Early Childhood Education and Care

Service coordination for early childhood education and care to ask about your options.

1. Familiarise yourself with the locations of the ECEC centres.
2. Submit an application for early childhood education and care through the online service.
3. If it is not possible for you to send an application online, you can use a form: Application for early childhood education / pre-primary education.

Applying for daycare

• Apply for an early childhood education and care place for the activity year starting in August in the online service by the end of February.
• If you apply later, send your application at least four months before you need the place.
• If you need early childhood education and care because you suddenly get a job, start studies, or begin training, send your application at least two weeks before you want the care to start.
• Send a separate application for each child.

Additional information when applying for a place in private ECEC centre

• The private service provider will contact you after you have made the application.
• When the place is confirmed, make a written service agreement with the service provider for your child’s early childhood education and care.
• At the start of care, submit your valid income information in the online service so your service voucher can be calculated. If you do not submit your income details, the voucher will be set at the highest client fee.
• The service voucher is for each child individually. Its value is based on the child’s age, family size, family income, and how much early childhood education and care the child needs.
• The service voucher decision is made after you submit your income information. The decision will be sent to you electronically.
• The ECEC client fee includes own contibution. The amount of your own contibution is the the difference between the private ECEC fee and the value of the service voucher granted to you. In some units, own contibution may be higher than the municipal ECEC fee.
• The city pays the value of the service voucher directly to the service provider. The service provider bills the family.

Early childhood education and care may be given to a child who has not reached the age of compulsory education.

Early childhood education and care may also be given to a child who has already reached the age of compulsory education if special circumstances so require and care cannot be otherwise arranged.