Parents to be compensated for daycares closed over coronavirus

Around 570 thousand parents in the Netherlands will be compensated for childcare facilities being closed over the past months due to the coronavirus crisis. They will receive an average refund of 500 euros, according to calculations by Statistics Netherlands.

The government closed schools and childcare facilities on March 16, as one of the measures to try and curb the spread of the coronavirus. Only children with parents in crucial professions, and a few other exceptions, were allowed to use daycare. On May 11, childcare facilities reopened with restrictions, and those restrictions were lifted on Monday.

Parents who receive childcare allowance and continued to pay their own contribution to their childcare facilities while they were closed, will receive a full refund from the government. The compensation also applies to parents in crucial professions who were able to bring their child to daycare.

The amount of compensation depends on a number of factors, including how many children parents have and their income level. Parents with one child in childcare will receive an average of 390 euros. Parents with three or more kids will get an average of 800 euros.

Parents don't have to do anything to get this money back. The social insurance bank SVB will automatically pay it into their accounts. The transfers are expected to happen around July 8, according to the SVB website.