🍼 KDV — full-day daycare (0–4)
- A kinderdagverblijf (KDV) is full-day care for children from about 6 weeks up to 4 years, made for working or studying parents.
- Open on weekdays, usually around 7:30–18:30; you can book whole or half days.
- Children are in age-based groups (separate baby and toddler groups) with trained pedagogical staff who follow each child's own rhythm of sleeping, eating and playing — focusing on feeling safe, developing and learning to be with other children.
🎨 Peuteropvang / peuterspeelzaal (2–4)
- Peuteropvang (the former peuterspeelzaal) is for toddlers 2–4, in half-day parts (a morning or an afternoon) rather than full days.
- It runs a playful, structured programme (like Piramide or Uk & Puk) that gently prepares children for primary school.
- A lovely lighter option if you don't need full-day care but want your toddler to play, socialise and get school-ready.
📚 VVE — a little extra early education
- VVE (voor- en vroegschoolse educatie) is extra early-learning support — mainly around language — for children who could use a boost, continuing into the first years of primary school.
- The consultatiebureau decides whether your child gets a VVE indication (indicatie): a first look around 11 months, confirmed around 14 months, looking at things like the language spoken at home.
- In Amsterdam a child with a VVE indication gets 16 hours a week of voorschool, and around 300 centres run a VVE programme. The voorschool is open to all Amsterdam toddlers but especially helps those at risk of a language gap — a real plus for many expat families.
Official sources
💶 Costs & the kinderopvangtoeslag allowance
- Working or studying? You get kinderopvangtoeslag from the tax office for KDV, BSO and registered childminders — in 2026 up to ~96% for lower incomes, on up to 230 hours per child per month. The provider must be in the national register (LRK).
- Not working? No toeslag, but the gemeente helps — in Amsterdam up to 16 hours a week of subsidised peuteropvang.
Official sources
💛 How to choose a good one
- Read the free GGD inspection report — every registered location has one in the national register (LRK). In plain language it tells you whether the place meets the rules.
- Then trust your eyes on a visit: are the children relaxed and happy? Are the carers warm, down on the floor and really with the kids?
- Ask what matters for little ones: do the same faces come back each day (a stable stamgroep)? how often do staff change? how does settling-in (wennen) work? how many children per carer? how much time outdoors?
- ⏳ Register early — around 70% of daycares have waiting lists, and many parents sign up during pregnancy.
Official sources
Good to know: this is friendly orientation, not official or medical advice. Dutch rules and amounts change, so always check the official source linked in each section before you act on it.
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