Frequently asked questions

Have you not received a notice two weeks after the deadline? Then please contact the school where you submitted your preference form. 

After the enrolment deadline has passed, you can choose from the schools that still have places available listed at the website www.bboamsterdam.nl.

By signing the preference form, you confirm that the information provided (name, date of birth, address of your child) is true and accurate. Your child will be allocated a place based on this information. If, during pre-registration at the school, it appears that you have obtained a place on the basis of incorrect personal data, the board (of the school) has the authority to withhold the unlawfully obtained place.

You will receive notice of placement within two weeks after the deadline. You will receive this notice from the school where your child was placed.

You can file a complaint with the school board of the school where you submitted the preference form. The school board is responsible for handling the complaint.​

All steps of processing and posting the applications are recorded by the system in a digital log. The placement and possible draw will take place in the presence of representatives of school boards, participation council, project management and municipality. The method used for this has been extensively tested and proven to be reliable over a long series of placements.

You can submit a complaint to the Complaints Committee of the school administration board that 
governs the school you applied to. The school administration board is responsible for processing that 
application. The complaints regulations of each school administration board apply. 

a. Public schools
Under the General Administrative Law Act (Algemene Wet Bestuursrecht), parents can submit a written objection
to the school's administration board within six weeks of the date
of the rejection. Subject to the condition that an objection has already been submitted, and if the parents 
claim to have an urgent interest, a petition for temporary provisions (a preliminary injunction) can be submitted to the administrative law sector of the competent court in Amsterdam.
b. Denominational schools
Based on the General Administrative Law Act, the regulations concerning objections and appeals do not apply to a denominational school's decision not to admit a child, since the school's administration is not an administrative body in the sense of the above-mentioned law. Parents can, however, send a request to reconsider to the school's administration. If the parents refuse to accept the decision, they must turn to the civil court in Amsterdam. In the case of an urgent interest, a provisions procedure (= preliminary injunction) can be brought before
the court. 

Your child will then participate in the draw procedure for your second choice of school. If your child is not allocated to that school either, he/she will participate in the draw procedure for your third choice of school, etc. If your child is not allocated to any of the schools on your preferred list, you can choose one of the schools that still has a free place after the placement process. If there are sufficient places at your preferred school, there will be no draw procedure and your child will receive a place.

​If you indicate only one preference for a school and this school has more applications than available spots, there is a chance that your child will be excluded. In that case, your child will be dependent on the spots available after the placement.

Indicating more preferences increases the chances of your child being placed in a school of your preference. The advice is to indicate at least five preferences.

Every parent will receive a copy of a notice regarding the processing of the application. You will receive this from the school that you sent the form to. In this way, every parent can check if their preferences have been correctly processed.​

The address on the application form must match the address where your child is officially registered. If this address is not correct, you can download another application form here and print it out, or pick one up from a primary school. You must show valid proof of address when submitting the application form. Valid proof of address can be an extract from the Municipal Personal Records Database, a purchase agreement or a lease.

You can download a new blank preference form from the Amsterdam School Boards (BBO) site and print it out, or pick one up at a primary school. When submitting the preference form, you must submit valid proof of address. A valid proof of address is, for example, a purchase deed, rental contract, an extract from the Basic Registration of Persons (BRP) or the shelter contract or something similar.

​Your child will not be placed at a school.

You can notify the school to which you sent the application form of any changes up until the final deadline for submission.​

Once you have completed the entire application form and entered at least five preferred schools (preferably more), you must submit the form to your first choice of school.

After the closing date, you can only choose from the schools that have spots left at that time. A list of schools that still have spots can be found on the BBO's website.

The priority regulations were devised by the Amsterdam primary school administration boards (Breed Bestuurlijk Overleg, BBO).

​You can apply on behalf of your child for any school in Amsterdam. If there are sufficient places at the school, your child will be placed there. If there are more applications than places available at the school, the children with priority will take precedence. In that case, there is a greater chance that your child will not be allocated to this school.

You can apply on behalf of your child for any school in Amsterdam. The selection of schools at which your child has priority will include two public and two denominational schools. Nearly all addresses have priority at at least one school that follows a specific educational method.

Priority schools are always selected for each individual address. Therefore, it is possible for a different situation to apply for addresses that are nearly identical.

​You must always apply on behalf of your child up by submitting the application form. Younger brothers and sisters are placed at a designated as first priority school wherever possible.

The distance is calculated by the Research, Information and Statistics Agency (OIS) of the City of Amsterdam using the established school database. The calculation is made based on Open Street Maps (OSM) and the Large-Scale Topography Registry (BGT). These are used to calculate walking distances between residential addresses and the schoolyard entrance. This calculation method is more accurate than that of, for example, Google Maps.

The calculations are made by the OIS once a year between July and September. The calculation remains valid for an entire school year. Even if there are interim changes, such as the construction of a bridge. Unless a school is closed. The distances shown are binding, unless there has been a deviation from the agreed calculation method due to an error.

Almost all primary schools in Amsterdam participate in the joint admission policy. Out of 200 primary schools in Amsterdam, 10 schools do not participate in this. For the 2026-2027 school year, these are the following schools:

Centre: ASVO
Zuid: Amsterdamse Montessorischool (AMS), Willemsparkschool, Cornelis Vrij, Peeterschool, Hildebrand van Loonschool, 1e Openluchtschool, 2e Openluchtschool, Buitenveldertse Montessorischool (BMS), Cheider.

Would you like to register your child for one of these schools? Then please contact this school.
In addition, some schools have specific requirements for the admission of students. They may do so, for example, on grounds of freedom of religion or beliefs. These schools do participate in the admission policy, but make it clear that they have requirements. These are: bgs Veerkracht (Reformed), Rosj Pina (Jewish), Crescendo and De Morgenster (Evangelical). 

Your child has priority at the 8 schools closest to his or her officially registered residential address. Enter the postal code, house number and date of birth of your child. Then you can see which schools these are. In addition, some schools have specific requirements for the admission of students. They may do so, for example, on grounds of freedom of religion or beliefs. 

Placement

After the deadline for submitting the form has passed, school places will be allocated to the children who have applied. This is done in the order set out in the text ‘Allocation of places’ below.

Every child will be allocated a place at the school in the highest possible place on the list of preferences. If there is enough room at the school of your first choice, your child will be allocated a place there. If not, your second choice will be considered. In recent years, over 90% of all children were allocated a place at the school of their first choice.

Allocation of places

The allocation of places at all schools is done in the following order.

 For the first choice:

1. An older brother or sister is already at the school when the child turns four;  this registered child has a guaranteed place.
2. a  The child has been assessed as requiring at least 8 months pre-school education (voorschoolse educatie, VVE), attends the pre-school affiliated to the school and has priority at this school.
   b  The child attends an Integrated Children’s Centre (Integraal Kindcentrum, IKC) 2 times a week for at least 8 months and has the school as priority school.
3. One of the child’s parents is permanently employed at the school.
4. The child has priority at this school.
5. The child has no priority at this school.

Applications which have not been allocated a place at the first choice  of school will then be placed as follows:

1. The child has a priority school as second to tenth choice.
2. The child has a non-priority school as second to tenth choice.

The playgroup location is a fun place for parents and children to play together and meet other children and their parents.

Playgroups are designed for children up to 2.5 years and their parents.

There is no need to sign up for playgroups.

Preschool is childcare for all children between 2 and 4 years old. It is childcare where children learn through play.

Preschool and primary school

The preschool collaborates with a primary school. The preschool programme and method is in line with the programme and method in grades 1 and 2. This will make the transition to primary school easier for your child.

Yes, it is. You can then choose a nursery with preschool education. In fact, there are two types of preschool in Amsterdam:

• half-day childcare. You bring your child to the nursery with a pre-school programme for several half-days a week;
• full-day childcare. You bring your child to the nursery for full days and the pre-school programme is incorporated into the full day.

You can check with the different preschools to see what they offer.

You pay part of the costs of the preschool yourself. How much you have to pay depends on your income. If you are entitled to childcare allowance, you can apply for this at the Tax authorities. See the website belastingdienst.nl/toeslagen.

If you do not receive childcare allowance, the municipality pays part of the costs equivalent to the childcare allowance for a maximum of 16 hours per week. The preschool arranges this for you. If you want to know how much the preschool costs you, do the calculation here.

Preschool is good preparation for primary school. At pre-school, children play and learn together. They practise language, they sing, draw and move. Preschool is intended for all children aged 2 to 4 years.

Following the birth of your child, you will attend the child health clinic (consultatiebureau) at your local Parent and Child Centre (Ouder- en Kindteam, OKT). The doctor or nurse will also talk to you about your child's language and other development. If there is a chance that your child might have a language deficiency, you will receive a preschool indication during the visits at 11, 14 or 18 months of age. The OKT can provide you with information about the preschools in your area. Children with such an indication will attend preschool for four part days a week. 
 

All Amsterdam toddlers aged between 2 and 4 can attend preschool. Most children attend preschool for 16 hours a week.

De voorschool is een goede voorbereiding op de basisschool. Op de voorschool spelen en leren kinderen met elkaar. Ze oefenen met taal, ze zingen, tekenen en bewegen.

You can register your child when they are just 1 year old. Children may attend pre-school from the age of 2. You can register your child at your preferred pre-school.

All children between the ages of 4 and 17 have a right to education. Are you new to the Netherlands? If so, register your child at primary school (4-12 years old) or secondary school (12-17 years old) as soon as possible.

These rules were made to ensure a clear, fair and equal way of applying and placement for primary school for all children. In addition, these rules were made so that schools can better plan for their school/classes. The Amsterdam school boards, in consultation with the municipality, decided to do this in 2013.

If you enter your child's date of birth in the form on the procedure page, you will read when you need to do what to register your child.

Preschools are kindergartens or daycare centres with an education programme. There is a considerable focus on language, as well as on your child's social, physical and creative development. The children play games, draw, sing, play outside, listen to stories and talk about them with each other.

The open days can be found at: https://schoolkeuze020.nl/open-dagen/
 

A child is subject to compulsory education from the age of 5. That is when the child has to go to school. Most children start school from the age of 4. Compulsory education lasts until the age of 16. More information on compulsory education can be found here.

A child with care needs will not be given (extra) priority. You will follow the normal process of application and registration as described here. From the moment you have enrolled your child in a school, the school must arrange care for your child within 10 weeks. If that fails, this school will look for another suitable school for your child.

​One of a child's parents being sick or having a disability is not grounds for granting priority. The school administration board of your preferred school might make an exception, however.

a. I am going to move to (another part of) Amsterdam and my child is younger than four. The address on the application form is no longer correct/I have not received an application form. You can download a new application form or pick one up from a school. The rest of the steps remain the same. Please note: you must include a copy of a lease or purchase agreement with your application form to confirm your new address.

b. My child is older than four years and already goes to school. In this case, you must contact the school that you would prefer your child to attend. You can discuss whether the school has a place available or other alternatives.​