dakota in the previous or current calendar year must also license and remit. Register using the Department of Revenue's online Tax License Application.

   Official government source

   Free - there is no fee for a South Dakota sales tax license·Apply online through the Tax License Application; the license is typically issued within a few business days

   Free - there is no fee for a South Dakota sales tax license

   Apply online through the Tax License Application; the license is typically issued within a few business days

2. South Dakota Child Care Provider Background Screening

   Federal law (45 CFR 98.43) requires all registered and licensed child care providers, and informal and in-home providers receiving Child Care and Development Fund money, to complete in-state and out-of-state background screenings covering staff, volunteers, and household members age 18 and over. In-state screenings cover the SD central registry of child abuse and neglect, the SD sex offender registry, an NCIC check, and a state criminal record repository search; out-of-state central registry and criminal record checks are required for every state a person has lived in during the previous five years. In-state screenings must be repeated every five years.

   Official government source

   Free to the provider - SD DSS states providers do not need to submit payment and that 'DSS will pay any fees required'; the central registry and state repository searches carry no fee·A central registry screening averages 5-7 business days from receipt; out-of-state screenings take longer and vary by state

   Free to the provider - SD DSS states providers do not need to submit payment and that 'DSS will pay any fees required'; the central registry and state repository searches carry no fee

   A central registry screening averages 5-7 business days from receipt; out-of-state screenings take longer and vary by state

1. South Dakota Department of Social Services - Child Care License

   Child care centers and group family day care programs in South Dakota must be licensed before operating, regardless of funding source, by the Department of Social Services' Office of Licensing and Accreditation / Child Care Services (800-227-3020). The governing law is SDCL ch. 26-6 (Children's Homes and Welfare Agencies), with health and safety rules in ARSD 67:42:17 (child care licensing) and construction requirements in ARSD 61:15:05 (day care centers) and ARSD 61:15:06 (group family). Licensing requires a floor plan review, background screening for everyone 18 and older in the program, compliance with staff-to-child ratios, and health and fire safety inspections; programs are inspected each year. The licensing process is started through the OLA Provider Portal. Aberdeen also licenses day care separately through its City Finance Office (Auditor Division, 605-626-7023), which is on the city's short list of licensed activities.

   Official government source

   SD DSS publishes no child care license application fee, and the state pays for the required background screenings - the department states that providers 'do not need to submit payment if there is a fee indicated. DSS will pay any fees required.' The South Dakota central registry and criminal record repository searches are themselves free.·Background screening results are returned in an average of 5-7 business days. Overall licensing time depends on floor plan review, background screening, and passing health and fire safety inspections; contact Child Care Services at 800-227-3020 for current timelines.

   SD DSS publishes no child care license application fee, and the state pays for the required background screenings - the department states that providers 'do not need to submit payment if there is a fee indicated. DSS will pay any fees required.' The South Dakota central registry and criminal record repository searches are themselves free.

   Background screening results are returned in an average of 5-7 business days. Overall licensing time depends on floor plan review, background screening, and passing health and fire safety inspections; contact Child Care Services at 800-227-3020 for current timelines.

2. No Aberdeen General Business License Required

   Aberdeen does not issue a general business license. The City Finance Office (Auditor Division, 605-626-7023) issues licenses only for a specific enumerated list of activities: ambulance driver, ambulance service, garbage hauler, community event, day care, junk dealer, lottery notice, mobile home park, pawn broker, street use, shooting gallery, special event alcohol, taxi/motorbus company, taxi/motorbus driver, transient merchant/solicitor, and alcohol. Trades such as plumbing, HVAC, and pest control are not on that list and need no city business license. Their state-level licensing applies instead: plumbing through the SD Plumbing Commission, pesticide application through SD DANR, and there is no statewide HVAC or mechanical contractor license. A South Dakota sales tax license from the Department of Revenue is still required.

   Official government source

   $0 - no general business license exists·N/A - no application

   $0 - no general business license exists

   N/A - no application

3. City of Aberdeen Building and Fire Safety Inspection

   A child care center in Aberdeen is inspected by the City of Aberdeen Building Inspection Department (123 S. Lincoln St., 3rd floor, 605-626-7017), which enforces the 2018 International Building, Existing Building, Mechanical, Property Maintenance and Residential Codes, the 2015 South Dakota version of the Uniform Plumbing Code, and the 2009 ANSI accessibility standard, together with the Aberdeen Fire Department for fire and life-safety items. Brown County has no inspection role inside city limits. These inspections support the state child care license issued by SD Department of Social Services.

   Official government source

   Valuation-based under the city's published 2026 Building Fee Schedule: $35 for work valued at $500 or less; $87.50 plus $12.41 per additional $1,000 of value from $2,001 to $25,000. The city notes posted amounts are approximate.·Applications are made in person at the Building Inspection office in City Hall; contact 605-626-7017 for current review and inspection scheduling

   Valuation-based under the city's published 2026 Building Fee Schedule: $35 for work valued at $500 or less; $87.50 plus $12.41 per additional $1,000 of value from $2,001 to $25,000. The city notes posted amounts are approximate.

   Applications are made in person at the Building Inspection office in City Hall; contact 605-626-7017 for current review and inspection scheduling

Official Sources

• South Dakota Department of Social Services — Child Care Facility License
• City of Aberdeen City Finance Office

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