Childcare St. Eustatius

The Public Entity of Sint Eustatius, in collaboration with the public entities of Bonaire and Saba, has drafted a concept island ordinance for childcare. The Executive Council of Sint Eustatius submitted the draft ordinance to the Island Council. The island ordinance was approved by the Island Council and came into effect on January 1, 2020.

Download Island Ordinance Childcare (English & Dutch)

The island ordinance came into effect in January 2020. From that point onwards, all childcare organizations must have an operating license to provide childcare. To obtain and maintain this license, organizations must meet various quality requirements, such as a pedagogical policy plan, a minimum education level, designated groups within childcare centers, and the number of professional staff assigned per master group.

Download brochure Childcare Quality Requirements

All childcare centers must have a license. For organizations that existed before December 2017, a transition period was provided to allow them to meet the new requirements. An application for a license must be submitted to the OLE.

The application must include at least:

• Copy of business license
• In case of a sole proprietorship: name, address, telephone number, proof of registration with the Chamber of Commerce, not older than three months
• In case of a legal entity: names, addresses, dates of birth of board members, copy of articles of incorporation, proof of registration with the Chamber of Commerce, not older than three months, and, if applicable, a copy of the register of shares
• Proof of registration in the population register of the applicant and the employees, and a copy of the residence permit
• A Certificate of Good Conduct (Verklaring Omtrent Gedrag, VOG), not older than two months, for the applicant and professionals
• Maximum number of children and age groups per day part
• Maximum number of professionals per day part
• Opening and closing hours
• The (proposed) address
• Pedagogical policy plan of the children’s center
• Domestic violence step-by-step plan of the children’s center
• Safety and healthcare policy of the children’s center
• A floor plan
• Proof of payment of fees

After the application has been submitted, the OLE requests advice from the quality committee investigating the application. The OLE has 6 to 8 weeks to respond to the request. If more time is needed to assess the application, the OLE will inform the applicant.

Daycare and out-of-school care organizations on St. Eustatius can qualify for a cost-price reducing subsidy. A childcare organization can use the subsidy to reduce the parental contribution for parents and to take measures to improve the quality of childcare.

Childcare organizations can submit a subsidy application to Implementation and Policy (in Dutch: Uitvoering van Beleid (UVB)). They are supported in this process by the front office (and UVB) which has been established at the Public Entity St. Eustatius for this purpose.

Amount of cost-price reducing subsidy (per January 1st 2025)
The cost-price reducing subsidy on St. Eustatius for daycare is a maximum of $ 1.012,- per child per month and for out-of-school care it is a maximum of $ 572,60,- per child per month.

Amount of parental contribution
The amount of the parental contribution on St. Eustatius is a minimum of $ 75,- per child per month for daycare and $ 40,- per child per month for out-of-school care.

Parents who cannot afford the parental contribution, can apply for a supplementary child place subsidy at the Public Entity St. Eustatius. Some childcare organizations which already have a subsidy relationship with the Public Entity St. Eustatius can charge a lower parental contribution with the consent of the Public Entity St. Eustatius.

More information?

• Click here for the temporary subsidy scheme: temporary subsidy scheme (Dutch)
• Click here for the changes in the temporary subsidy scheme per January 1st 2025: changes temporary subsidy scheme (Dutch)

The supervision of daycare and out-of-school care, as well as their quality, is the responsibility of the Inspectorate of Education . The inspectorate can delegate parts of the oversight to local inspectors.