Changes to the Dutch Childcare Act
The Dutch Childcare Act will undergo major reforms for the first time since it was introduced five years ago. These will come into effect from 1 January 2010, shifting the balance of childcare provision and support across the Netherlands. The most notable change concerns childcare allowance, which will be reduced, and in some cases, even discontinued.
Reforms effective 1 January 2010
Among the reforms, private childcare givers (gastouders) will asked to provide proof of formal training and/or experience. First aid training will also be made compulsory for child minders.
Elsewhere, the allowance for private childcare will be reduced by 18 per cent, while parents using private live-in child minders will lose the benefit altogether. An allowance will only be granted to parents who employ nannies that live at a different address. These changes are expected to affect expatriate families for whom private nannies are the only alternative for lack of space in daycare centres.
The government is allowing a transition period, until September 2010, for full implementation of the reforms. The Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, and several childcare associations are currently working on the bill of proposals, which may change yet. Details are expected to be published in coming weeks.
Blue Umbrella, a registered agency providing English-language service for childcare in the Netherlands, is currently discussing the reforms with local government officials. They are seeking to agree on an English-language equivalent for all new requirements of the Act, while also asking that foreign child minders be made exempt from providing proof of childcare training/experience.
More information
For more details please contact: Blue Umbrella
You can also reach us by phone:
+31 (0)20 254 79 99