Children are entitled to a place in a kindergarten from age 11 months. Preschool education is not compulsory.
It is the responsibility of the municipality to guarantee a place in a kindergarten to all entitled children in its respective catchment area (Kindergarten Act, en).
Parents have the right to opt for a programme in a public or in a private kindergarten. If a child does not get a place in a public kindergarten and/or the child has been placed on the waiting list, parents can enrol the child in a private kindergarten or in home-based provision. In this case, the municipality must co-fund the costs.
The municipality has to start a procedure for securing additional places within 30 days or make a public call to apply for a concession:
Kindergartens publish online the information about the number of places, number of available places and eventual waiting period or time between enrolment and actual inclusion of a child in a programme. Kindergartens communicate this information to the central information point at the Ministry responsible for education. It then provides information about the number of children enrolled and the number of applications for the whole country. Thus, parents can view the capacities of all kindergartens operating in the area of a municipality (public or private).
If there is no public kindergarten in the municipality of the permanent residence of parents, if the public kindergarten has no available places, and/or if parents, parents with temporary residence, too, would enrol enough children for one class, the municipality has to start a procedure for securing additional places or make a public call for applications for a concession within 30 days.
A non-binding protocol (.pdf, sl) applies. According to it, municipalities have to monitor and analyse demographics (number of preschool children by years, number of new-borns in a current year, etc.) and information about capacities. They have to develop a five-year estimation of demographic trends and it is recommended that they map out a long-term strategy for preschool education.
The protocol foresees the following actions for securing additional places in kindergartens:
The municipality sets the price of the programme. The price calculation takes into account the cost of kindergarten staff, programme expenses related to material and services, as well as meals for children. The price does not include the cost of investment and major maintenance.
Kindergartens that provide a public service propose the price of the programme. The competent body of the responsible municipality has the final say. The Minister responsible for education specifies the price-setting methodology.
|
First age group |
Second age group |
Composite classes | Developmental classes | Education and care family |
| 493.53 | 372.43 | 404.65 | 1014.04 | 459.05 |
Source: Ministry of education, science and sport, 2020
The basis for the payment by parents is the price of the programme the child is attending.
Parents can call on decreased payment for children attending public kindergartens, private kindergartens with concession, as well as private kindergartens maintained by the municipality.
Parents submit the application for a decreased payment for kindergarten to the competent social work centre in the month before their child starts kindergarten (for example, for a child who will start kindergarten on 1 September, the application has to be submitted in August). The right is then granted from the first day of the month following the application for 12 months. The social work centres decides on the extension of this right by virtue of the position.
There are nine wealth bracket groups according to income for payments by parents. The payments represent a percentage of the total programme price.
The payment by parents is based on the monthly household income and income scale bracket. It is given in the percentage of the total programme price.
| Income bracket | Average income per person/month (€) | Payment (% of the programme price) |
| 1 | up to 191.40 | 0 |
| 2 | 191.41 to 319.01 | 10 |
| 3 | 319.02 to 382.82 | 20 |
| 4 | 382.83 to 446.62 | 30 |
| 5 | 446.63 to 563.60 | 35 |
| 6 | 563.61 to 680.56 | 43 |
| 7 | 680.57 to 871.98 | 53 |
| 8 | 871.99 to 1,052.75 | 66 |
| 9 | 1,052.76 | 77 |
Parents with the lowest income do not pay; parents with the highest income pay 77% of the programme price.
Parents who do not invoke the right to decreased payment pay 77% of the programme price.
Parents receiving the social assistance benefit in cash do not pay as set out with the rules on social care.
Parents with two or more children attending kindergarten concurrently pay for the youngest child 30 percent of the decreased payment for the first child; they are exempt from paying for every further child.
Parents do not pay for children attending the short programme. This programme is free.
Parents who are not personal income taxpayers in the Republic of Slovenia pay full price of the relevant programme.
Foster parents do not pay for foster children. The municipality of the permanent residence of the foster child covers the price of the kindergarten programme.
A social work centre can in extraordinary circumstances in which the payment would put at risk the wellbeing of persons, or for other significant reasons set lower payment for the kindergarten.
Private kindergartens alone set prices. A private kindergarten receives reimbursement from the state in the same amount a public kindergarten receives in the same municipality (for the second and all children following). Private kindergartens receive funds from the municipalities, namely at 85 percent of the price of the public kindergarten decreased for the amount parents would pay if their child would attend a public kindergarten. Like this, the payment by parents for private kindergarten is subsidised, but the price can be different from the price for a public kindergarten in the same municipality.
Families and children enrolled in private kindergartens providing an officially recognised programme are entitled to the same financial assistance as the families and children enrolled in public kindergartens.