Every child from the age of one has a legal entitlement to support in a day care center (Kita) or day care. Before the first birthday, a child is entitled to support and care in a kindergarten or a day care center if parents cannot look after their child themselves because both parents are working, looking for work or are still in training. In addition, there is also a claim if the promotion is necessary for the development of the child. This is regulated by § 24 (1) of the Eighth Social Code (SGB VIII). How many hours the child can be cared for, depends on the individual needs.
There are many opportunities for childcare in Germany up to the age of three:
To participate in these childcare services, you must first register your children. Sometimes the places are scarce because of the large number of interested parents. It's best to ask for free places as early as possible. The youth welfare offices provide information about the available space in the local catchment area of the respective institutions.
Child care in Thüringen:
Every child with residence in Thüringen has a legal entitlement to full-time support in a day care center from the first year of age to school entry. The entitlement includes a daily supervision time of ten hours from Monday to Friday as part of the opening hours of the day care center (§ 2 Abs. 1 Thüringer Kindertagesbetreuungsgesetz -ThürKitaG). Parents can choose between a crèche/nursery (children from 1 to 3 years), a kindergarten (children from 3 years to school entry) or a day care for children (children from 1 to 3 years). The entitlement to a place in a day care center should normally be claimed at the local community or the local youth welfare office six months before the planned admission to the day care center.
General information for Thüringen: https://www.thaff-thueringen.de/tsbf/unternehmen/familienbewusste-personalpolitik/kinderbetreuung-in-thueringen/
https://www.thueringen.de/th2/tmbjs/jugend/kindergarten/index.aspx
http://portal.thueringen.de/portal/page/portal/Serviceportal/Zust%C3%A4ndigkeitsfinder
Find child care in Thüringen https://www.thaff-thueringen.de/kinderbetreuung/
Crèches in Thüringen alphabetically by location: http://www.kita.de/krippen/thueringen
Kindergartens in Thüringen alphabetically by location http://www.kita.de/kindergaerten/thueringen