Filenews 24 September 2025
The submission of applications by parents to participate in the Tuition Subsidy Scheme for children over the age of four and up to the age limit of free compulsory pre-school education, i.e. up to four years and five months, announced on Wednesday the Welfare Benefits Management Service of the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare.
According to the announcement, this plan has been approved by the Council of Ministers on March 26, 2025 and is financed under the Recovery and Resilience Plan.
As noted, in the context of the Scheme, funding is provided to cover tuition fees, which concern the attendance of children over the age of 4 years and up to the age limit of free compulsory pre-school education, based on the Primary and Secondary Education (Compulsory Attendance and Provision of Free Education) Law no. 30(I)/2024, within working hours 7:45-13:05, based on the timetable of Pre-Primary, Primary and Special Education schools determined by a relevant decision of the Council of Ministers.
According to the above decision, all families with children, at least one of whom must be four years old and up to the age limit of free compulsory pre-school education, on August 31, 2025, have the right to participate in the Scheme, provided that they legally reside in the areas controlled by the Republic of Cyprus and the child has registered/secured a place and is going to attend a kindergarten participating in the Scheme.
The monthly amount of the allowance amounts to 100% of the amount of the tuition fees for the eligible expenses referred to in the above paragraph, regardless of income or other criteria, with a maximum amount of €130 or €200 per month for each child, depending on whether he/she attends a community or private kindergarten, respectively.
It is understood that the providers participating in the Scheme may charge additional amounts for additional services, such as hours after 13:05, meals, afternoon activities, etc.
Parents wishing to benefit from the subsidy are important to enrol their child in a nursery or kindergarten participating in the Scheme and then complete and successfully submit the online application, which has been posted on the Government Portal and on the website of the Welfare Benefits Management Service.
The implementation of the above Scheme starts from September 2025 and the electronic applications for parents have opened today, Wednesday, September 24, 2025, and need to be submitted by all parents who have children aged from four years to four years and five months.
Beneficiaries who will have submitted their online application by September 29, 2025 will be able to benefit from the subsidy from 1/9/2025 or from the start of the child's studies, if this is later, while for beneficiaries who will submit their application later, the subsidy will start from the month of submission of the application.
Explanatory information on completing the online application has been posted on the relevant website. In order to access the online application, parents absolutely need to create and confirm the personal access account through the Government Portal or to have carried out this process through the ARIADNE portal. The online application is submitted by only one parent.
Upon submission of the online application and given that the criteria mentioned above are met, parents will be immediately informed of the approval of the application and the subsidy will be paid directly to the provider on a monthly basis, from the month in which the online application will be submitted.
If approved, the subsidy will be valid for the entire school year. It is noted that the subsidy is always paid after the end of each month and, therefore, for the month (only) in which the application is submitted, providers are encouraged to prepay as their usual practice and return after the difference.
With the aim of empowering, improving and highlighting your child's skills and integrating them into educational programs and care structures, we urge you to take full advantage of this Plan, which ensures the rights and interests of children and the family.
