Munich reinstates proof requirement for families seeking help with costly nursery places

Parents in Munich who ask the city to cover nursery fees at childcare facilities charging above certain guideline amounts will once again have to show that no cheaper place was available. The city's head of social services, Dorothee Schiwy, set this out in her reply to a motion from CSU city councillor Alexandra Gaßmann dated 20 May 2026, which called for clearer checks on when the city pays childcare costs at independently run facilities.

According to the reply, this proof requirement already applies in principle but was temporarily suspended because the supply of nursery places had been extremely tight in recent years. Parents could generally show that no cheaper option existed, and the parental advice centre of the city's Department of Education and Sport, which is responsible for meeting the legal entitlement to a place, had itself had to refer families to expensive places. As the situation has now eased noticeably, the requirement is being enforced again.

The full cost can only be covered if parents confirm that they also registered their child with cheaper nurseries but were offered a place only by the one whose fees exceed the guideline amount. Otherwise, only the guideline amount can be taken into account. The city stressed that the guideline amounts are explicitly not maximum funding limits, as these would not be legally permitted.

On the councillor's call for cost coverage to depend mainly on parents working, training or taking part in qualification schemes, Schiwy pointed out that under federal child and youth welfare law, children aged one and over are entitled to early years support regardless of their parents' employment. Only for children under the age of one is the need for a place assessed, taking into account parents' employment as well as educational or social needs and the child's welfare.

Between September 2025 and May 2026, the city covered nursery costs for a total of 394 children under the age of one. In these cases, parents living together had to prove an individual need, such as employment or training. For single parents, the social services department generally assumes a need for up to six hours of childcare a day to ease the burden on them, with proof of personal need required only for longer booking times.

Schiwy said the administration aims to use public funds as economically as possible, and that with the changed availability of places, closer attention can once again be paid to the level of fees.