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A daycare place from age one, and how to get it

Every child in Germany has a legal right to a daycare place from its first birthday, in a Kita or with a childminder. What you pay depends on your state and town. Apply months ahead, because in Berlin and Hamburg a voucher comes before the Kita.
Written by
Janine El-Saghir
Reviewed by
Erkan Boga

Kita in Germany: at a glance
  • From the first birthday your child has a legal right to a place, in a Kita or with a childminder. From the third birthday, the right is to a Kita place.
  • Fees depend on your state and town. Berlin charges only a meal share, Hamburg five free hours a day. Elsewhere fees are staggered, often by income, and some states waive them fully or partly.
  • Apply months ahead. In Berlin and Hamburg the first step is a Kita voucher, not the Kita.

Kita (Kindertagesstätte) is the German word for daycare, from the baby group (Krippe) to kindergarten. It is not part of the school system but of child and youth welfare, which is why the youth welfare office (Jugendamt) of your town is the authority to talk to. Start before you need the place. Until then, parental allowance replaces part of your income: work out the amount with the parental allowance calculator, and add your child to the family health insurance right after birth or arrival.

What German law gives your child at each age
Age Where Right
Under 1 Kita or childminder A place if the parents work, start work, look for work, are in training or studying, or if the child’s development needs it
1 to 3 Kita (Krippe) or childminder (Kindertagespflege) Legal right to a place, without proof of need
3 to school Kita (Kindergarten) Legal right to a Kita place. A childminder only on top or for special needs.
Primary school All-day school or after-school care (Hort) For children starting grade 1 from 2026/2027 on: eight hours a day on working days, lesson time included, until grade 5
Source: Social Code Book VIII, section 24, retrieved 8 November 2026.

The hours depend on your state. In Berlin the right covers up to seven hours a day without any check of need, in Hamburg five hours with lunch. Longer days are possible on application, in Berlin for example if work, training or family reasons require it.

How to find a place

  1. Contact the youth welfare office. It must tell you which places exist near you and help you choose. State law can require you to announce your need a certain time before the start.
  2. Get the voucher, where there is one. In Berlin you apply to the youth welfare office of your district at the earliest nine and ideally no later than two months before the start. In Hamburg you apply online or at the district office.
  3. Visit Kitas and sign a contract. In Berlin the Kita Navigator gives an overview of the centers, and the Kita reports the signed contract to the youth welfare office.
  4. Bring the vaccination record. Before the first day you must show proof of protection against measles: one vaccination from the first birthday, two from the second.

Group sizes are set by the states: at most 20 to 25 children per group for ages three to six and 8 to 15 for the under-threes, where a limit exists at all. Opening hours are up to each Kita and its provider.

Kita vouchers in Berlin and Hamburg

How the Kita voucher works in Berlin and Hamburg
Berlin (Kita-Gutschein) Hamburg (Kita-Gutschein)
Free hours Up to seven hours a day from the first birthday, without checking your need Five hours a day with lunch, free from birth until school (under one, a place depends on the conditions in the table above)
Cost to parents Care is free. Parents pay a meal share of €23 a month. Basic care free since August 2014. Longer hours cost a parental fee.
Where to apply Youth welfare office of your district, 9 months ahead at the earliest, ideally 2 months ahead at the latest Online or at the district office (Bezirksamt), also for the free hours
Special feature Children not in care by their third birthday get a welcome voucher by post, without applying For up to five hours, one application covers the time from the first birthday to school entry
Sources: Berlin Senate Department for Education, Youth and Family, Kita voucher, City of Hamburg, Kita voucher and parental fees, retrieved 8 November 2026.

What a Kita costs elsewhere

Outside Berlin and Hamburg, the state and the town set the fees. By law they must be staggered, for example by income, the number of children and the hours of care. Some states have made Kita fully or partly free, others the last year or years before school. If the fees are too much for you, the youth welfare office waives them on application. It always does so if you receive citizen’s income, social assistance, the child supplement (Kinderzuschlag) or housing benefit. Ask your town for its fee table before you sign, because it varies even between neighboring towns.

Kita or childminder?

A childminder (Tagesmutter or Tagesvater) cares for at most five children, at home or in rented rooms. For under-threes the legal right can be met that way. Some families add a childminder when the Kita’s opening hours do not fit their working day. From the third birthday, the right is to a place in a Kita.

How many children attend

On 1 March 2026, 37.2% of children under three and 95.3% of children aged three to six were in daycare. For the under-threes the gap between east and west is wide: 58.8% in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and 57.6% in Brandenburg, but 31.7% in Baden-Württemberg and 33.3% in Bavaria and North Rhine-Westphalia. Berlin (48.6%) and Hamburg (47.6%) sit in between.

Bottom line

If your child is one or older, ask the youth welfare office in the week you register your address, and in Berlin or Hamburg apply for the voucher straight away. Keep the vaccination record ready for the first day.

Part of education in Germany. Next step at six: school enrollment. Plan ahead: children’s savings plans.

Frequently Asked Questions

Go back to the youth welfare office. It has to inform you about the places in your area and help you choose, and from the first birthday your child has a legal right to a place. For an under-three, a place with a childminder also fulfills that right, so ask about childminders as well.

Not in general. But Bavaria tests every child’s German one and a half years before school, and a child whose German is found too weak must attend a Kita with the 240-hour German course (Vorkurs Deutsch) from the start of the last Kita year. In Berlin and Brandenburg a child whose school start is deferred must attend a pre-school program.

No. The youth welfare office waives the fees on application if you receive housing benefit, the child supplement, basic income support (formerly citizen’s income) or social assistance. The office also has to tell you about this option.

Sources (as of 8 November 2026)

Sources (as of 8 November 2026)

  1. Social Code Book VIII (SGB VIII), section 24: the right to a place in daycare, information by the youth welfare office, all-day care for primary pupils, and section 90: staggered fees and waivers (in German).
  2. Berlin Senate Department for Education, Youth and Family, Kita voucher (in German).
  3. City of Hamburg, Kita voucher and parental fees (in German).
  4. Eurydice, European Commission, Germany: centre-based early childhood education, home-based provision and funding and fees.
  5. Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), childcare rates by state on 1 March 2026 (in German).
  6. Infection Protection Act (IfSG), section 20: proof of measles protection (in German); Bavarian Ministry of Education, German language assessment before school (in German).
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About the authors
Janine El-Saghir Janine El Saghir is an editor at How-to-Germany.com, where she specializes in the practical aspects of daily life and integration for expatriates. With years of...
Erkan Boga Erkan Boga is the founder and CEO of qmedia GmbH, the publishing house behind How-to-Germany.com. He established the platform with the clear vision of creating... Read more