Nurseries and kindergartens in Czechia: places, the compulsory year and fees

Before school, children in Czechia can go to a children's group (dětská skupina) from 6 months, a private nursery, or kindergarten (mateřská škola) from 2. Municipal kindergartens must first take children aged 3 or over who live in their area, and the year before school is compulsory and free. Kindergarten enrolment runs from 15 March to 15 April for the next school year.

What are the options before school?

A children's group gives regular care outside the home, from 6 months until the child starts school.¹ It has at most 24 children, with at least 1 carer for up to 6 children present, 2 for 7 to 12 and 3 for 13 to 24. A neighbourhood group (sousedská dětská skupina) has at most 4 children and is run by the carer.² Every provider is in a register the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (MPSV) keeps online,³ and its map of children's groups shows where they are; providers can also mark whether they're taking new children.⁴

Private nurseries work under a trade licence that covers caring for children under 3.⁵ Kindergartens run full days, of more than 6.5 and up to 12 hours, or half days of up to 6.5 hours.⁶

Does my child have a right to a kindergarten place?

From age 3, in effect. A municipal kindergarten must first take children who are at least 3 before the school year starts and live in its catchment area, for a foreign child the address where they're registered as staying, up to the number of places it's allowed.⁷ The municipality must make sure there are places for these children, in its own kindergarten or one run by another municipality.⁸ A child under 3 has no legal right to a place.⁹

The headteacher decides on admission and may set a trial stay of up to 3 months.⁷ A child can also start during the school year.¹⁰ A child who is an EU citizen, or an EU citizen's family member, doesn't need to show a right to stay. Any other foreign child needs the right to stay in Czechia for more than 90 days, or protection status, and you show it when your child starts.¹¹

Kindergartens, children's groups and private nurseries can only take a child who has had the regular vaccinations, is immune, or can't be vaccinated for medical reasons. The certificate comes from the child's GP (Find a doctor). The rule doesn't apply where attendance is compulsory.⁵

How does kindergarten enrolment work?

Enrolment (zápis) for the next school year takes place between 15 March and 15 April; each headteacher sets the date and place, agrees them with whoever runs the kindergarten, and announces them.¹² By our count from the law, the next window is 15 March to 15 April 2027, for places from 1 September 2027.

If your child will start the compulsory year in September, you must register them at enrolment in that calendar year.¹³ Not doing so is an offence with a fine of up to 5,000 Kč.¹⁴

What is the compulsory preschool year?

Preschool education is compulsory from the start of the school year after a child turns 5 until they start school,⁹ so a child born by 31 August 2022 starts the compulsory year in September 2027, by our count from the law. It covers EU citizens staying more than 90 days, other foreigners with the right to stay permanently or for more than 90 days, and people applying for international protection.¹⁵

• Where: the municipal catchment kindergarten for your address, unless you choose another kindergarten or another way.¹³
• How long: every working day for at least 4 hours in a row, starting between 7 and 9 in the morning, but not during school holidays.^{16 17}
• Cost: free at kindergartens run by the state, a region or a municipality.¹⁸
• Czech: a kindergarten with at least 4 foreign children in the compulsory year at one site sets up free Czech groups of up to 8 children, for 1 hour a week.¹⁹

Instead of going to kindergarten every day, a child can be taught at home (individuální vzdělávání), go to a preparatory class at a primary school, or go to a foreign school the Ministry of Education has approved. For a preparatory class or a foreign school, you tell the catchment kindergarten at least 3 months before the school year starts.²⁰

Home education still needs a kindergarten. The child must be enrolled at one, which can be any kindergarten in the schools register, and you tell it in writing, with your reasons. For home education for most of the school year, you do that at least 3 months before the year starts, so by the end of May. The kindergarten checks how the child is doing in the 3rd or 4th month of the school year, and ends home education if the child misses both the check and the substitute date.²¹

What does kindergarten cost?

Before the compulsory year, whoever runs a public kindergarten sets a monthly fee by 30 June for the next school year. The fee is the same for every child in the same kind of day and can't be more than 8% of the monthly minimum wage valid when it's set.²² For the 2026/27 school year, with a minimum wage of 22,400 Kč, that's at most 1,792 Kč a month, by our count.²³ It's due by the 15th of each month, and some parents who receive state social assistance or care allowances don't pay it if they show the headteacher.²²

Private kindergartens set their own fees.²⁴ A children's group can be free, or charge parents part or all of the cost by criteria the provider sets.²⁵ If the provider takes the state contribution, the most it can charge for a child from 6 months to the 31 August after they turn 3 is 4 times the monthly minimum wage divided by 261 per day: 343 Kč a day in 2026, by our count. It's half that for under 5 hours a day, and it can be up to 10% more for up to 3 days a week.²⁶ The provider gets the contribution only for a child whose parent, or the parent's partner in the same household, works, studies full time, is a registered job seeker, is self-employed or otherwise has to pay social security contributions, runs a neighbourhood group, or cares for someone close who depends on others' help.²⁷

Sources

1. Children's Group Act (Act 247/2014 Coll.), §2(1) and (4). ↩

2. Children's Group Act (Act 247/2014 Coll.), §7(1) and (6). ↩

3. Children's Group Act (Act 247/2014 Coll.), §20(1) and (5). ↩

4. MPSV, children's groups and map of children's groups, checked 28 October 2026. ↩

5. Public Health Protection Act (Act 258/2000 Coll.), §50. ↩ ↩²

6. Decree 14/2005 Coll. on preschool education, §1(3) and (4). ↩

7. Schools Act (Act 561/2004 Coll.), §34(3). ↩ ↩²

8. Schools Act (Act 561/2004 Coll.), §178(2). ↩

9. Schools Act (Act 561/2004 Coll.), §34(1). ↩ ↩²

10. Schools Act (Act 561/2004 Coll.), §34(7). ↩

11. Schools Act (Act 561/2004 Coll.), §20(1), (2)(d) and (3). ↩

12. Schools Act (Act 561/2004 Coll.), §34(2). ↩

13. Schools Act (Act 561/2004 Coll.), §34a(2). ↩ ↩² ↩³

14. Schools Act (Act 561/2004 Coll.), §182a. ↩

15. Schools Act (Act 561/2004 Coll.), §34a(1). ↩

16. Schools Act (Act 561/2004 Coll.), §34a(3). ↩

17. Decree 14/2005 Coll. on preschool education, §1c. ↩

18. Schools Act (Act 561/2004 Coll.), §123(2). ↩ ↩²

19. Decree 14/2005 Coll. on preschool education, §1e. ↩ ↩²

20. Schools Act (Act 561/2004 Coll.), §34a(5) and (6). ↩ ↩² ↩³

21. Schools Act (Act 561/2004 Coll.), §34b(1) to (4); Ministry of Education, guidance on home education in kindergartens, sections 1 and 2, November 2025. ↩ ↩²

22. Decree 14/2005 Coll. on preschool education, §6(1) to (3), (6) and (7). ↩ ↩²

23. VZP, health insurance payments in 2026, 15 December 2025. ↩

24. Schools Act (Act 561/2004 Coll.), §123(2) and (4). ↩ ↩²

25. Children's Group Act (Act 247/2014 Coll.), §6(1) and (2). ↩

26. Children's Group Act (Act 247/2014 Coll.), §20a(2) and (3). ↩

27. Children's Group Act (Act 247/2014 Coll.), §20a(4). ↩