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Apply for or extend a daycare voucher for a daycare center or child day care facility
If your child is to attend a daycare center or a child day care, you will need a daycare voucher. You can redeem this voucher at a publicly funded Berlin daycare center or child day care of your choice, provided there is an available spot for your child.
Child Care Needs
The daycare voucher is used to determine your child’s child care needs and establish how many hours per day your child can receive care. This number depends, among other things, on your child’s age.
1. Apply for a daycare voucher using the online form-filling assistant or the application form.
2. Provide all necessary information about your child, the scope of care, and the caregivers. The online service will then provide you with your completed application as a PDF document. Print out the document.
3. Send the application, signed by all caregivers, by mail as soon as possible to the responsible Youth Welfare Office, or submit it in person at the Family Service Office in your district of residence.
5. You will receive your daycare voucher by mail.
6. Sign a childcare agreement.
Child Care Needs
The daycare voucher is used to determine your child’s child care needs and establish how many hours per day your child can receive care. This number depends, among other things, on your child’s age.
- During the first year of life, you must provide proof of your child’s need for care, regardless of how many hours of care you request.
- Starting on their first birthday, your child is automatically entitled to up to 7 hours of care per day (part-time care). You do not need to provide a reason for this.
- if you are working, studying, or in training and therefore cannot care for your child yourself, or
- if the need arises from your family situation or if care is necessary for educational, social, or family reasons.
1. Apply for a daycare voucher using the online form-filling assistant or the application form.
2. Provide all necessary information about your child, the scope of care, and the caregivers. The online service will then provide you with your completed application as a PDF document. Print out the document.
3. Send the application, signed by all caregivers, by mail as soon as possible to the responsible Youth Welfare Office, or submit it in person at the Family Service Office in your district of residence.
- As a general rule, the Youth Welfare Office in your district of residence is responsible, even if your child is to attend a daycare center or child day care in another district.
- Your Youth Welfare Office may request proof that the information you provided is accurate. Therefore, you should include the relevant supporting documents when you submit the application.
5. You will receive your daycare voucher by mail.
6. Sign a childcare agreement.
- For a daycare center, you sign the childcare agreement directly with the center or its operating agency.
- For child day care, you typically make initial contact with the child day care provider. The child day care provider then submits a written notification to the local Youth Welfare Office regarding your child’s enrollment. The contract is then signed with the responsible local Youth Welfare Office.
- If changes occur in your family or work situation between registration and the signing of the contract, please notify the Youth Welfare Office immediately.
- This also applies after you receive the daycare voucher: If your childcare needs change and your child needs to be cared for longer than originally approved, you can apply to extend the scope of care. To do so, please submit a new application for a daycare voucher that specifies the revised childcare hours.
You can also access this service online
Online processing
Prerequisites
- Residence in Berlin
-
Custody
You have custody of the child. In most cases both parents have custody. -
Consent of the legal guardians
All legal guardians must consent to the application. If you are the sole legal guardian, you do not need to provide consent. -
Age of the child
Your child is at least 8 weeks old. -
Timely application
- Please submit your initial application no earlier than 9 months and no later than 2 months before your child is supposed to start attending daycare or a child day care home.
- There is no deadline for expanding the scope of care.
-
Existing daycare voucher
(required only if you wish to expand the scope of care)
Documents required
-
Application for the issuance or extension of a daycare voucher (application for child care assistance)
You can use the online form-filling assistant or the application form.
- Please fill out the application, print it, have it signed by all legal guardians, and then mail it to the appropriate Youth Welfare Office or drop it off at the Family Service Office in your district of residence.
-
Proof of consent from the other parent with custody
A written authorization from the parent with custody who did not sign the application, or a written statement regarding sole custody. Sole custody may be proven by a certificate of no objection or a court order. - If the child is in foster care: a copy of the foster care agreement
- If a disclosure restriction is in place: certificate of registration
-
For extended childcare needs and for children under one year of age: proof that you are unable to care for the child yourself
For example:
- Current documentation from the employer confirming current employment (or the start date of employment) with specific or adjusted work hours (for both parents, if the child is cared for by both parents), a notice of enrollment in an educational, training, or academic program, or an internship agreement,
- Proof of your self-employment, for example, through a certificate from the tax office, a business registration, or a contribution notice from the Artists’ Social Insurance Fund,
-
Statement of consent from the daycare center regarding the extension of care hours
if the care hours are to be changed during the current month
(required only when applying to expand the scope of care) - In some cases, the Youth Welfare Office may request additional documents.
Fees
none
Legal basis
Average time to process request
6-8 weeks
More information
- Child day care (Senate Department for Education, Youth, and Family)
- Cost-sharing (Senate Department for Education, Youth, and Family)
- Education Package (Senate Department for Education, Youth, and Family)
- Children with disabilities in child care facilities (Senate Department for Education, Youth, and Family)
- Explanatory notes on the application process for a spot in a daycare center or family daycare (Senate Department for Education, Youth, and Family)
Notes on responsibility
The Youth Welfare Office in the district that you live in is responsible for processing your application.