Parents new to the system routinely mix up the child-related payments, which have separate purposes, separate conditions and separate income tests. One is an income-linked top-up alongside the universal child benefit; the other reimburses registered childcare and depends on both parents working, studying, or following an integration course.
They cover different things. Kindgebonden budget is an income-tested top-up paid alongside the universal kinderbijslag (child benefit), scaled to how many children you have and their ages; for 2026 it starts phasing out above roughly €29,736 for a single parent or €39,141 for a couple, shrinking as income rises above that. Kinderopvangtoeslag is separate: it reimburses part of registered daycare or after-school care (BSO) costs, but only if both parents (or the single parent) are working, studying, or following an integration course — it's not available just because you have a child in care while you're not economically active. For 2026 the maximum reimbursed hourly rates are €11.23 for daycare, €9.98 for BSO, and €8.49 for a registered childminder, with households on lower combined incomes getting up to 96% of that back. Both benefits require a form of legal residence status tied to your permit — not every visa category grants access, so it's worth checking rather than assuming. A long-discussed move to near-free, income-independent childcare hasn't landed yet; it's now targeted for 2029, so the current income-linked system is still what applies.