Having your children looked after at home allows them to stay in a familiar environment while benefiting from personalised support. Several options are available to you:

• occasional help from a family member or neighbour;
• babysitting: ideal for occasional needs;
• a nanny employed at home: for regular, customised care;
• hosting an au pair; a rewarding solution that combines childcare and cultural discovery;
• the sick child care service: to ensure continuity of home care.

These solutions offer a high degree of flexibility in terms of scheduling, and some also allow you to benefit from tax advantages and deductions on social security contributions.

Childcare in an approved centre provides appropriate educational supervision and facilities designed to meet the needs of children.

There are various facilities available, such as crèches, day centres, after-school centres and drop-in centres. These facilities are subject to accreditation by the Ministry of Education, Children and Youth, based on criteria of good repute, staff qualifications and infrastructure.

For greater scheduling flexibility, you can also consider using a childminder. This service, which can be provided day or night, consists of paid childcare for minors. Please note that individuals or services offering childminding services must be accredited by the Ministry of Education, Children and Youth.

Discover the advantages of mini-crèches for your little ones. These facilities offer a warm and personalised environment, ideal for your children's development.

They offer a variety of activities for every age group, combining education and entertainment in a family atmosphere. Find out about mini-crèches, their staff and the necessary accreditations.

As a parent, you may be entitled to the childcare service voucher scheme (chèque-service accueil - CSA) and can as such benefit from reduced rates for education and care services (services d'éducation et d'accueil - SEA) provided by facilities such as crèches, drop-in centres (maison relais), mini-crèches, day care centres, as well as by childminders.

The CSA scheme is aimed at children aged 0 to 12 who:

• reside in Luxembourg; or
• whose parent or legal guardian is a national of a Member State of the European Union and working in Luxembourg.

Registering for the scheme:

• if you live in Luxembourg, you must apply for the CSA scheme in your commune of residence;
• if you live abroad (but work in Luxembourg), you must apply to the Children's Future Fund (Caisse pour l'avenir des enfants - CAE).

Condition: the education and care services (SEA) must be accredited by the Ministry of Education, Children and Youth.

Hiring someone directly with an employment contract to look after your children can be a flexible solution tailored to your needs, although potentially more expensive.

To facilitate this process, you can use a simplified administrative procedure for personnel management procedures (affiliation and payment of social security contributions, taxation, etc.).

Declaring the domestic staff to the tax authorities allows the employer to benefit from an annual fixed-rate tax allowance (declaration via the income tax return).

Hosting a young person from abroad who will be living in your home can provide temporary help with childcare and some household chores, in exchange for accommodation, food and possibly a small remuneration. This programme also enriches the family environment because it:

• exposes your children to a new language and culture; and
• fosters open-mindedness.

Find out about the terms and conditions, and the benefits of this programme.