How to buy a daycare in Alberta: licences, ownership rules and what transfers

If you want to buy a daycare in Alberta, the first thing to learn is that the licence is held by a licence holder, and the Act does not let that holder transfer it. Alberta’s Early Learning and Child Care Act (the King’s Printer consolidation current as of September 30, 2025) says no person may offer or provide child care to more than 6 children, not including the person’s own children, except in accordance with a facility-based licence. The Act is administered through a statutory director, and Alberta.ca names Childcare Connect as the office to notify in writing of share ownership changes. How you structure the purchase decides whether the existing licence stays in place or you must apply for your own. This page covers Alberta’s rules only; check any other province’s rules separately.

What the Alberta Act requires of a licence holder

Section 3 of Alberta’s Act is the starting point: the licence requirement applies once a program cares for more than 6 children, not counting the operator’s own. Alberta.ca’s licensing page repeats the same threshold in plain language. Under section 4(1), an application for a facility-based licence may be made by an adult or a corporation, so a buyer can apply as an individual or through a company. Section 7 then adds the rule that matters most in a sale: a facility-based licence is not transferable by the licence holder to any other person.

Asset sale: you become a new licence holder

Alberta’s Affordability Grant page explains that the sale of a licensed childcare program will generally be structured as either an asset sale or a share sale. An asset sale is a transfer of ownership between different legal entities, such as sole proprietors, corporations, or a mix of both, and it results in a change of licence holder. That page says a new licence application is required in that case. Because section 7 bars the seller from handing the licence over, plan the closing around your own application rather than assuming the seller’s licence comes with the equipment and the lease. Ask the seller’s licensing officer how the timing works before you finalize anything.

Share sale: same licence holder, notices still apply

In a share sale, shareholders or corporate officers change while the same legal entity stays the licence holder. The Affordability Grant page says the current licence and Affordability Grant agreement remain in place in that structure, that the grant recipient must immediately notify the Affordability Grant Team of any change in shareholders or directors, and that Childcare Connect must be notified in writing of share ownership changes within 15 days of the share transfer. Separately, section 7.1 of the Act says that where a corporation holds a facility-based licence and its directors or officers change, the licence holder must notify the statutory director in writing within 15 days of the change. A share purchase also means you take on the company as it stands, so confirm what the corporation owes and has promised.

Funding agreements do not come with the sale

Alberta’s Affordability Grant page states that funding agreements, meaning subsidy, the Affordability Grant and wage top-ups, are not transferable to the new licence holder in an asset sale. The new licence holder will be eligible to sign a new Affordability Grant agreement if there is no gap in service and the new program stays within the established funded licensed space capacity. The page also says no new Affordability Grants will be issued for sales from non-profit entities to for-profit entities, and that if the Affordability Grant is in place following a sale, new owners cannot raise childcare fees beyond those set by the previous licence holder as part of their grant agreement. It asks anyone planning to purchase an existing program to contact Childcare Connect to confirm eligibility for the Affordability Grant. If the seller’s revenue depends on any of these agreements, ask Alberta’s licensing and funding contacts what applies to your purchase before you rely on that income.

Where Alberta sends buyers and sellers

For licensing changes such as a change in ownership, a sale of shares or a sale of corporation assets, Alberta.ca directs readers to Part 1, Step 9 of the Licensing handbook. Read that step before you sign a purchase agreement, and tell the licensing officer what structure you intend to use. The Affordability Grant page also advises licence holders to contact their licensing officers before finalizing an asset sale so the sale complies with provincial legislation and regulations. For the wider picture of permits in an Alberta sale, see licences and permits in an Alberta business sale.

What to ask the seller for

• A copy of the current facility-based licence, with the name of the licence holder as it appears on it, so you know whether you are buying shares or assets.
• The funding agreements the program holds, and the seller’s account of how they would be affected by a change of licence holder.
• If the licence holder is a corporation, a list of current directors and officers and any notice already given to the statutory director or Childcare Connect.
• Any correspondence with the licensing officer about the sale, including the Licensing handbook steps the seller has already followed.
• The seller’s plan for its CRA payroll account: the CRA’s page on selling a business says that if the business being sold has employees, the seller must close the payroll account. Ask your accountant how that applies to the structure you choose.

If you are comparing opportunities, browse daycares for sale, and see buying a daycare business in Canada for the national picture.