Childcare - Registration

Are you looking for a childcare place for your child in daycare or a nursery? This way! Find out as early as possible from the daycare center or childminder of your choice or from your local youth welfare office whether there are any childcare places available at the center or childminder of your choice.

Text last updated: 2024-07-09

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Simply explained

Every child in North Rhine-Westphalia has a legal right to a childcare place in a daycare facility or in childminding from the age of one until the age of three and a right to a childcare place in a daycare facility from the age of three.
Your local youth welfare office is responsible for ensuring this entitlement. The placement of a childcare place in a childcare facility or daycare center therefore takes place in cooperation with the youth welfare office responsible for you.

The registration or admission process varies depending on which municipality or city you live in. Please notify the youth welfare office in writing or electronically of your child's desired care needs, the desired scope of care and the type of care at least six months before the start of the desired care.

Good to know

All children from the age of one are entitled to early childhood support in a daycare center or with a childminder (Section 24 (2) of Book Eight of the German Social Code (SGB VIII)).

The last two years of childcare before the child starts school are generally free of charge in North Rhine-Westphalia.

A childcare place can be used regardless of your place of residence in another municipality, but without any legal entitlement.

The application for a childcare place is independent of the age of the child.

What I need

Please first contact the youth welfare office responsible for you and report your need for care (informal notification of need).

In the subsequent registration process, the local youth welfare office and/or the daycare facility or daycare center may request the submission of further documents (e.g. income certificates or the child's medical record).

Check claim

  • Your child is at least 1 year old, then it has a legal claim
  • You have notified the youth welfare office of your need six months in advance if possible

These costs arise

Parental contributions vary. They are set by the local providers of public youth welfare services, i.e. the youth welfare offices or the local authorities. The contributions are to be graduated. In particular, the income, the number of children of the parents and the daily care time can be taken into account as criteria for the scale.

The last two years of kindergarten before starting school are generally free of charge, § 50 Paragraph 1 KiBiz, depending on the local statutes, parents can also be free of charge beyond this.

That's how long it takes

Depending on the time of the notification of need

This must be observed

Please note the registration deadlines of the respective daycare center.
As a rule, you must notify the relevant youth welfare office in writing of your requirements at least six months before you wish to take up a place.
The youth welfare offices must confirm receipt of the notification of need to the parents after one month at the latest and at the same time inform them of the local cost contributions in accordance with Section 90 of Book Eight of the German Social Code.

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