How much does childcare cost in Malta?
For most working and studying parents the hours themselves are free — but registration fees and food are not. Here's what you actually pay.
This is the question we get asked most, and the honest answer has two halves: the hours are usually free, the extras usually aren't.
If you qualify for the Free Childcare Scheme
If both parents are working or studying — or you're a single parent doing either — the scheme pays the centre directly for your entitled hours. You are not billed for those hours at all, and a centre cannot charge you on top of them.
Your entitlement is calculated from the mother's (or Parent 1's) working hours only — not both parents' combined — plus 10% for exigencies and 20 hours a month for commuting. Where Parent 1 works 20 hours a week that lands at roughly 115 hours a month. The full explanation is here.
What you still pay for
Two things fall outside the scheme, and they catch a lot of parents out:
- A one-off registration fee. Centres are allowed to charge a reasonable one. It varies between centres.
- Food. Meals and snacks are not covered. Many Maltese centres ask parents to send food in rather than charging for it — the national standards encourage parents to provide it — but some charge a daily rate.
A centre on the scheme cannot ask you for a deposit. The rules are explicit: a centre "is not allowed to request any payment and/or deposit over and above what Government pays", and may charge only a reasonable one-off registration fee and for food. If you're asked for a deposit to hold a place, that isn't allowed.
You can be charged for hours booked beyond your entitlement, at the centre's own rate. That part is permitted.
You pay for hours you book, not hours you use
Centres are paid on booked hours, not attended hours. If your child is off sick, the centre is still paid for that time — it comes out of your yearly absence entitlement, capped at 25% of your booked hours.
The practical consequence: don't book more hours than you need. Over-booked hours are deducted from that same absence allowance, so padding your booking to satisfy a centre's minimum can leave you short when your child is genuinely ill. More on minimum hours and how booking works.
If you don't qualify
If you're on parental leave, on a career break, or otherwise outside the scheme's conditions, you pay the centre's own rate. Rates differ a great deal between centres and by how many hours you need.
Why we don't publish an average price
Because we don't have one worth publishing. Maltese centres don't generally list their fees anywhere public, so any "average cost of childcare in Malta" figure you find online is almost certainly guesswork.
Rather than guess, we're asking every centre to publish its registration fee, food charge and non-scheme rate on its own listing. Where a centre has given us those numbers, you'll see them on its page. Where it hasn't, we say so rather than estimating.
What to ask when you call
- What is the registration fee, and is it refundable?
- Do I send food in, or is there a daily food charge?
- What happens if I need hours beyond my entitlement?
- Has anyone asked me for a deposit? (They shouldn't have — it isn't allowed.)
Last updated 23 Aug 2026. childcare.mt is independent and not affiliated with any government body.