Coming from abroad (or even elsewhere in Germany), you may be wondering how much it costs to send your kid to daycare. The answer is: It’s free in Berlin! 🥳 Well, almost 😉
Since August 1, 2018 all kids from 1 year old are entitled to a daycare spot of 5-7 hours a day at a Kindertagesstätte (Kita) or Tagespflege/Tagesmutter. There’s a couple of requirements:
You and your kid need to be registered in Berlin
You are the legal guardian of your child and all legal guardians agree to the child attending daycare
While the city subsidizes the daycare costs via a voucher system, you will need to pay €23 per month per child for lunches, which are served at Kita. There is some exemptions for families with lower incomes.
In addition, Kitas are allowed to charge up to €90 extra per month to cover regular additional expenses such as organic food, language or sports classes. (The occasional excursion is not covered by this.) If your child is attending a Kita, you may request not to pay these extra fees. However, if your child attends a Kinderladen/Elterninitiative, you can not opt out of these fees.
Ask about any extra charges when you visit a Kita. They will also be detailed in your contract.
We often get the question if there are also any private Kitas in Berlin. The answer is in this article.
So, all in all, we’re in a very lucky situation that daycare is (almost) free! So go ahead and start searching for Kitas in your neighborhood today.
