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Apply for a Kita place and childcare

Jugendamt (youth welfare office) · legal entitlement, voucher and fees

Partly onlineDepending on the local authority

The legal entitlement to early-years support is set out in § 24 Abs. 2 SGB VIII: “A child who has completed their first year of life is entitled to early-years support in a day-care facility or in Kindertagespflege (day care with a childminder) until they complete their third year of life.” From the age of three until starting school, the entitlement continues.

New – and it is stated here because it is stated almost nowhere else yet: since 1 August 2026 there has additionally been a legal entitlement to all-day support for primary-school children. § 24 Abs. 4 SGB VIII grants it to children who “attend the first grade in the 2026/2027 school year or in the following school years”, specifically “on working days to the extent of eight hours daily”, until the start of the fifth grade.

The entitlement grows by one grade each year: in August 2029, all children in grades one to four are entitled. And it applies regardless of whether the parents are in work – unlike many Hort (after-school club) places, which used to require proof of a childcare need.

On the money side, it is worth looking at § 90 SGB VIII: cost contributions are “unreasonable to expect” – and therefore to be waived – when the family receives certain social benefits. These include Kinderzuschlag (child supplement) and Wohngeld (housing benefit), that is, benefits for families who work. Hardly anyone knows about exactly these two.

Last updated27 August 2026
Legal basis§ 24 SGB VIII · § 90 SGB VIII
VerificationChecked against gesetze-im-internet.de (consolidated version)
Written and reviewed byAndrés Sánchez Botta
Independent information website: we are not the Jugendamt (youth welfare office), not an authority and not a paid advice service – we do not submit applications on your behalf. All information comes from official sources and is explained here in plain language; binding information always comes from the competent body. This is not legal advice. Fees and procedures are regulated differently by each federal state and local authority. All information is provided without guarantee. We are neither lawyers nor tax consultants: we document official procedures and check the information against the official source – this is information, not legal or tax advice.
From age 1Legal entitlement§ 24 Abs. 2 SGB VIII
Primary school8 hrs dailyNew since 1 August 2026
ContributionDepends on incomeFederal state and local authority
ExemptionWith KinderzuschlagAlso with Wohngeld
Required documents

What you need

ID document and birth certificate of the child

For identification and to prove the age on which the entitlement depends. Where parents live apart, proof of custody or of the child's habitual residence may also be required.

Registration certificate (Meldebescheinigung) or proof of place of residence

The competent institution is the one at the child's habitual residence. If you move, clarify early which local authority becomes responsible – waiting lists are run separately, and a place does not transfer with you.

Proof of income

Payslips, tax assessment notice or benefit notices. They determine the parental contribution, which, under § 90 Abs. 1 SGB VIII, must be graded. Submit them in full: if they are missing, many local authorities initially set the maximum amount.

Notices for social benefits

The most important piece of evidence, if you have it. Notices for Bürgergeld (citizen's benefit) or Grundsicherungsgeld (basic income support benefit), Sozialhilfe (social assistance), Asylbewerberleistungen (benefits under the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act), Kinderzuschlag or Wohngeld mean, under § 90 SGB VIII, that a cost contribution is unreasonable to expect.

Proof of the scope of care

Employment contract, certificate of enrolment or proof of apprenticeship. Being in work is not a requirement for the legal entitlement itself – but it often is for an extended number of hours beyond the basic entitlement.

Step by step

How to proceed

  1. 1

    Apply early — considerably earlier than you think

    In many cities, allocation begins a year or more before the desired start date, and some portals allow a provisional registration shortly after birth. The legal entitlement exists independently of this, but a place does not come into being just because you apply for it late.

  2. 2

    Determine your need and the scope of care

    Half-day, extended or full-day, and from which date. For primary-school children, the entitlement to eight hours on working days has applied since 1 August 2026. Check whether your local authority wants fringe-time or holiday care applied for separately.

  3. 3

    Submit the application to the Jugendamt or through the portal

    Many cities use central allocation portals – Kita-Navigator, Little Bird and similar – others work with a voucher, which you redeem at the facility of your choice. Which model applies depends on the federal state and the local authority; ask the Jugendamt rather than assuming a procedure from another city.

  4. 4

    Apply expressly for exemption from the fee

    Submit notices for Kinderzuschlag, Wohngeld or basic income support benefits and apply for the waiver. Under § 90 SGB VIII the contribution is then unreasonable to expect – that is not a matter of discretion. As a rule, though, it is only checked if you submit it.

  5. 5

    Look for a place and secure confirmations in writing

    Apply to several facilities and have every confirmation and every refusal given to you in writing. These documents are the basis if you later have to enforce the entitlement.

  6. 6

    If no place is offered: assert the entitlement

    The legal entitlement is a claim against the public child and youth welfare institution, not against an individual Kita. Register the need with the Jugendamt in writing, set a deadline and ask for a written notice. It is only the notice – or the failure to offer a place – that is the trigger for further steps.

  7. 7

    Check the childcare contract before signing

    Notice periods, closure times, meal costs and additional fees are set out in the contract with the institution, not in the Jugendamt's notice. Meal costs are often charged separately and are not automatically covered by a fee waiver – ask about it specifically.

Fee information

Costs and payment

What the childcare costsAnd when it costs nothing
Legal entitlement from age 1§ 24 Abs. 2 SGB VIII
All-day primary school, since 1 August 20268 hours on working days
Parental contributionGraded by income
With Bürgergeld, Sozialhilfe or AsylbLGUnreasonable to expect
With KinderzuschlagUnreasonable to expect
With WohngeldUnreasonable to expect

You will deliberately find no nationwide euro figure here for the parental contribution: there is none. The fees are set by the federal state and the local authority, and they differ considerably between neighbouring towns – in some federal states childcare is wholly or partly free of charge, in others fees run into three figures. What federal law does prescribe is the grading: under § 90 Abs. 1 SGB VIII the cost contributions must be graded, and the provision expressly names the parents' income as the criterion. More important is the second rule, which is used far too rarely: contributions are “unreasonable to expect” – that is, to be waived – “always when” parents or children receive benefits to secure subsistence under SGB II, benefits under the third or fourth chapter of SGB XII, or benefits under §§ 2 and 3 of the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act (AsylbLG), or when the parents receive Kinderzuschlag under § 6a BKGG or Wohngeld. The last two cases concern families who work and often do not even know that their Kinderzuschlag or Wohngeld notice sets the Kita fee to zero. “Unreasonable to expect” is here not a matter of discretion but a requirement – but in practice it is only checked if you submit the notice. To be looked at separately are meal costs: they are often charged separately and are not automatically covered by the waiver.

Good to know

Important notes

Since 1 August 2026 there has been the all-day entitlement for first-graders. § 24 Abs. 4 SGB VIII, eight hours on working days, growing by one grade per year until 2029.

The all-day entitlement does not depend on being in work. Unlike many Hort places in the past, you do not need to prove a childcare need.

Kinderzuschlag or Wohngeld sets the contribution to zero. § 90 SGB VIII, and this is mandatory. Submit the notice – it is usually not checked of its own accord.

The entitlement is a claim against the child and youth welfare institution, not against a Kita. A refusal from your preferred Kita is not a refusal of your entitlement.

Register the need in writing. A wish expressed verbally on a waiting list is no proof later on. Ask for a written notice.

There is no nationwide fee. The federal state and the local authority set it; it must be graded by income. Figures from other cities do not help.

Meal costs run separately. They are not automatically covered by a fee waiver; ask about them explicitly.

Apply very early. The legal entitlement does not create a place out of thin air, and in many cities allocation runs a year in advance.

Avoid these mistakes

Common mistakes

Not knowing about the all-day entitlement. It has applied since 1 August 2026 to children in the first grade – many overviews still list it as a future plan.

Not applying for the fee waiver despite receiving Kinderzuschlag or Wohngeld. The most common avoidable loss of money on this page.

Applying to only one Kita. The entitlement exists against the institution, but the place is created at an individual facility. Apply widely.

Accepting confirmations and refusals only verbally. Without something in writing, you cannot later prove that no place was offered.

Applying only shortly before the desired start date. In many local authorities, allocation is then long since complete.

Submitting proof of income incompletely. A number of local authorities then initially set the maximum amount, and the correction takes time.

Frequently asked questions

Questions and answers

From when is my child entitled to a childcare place?

From the first birthday. § 24 Abs. 2 SGB VIII phrases it like this: “A child who has completed their first year of life is entitled to early-years support in a day-care facility or in Kindertagespflege until they complete their third year of life.” From the age of three until starting school, the entitlement continues. New since 1 August 2026 is the added entitlement to all-day support for primary-school children: eight hours on working days, initially for the first grade and then growing by one grade each year.

What exactly is the new all-day entitlement?

A separate legal entitlement under § 24 Abs. 4 SGB VIII, which began with the 2026/2027 school year. Entitled, initially, is anyone who “attends the first grade in the 2026/2027 school year or in the following school years”, and the entitlement runs from the start of school until the start of the fifth grade. The scope is stated expressly in the law: “on working days to the extent of eight hours daily”. It grows by one grade each year, so that from August 2029 all children in grades one to four are covered. And it is independent of need – whether you are in work plays no part in the entitlement.

What does the Kita cost?

This cannot be given as a nationwide figure, and any figure that claims otherwise is misleading. Parental contributions are set by the federal state and the local authority; in some federal states childcare is wholly or partly free of charge, in others fees graded by income run into three figures. What is fixed under federal law is this: under § 90 Abs. 1 SGB VIII the contributions must be graded, and the parents' income is expressly named as the criterion for this. So ask your local authority about the applicable by-law – and check first whether you are exempt anyway.

When do I not have to pay anything at all?

If you receive one of the benefits named in § 90 SGB VIII. The provision states that cost contributions are “unreasonable to expect … always when” parents or children receive benefits to secure subsistence under SGB II, benefits under the third or fourth chapter of SGB XII, or benefits under §§ 2 and 3 of the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act – or when the parents receive Kinderzuschlag under § 6a BKGG or Wohngeld. The last two cases are the most practically important and the least known, because they concern working families. Submit the notice and apply expressly for the waiver.

I am not getting a place — what can I do?

The direction matters: the entitlement is a claim against the public child and youth welfare institution, that is, the Jugendamt or the local authority, not against an individual facility. A refusal from your preferred Kita is therefore not yet a refusal of your entitlement. Register the need in writing with the Jugendamt, state the desired start date and scope, set a reasonable deadline and ask for a written notice. Collect all refusals in parallel. Whether, and with what prospects, further steps come into consideration depends on the individual case and the local situation – an advice centre or legal advice helps more with this assessment than a general statement.

Do I have to be in work?

Not for the basic entitlement. Neither the entitlement from the first birthday nor the new all-day entitlement for primary-school children requires the parents to work – the all-day entitlement is expressly designed to be independent of need. It can look different with the scope: for care hours that go beyond the basic entitlement, many local authorities require proof of working hours, training or study. That is state and local-authority law and is therefore regulated differently – ask the Jugendamt which hours you are entitled to without proof.

Voucher or portal — which applies to me?

Both exist, and which model applies depends on the federal state and the local authority. Under the voucher model the Jugendamt issues a childcare voucher for a set scope, which you redeem at the facility of your choice. Under the portal model you register the child centrally – Kita-Navigator, Little Bird and similar systems – and allocation runs through that. Some local authorities combine both or still work with direct registration at the facilities. So do not carry over a procedure from another city: the first call to the Jugendamt saves the most detours here.

What about meals and additional costs?

As a rule these run separately from the parental contribution and are charged by the institution that runs the facility. Important: a waiver of the parental contribution under § 90 SGB VIII does not automatically cover meal costs. So ask explicitly how they are calculated and whether there is a reduction. For families on low incomes, the Bildungs- und Teilhabepaket (education and participation package) may additionally be available, which can cover the communal lunch – depending on which benefit is received, the Jobcenter or the local authority is responsible for this, not the Kita.

Related official procedures

Parenting counselling (Erziehungsberatung)
Free of charge and confidential
Free of charge
Kinderzuschlag (child supplement)
Also exempt from the Kita fee
Up to €297
Upbringing assistance
When more support is needed
Free of charge on a non-residential basis

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