A Legally Exempt child care provider is an unlicensed, informal child care provider who cares for up to two (2) children and receives payment from the local Department of Social Services.    

 A parent may choose a family member, friend, or neighbor to care for their child(ren). Only two (2) non-related children are allowed to be in care at any one time.  Individuals caring for more than two (2) non-related children are required by the New York State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) to obtain a registration or license to care for children. 

Legally exempt child care may be an appropriate option for parents who have special child care needs such as care needed during non-traditional hours, evenings, overnights or weekends, transportation issues, etc.

Beginning the Legally-Exempt Child Care Process

To start the process for using a legally-exempt child care provider, the parent must apply for child care assistance through the Niagara County Department of Social Services by calling 716-439-7656 to obtain a child care assistance application.   To see if you may be eligible for child care assistance, please reference the income eligibility guidelines for child care assistance included below by clicking the link under “Important Information Regarding Payment Assistance”.  Once the parent is approved for assistance by the department of social services, the parent must then choose a child care provider.  This provider can be a family member, friend, neighbor or someone who the parent feels comfortable caring for their child(ren).

Once the provider is chosen, the parent and the provider must complete a legally-exempt enrollment packet together. The Legally-exempt enrollment packet will be mailed to the parent from the Niagara County Department of Social Services upon request.  Once completed the enrollment packet is sent to the Community Child Care Clearinghouse of Niagara located at 1521 Main Street, Niagara Falls, NY 14305.  The legally-exempt enrollment packet can be mailed or delivered in person to the Community Child Care Clearinghouse of Niagara.

If there are any questions or assistance is needed with completing the legally-exempt enrollment packet, please contact the Community Child Care Clearinghouse of Niagara at 716-285-8572 to speak to a legally-exempt enrollment staff who will assist you with completing the legally-exempt enrollment packet. 

Legally-Exempt Child Care Provider Required Clearances

Relative providers who fall within the following relative categories: Grandparent, Great Grandparent, Aunt, Uncle and Sibling of the child living in a separate residence require clearances to ensure that there was never a Termination of Parental Rights (TPR) or a temporary court ordered removal of a child from their custody (Article 10 removal) and a New York State Sex Offender Registry check.

Non-relative legally-exempt child care providers include anyone not listed above in the relative category.  Non-relative legally-exempt child care providers require the following clearances in order to be enrolled: a State and Federal criminal history background check, a State Central Register Clearance (SCR) which checks for founded cases of child abuse or maltreatment, a Staff Exclusion List (SEL) check which checks for founded cases of abuse against a person with special needs and a check of the New York State Sex Offender Registry. 

 Once the provider is approved the Niagara County Department of Social Services will mail the legally-exempt child care provider forms that must be completed and returned to the Niagara Count Department of Social Services in order for the legally-exempt child care provider to obtain a vendor number which is required for the provider to be paid from the Niagara County Department of Social services.   All payment issues and questions must be directed to the Niagara County Department of Social Services.   The Community Child Care Clearinghouse of Niagara cannot answer questions related to child care payment.