Norway has been known to have some of the world’s most affordable preschool prices already, but the Norwegian government just announced a reduced max price to make Norwegian kindergartens even cheaper.
The Norwegian government has just announced that the max price cap for preschool / kindergarten is set at 2,000 NOK (roughly $200 USD) per month beginning on August 1, 2024, and at 1,500 NOK monthly for rural municipalities.
The reduction was made as part of the Labor Party’s moment to reduce economical pressure on families and reducing the economic gap in society. This means that families will save at least 11,000 NOK ($1,100 USD) per month, or 16,500 NOK ($1,650) per child per each year.
Norway’s preschool system, known as kindergarten, has been known for it’s low price cap for a long time. The current (2023) price cap for Norwegian kindergarten is currently set at 3,050 NOK per month, which makes it much more affordable than in many other countries where preschool can cost far more.
Everyone gets the lowered price cap
The great thing about this lower price cap is that it applies to everyone, no matter your income level, occupation or whether or not you use a private kindergarten.
The price cap is the absolute max price the kindergarten can charge parents, and the Norwegian government pays the difference between the co-pay paid by the parents and the actual cost for the kindergarten.
It’s also possible to apply for even lower kindergarten prices, seeing as the government will reduce the payment even further if the parents have reduced income (less than 600,000 NOK annual combined income).
So if you have a child in kindergarten in Norway, expect the bill to be much lower beginning at the fall next year. And remember that you need to apply for a spot in kindergarten well in advance if you want to get a spot for your child.
Rural municipalities get a even higher max price cut
If you have children attending kindergarten in a rural municipality, the new max price is even further lowered, and set at 1,500 NOK per month. This is roughly half of today’s sum, and adds up to a lot of money over the course of a year.
Families with two children living in rural municipalities will save up to 33,000 NOK per year as compared to today.
Most of the municipalities who have been granted this additional cut are smaller municipalities with smaller towns and villages. Check out your own municipality’s website to see if you are affected by this.
