8.3 Right to ECEC
DK: Subjective right. Municipalities must offer parents a childcare guarantee in ECEC facilities. This is for all children in Danish ECEC from age 26 weeks until school start.
NO: Subjective right. The entitlement to ECEC varies according to month of birth. Children born between January and August are entitled to a place from August the year they turn one (i.e. they may be between 13–19 months old in August). Children born in September–November are entitled to a place from the month they turn one. Children born in December are entitled to a place from August the year they turn two.
FI: Subjective right. The entitlement to ECEC starts from the beginning of the calendar month in which the child turns nine months old.
IS: No regulation
SE: Subjective right. Entitlement to ECEC begins when a child turns one.
FO: Subjective right. Entitlement to ECEC begins when a child turns five months old.
GRL: Municipality determines the start of ECEC entitlement. ECEC entitlement can start already at the age of 6 months given there is a place at ECEC institution. Starting age of entitlement is decided by municipalities.
ÅL: Subjective right. The entitlement to ECEC starts from the beginning of the calendar month in which the child turns nine months old.
8.4 Unit costs and maximum fees
It is not possible to make a direct comparison between the unit costs of ECEC institutions in the Nordic countries as the definition of unit costs varies. In some cases, it includes the costs for premises (such as in Sweden), in some cases not. The unit cost may also be calculated by different age spans.
Taking into consideration these restrictions, we note the following: Unit costs for ECEC institutions (per child and year) in the Nordic countries vary somewhere between approx. EUR 12,955 on average in Finland (2022) and up to EUR 19,500 on average in Iceland (2021). Unit costs for ECEC institutions for younger children of zero to two years are the highest, e.g. the unit cost for “vuggestue” (nursery/kindergarten) of EUR 22,400 in Denmark (2023).
The Nordic countries, the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland have all worked towards making ECEC affordable by subsidising the cost of ECEC services for families. There are national pricing models for ECEC services in Finland, Norway and Sweden, as well as municipal autonomy to decide prices in some countries (Iceland, Denmark, Faroe Islands and Greenland).
In Denmark, the monthly ECEC fee is not allowed to exceed 25% of the average unit cost in the municipality in question.
In Sweden, Norway, Finland and the Åland islands, there is a maximum fee for ECEC, and the system enables greater fee reductions for younger siblings (and ECEC can be free – such as in Norway for a third child in the same family, and in Sweden for the fourth child in the same family).
In Finland, families with low income are exempt from fees. Both Sweden and Norway have also introduced a number of free ECEC hours. In Sweden, 525 hours are offered free of charge per year in a public ECEC institution starting from the year that a child turns three. In Norway families earning less than EUR 54,000 (NOK 615,590) p.a. are entitled to 20 hours per week of free ECEC for children ages two, three, four and five. In addition to the free hours, there is national scheme that ensures that no families pay more than 6% of their income for a full-time place in ECEC.