Checklist for starting a childcare centre

Have you found a suitable location? Make sure it is in line with your municipality’s environment plan. And check which permits you will need. Is your location not suitable for childcare, according to the environment plan? You can apply for an Environment and planning permit (omgevingsvergunning) to build, alter or renovate a building. Contact your municipality to discuss options.

Do you care for more than 10 children under 12? Then you need a fire safety permit from your municipality. In other cases, you file a notification of use via the online service counter Omgevingsloket (in Dutch). The fire brigade or municipality will then visit you to check whether you meet the fire safety requirements.

You must register your business in KVK's Business Register. KVK will pass on your details to the Tax Administration. Childcare is exempt from VAT (in Dutch). This means that you do not charge VAT. Also, you cannot reclaim the VAT you pay to your suppliers. Keep this in mind when you buy things for your childcare centre. For example, furniture such as cots

In your pedagogical policy plan, you outline your vision for the childcare you want to offer and how employees should behave around children. The plan must be up-to-date. Adapt the plan if either the circumstances in your childcare facility, or your views on topics in the pedagogical policy plan change.You send the pedagogical policy plan along with your application to the Registration in National Childcare Register (LRK).

Make sure you have an up-to-date health and safety policy, drawn up, implemented and evaluated by all parties concerned. In a policy Safety and Health (V&G beleid) you describe how employees should work in the childcare centre. You do this together with the parents committee.

If you prepare food and drink, you must have an HACCP food safety plan. You can also choose to comply with a certified hygiene code, e.g. the code of the sector organisation for childcare (in Dutch).

Apply for eHerkenning with level 3 (EH3). This is necessary to log into the Register for persons active in the childcare sector (PRK).

You must apply for a certificate of conduct (VOG) for yourself and your staff. This proves that you or your employees have not committed any criminal offences.

Do you have a legal form with legal personality? If so, you must apply for a certificate of conduct for legal entities (Verklaring omtrent het gedrag rechtspersonen, VOG RP). With the VOG RP, the organisation and the director comply with the screening required for childcare. If you have a VOG RP, you no longer need to apply for a personal VOG.

Your child care facility must have enough spaces. The spaces must be suitable for safe play and to rest. The spaces should also be appropriate for the age and number of children you care for. Check the accomodation requirements.

Employees in childcare must meet certain professional requirements. Check which diplomas and training courses are qualified (in Dutch) for pedagogical staff at Kinderopvang-werkt.nl. You must provide responsible care for children. But you do not have to have diplomas for this if you do not work with children yourself. The Collective Labour Agreement for Childcare (in Dutch) contains agreements on working conditions for the entire childcare sector.

Diploma check childcare

Do you want to know whether your diploma qualifies you for the position of pedagogical employee? Or whether an applicant or employee has the right papers? You can use the Diplomacheck Childcare (in Dutch) to check this.

As of 1 January 1 2025, all pedagogical staff in daycare must meet language level 3F (for speaking, listening and conversation) for the Dutch language. This requirement does not apply to daycare staff. In some municipalities, language level 2F is mandatory for writing if you work for a pre-school care (VE). All employees in VE must (compulsorily) pass the reading component at 3F level.

There are also rules for the language you speak to the children. Do you offer multilingual care? Then your employees must have the appropriate language certificates (in Dutch).

Anyone working at a place where children are cared for must register in the register for persons active in the childcare sector (Personenregister kinderopvang, PRK. You and your employees are regularly checked for criminal offences.

Employees need a certificate of conduct (VOG) to register in the PRK. The VOG may not be older than 2 months at the time of application.

Determine how many pedagogical staff you need for your childcare. This depends on the number of children per age group. Use the calculator tool (in Dutch) to work out the right number.

You must adhere to the 4-eye principle. This means that an adult must always be able to watch or listen to a professional staff member. You must also adhere to the familiar-face criterion in day care. This means that at least one permanent face per child is always present during opening hours. In bso, the fixed-face criterion does not apply.

Deviating from the professional staff-child ratio

According to the 3-hour rule, you may deviate from the professional force-child ratio for 3 hours per day. A condition is that the childcare centre is open for at least 10 consecutive hours. You may never use less than half the required number of pedagogical staff. Not even for outings.

During opening hours there must always be at least one adult present that has a first aid certificate for children. Do you have daycare and out-of-school-care (bso) at the same location? Then at least 2 certified staff members must be available. Make sure that enough of your employees have such a certificate.

Appoint a mentor to every child. The mentor is a member of your pedagogical staff, who monitors the child’s development and who is the contact person for the parents. They are always present when the child is present.

Every childcare organisation needs to employ at least one pedagogic professional, The pedagogic professional coaches the childcare professionals in their daily practice. The pedagogic professional also develops the pedagogical policy. You can find out the requirements for this pedagogic professional or coach on the (Dutch) Kinderopvang werkt! website.

For each location you must have a parents' committee. You must adopt the parent committee regulations within 6 months of submitting an application to be included in the National Childcare Register to your municipal authority. This document has to be drawn up in Dutch. You can use a model agreement (in Dutch) provided by the Parents in Childcare Interests’ Association (BoinK) and the Childcare sector organisation.

The Model Protocol for Child Abuse and Domestic Violence describes 5 steps you have to take when you or your employees suspect child abuse. If there is a suspicion of acute or structural danger, you have to report it via Veilig Thuis (in Dutch).

Has something serious happened to a child? For example, a child needs to be hospitalised or dies in an accident. From 1 January 2026,the government wants childcare centres to report this to the GGD as soon as possible. The rules and effective date are not yet finalised.

Important changes are taking place in the Dutch childcare sector. Not only do you have to stay on top of what these changes are, you also have a duty to inform the parents of the children to whom you offer childcare. That is called obligation to give information (informatieplicht).Keep up-to-date with relevant changes (in Dutch) on the Dutch government website.

You have to join the Childcare Disputes Committee and register all of your childcare centre locations. You must also inform the parents and parents committee about your joining the Committee.

You need to keep records. As a childcare entrepreneur, you need to keep basic records. Such as salaries and paid bills. But also, among other things, the following data:

• overview of all the people who work for you that must have a VOG
• diplomas of the professionals who work for you
• details of employees who must register in the register for persons active in the childcare sector
• an overview of all registered children
• copies of all written agreements with parents
• proof of payment from parents
• annual and monthly overviews per parent of hours taken and average hourly rate

You must also include details in your records for childcare allowance purposes.

Will you be transporting children? The law does not say exactly how you must transport children, except that it must be safe and responsible. As owner of the childcare centre, you are responsible for this.

Do you want to use an (electric) cargo bike? Then the same traffic rules apply as for an ordinary bicycle. If you use a special moped (so-called bso bus) or a car, you must follow rules.