Dutch child benefit on 1 October pays the new rates for the first time: 298.40 euro for ages 0-5, with age counted on 1 July

On 1 October the Dutch social insurance bank SVB pays child benefit, kinderbijslag, for the third quarter, July to September, and it is the first payment at the higher rates that took effect on 1 July: 298.40 euro per child aged 0 to 5, 362.35 euro for ages 6 to 11 and 426.29 euro for ages 12 to 17. Many parents expect the higher band as soon as a birthday passes and then see less on their account than they counted on, because the SVB only looks at the child's age on the first day of the quarter, which for this payment was 1 July. For families who have just moved here, have just had a baby or are paid on a foreign bank account, a few more rules decide when the money arrives and how much; the next step is to check your own amount with the formula below. (source 1, source 2)

• Why this amount: kinderbijslag is paid per child per quarter and only after the quarter ends, so the 1 October payment covers July to September. On 19 June the SVB announced the higher amounts from the third quarter and said they would be paid for the first time in early October 2026. (source 1, source 2)
• Which birthday counts: if a child is not yet 6 or 12 on the first day of a quarter (1 January, 1 April, 1 July or 1 October), that quarter is paid at the lower band. A child who turned 6 on 2 July is still paid 298.40 euro on 1 October and only moves to the 6-to-11 band from the fourth quarter, which is paid after that quarter ends. (source 1)
• Newborns: a child born on the first day of a quarter counts from that quarter, and a child born after that day counts from the next quarter. A baby born on 2 July is therefore not included in the 1 October payment and is paid for the first time after the fourth quarter. The SVB site lets you enter the date of birth to see the first payment date. (source 3)
• For international families: on a non-Dutch bank account the money goes in euro to Citibank and from there to your bank, at a cost of at most 0.48 euro per payment and possibly later; for a child living outside the Netherlands, benefit is paid only in EU and EEA countries, Switzerland or countries with an agreement, and for some countries the amount is multiplied by a woonlandfactor based on the cost of living there. (source 1, source 4)

Do the sum yourself: the 1 October payment = children aged 0 to 5 on 1 July x 298.40 euro + children aged 6 to 11 x 362.35 euro + children aged 12 to 17 x 426.29 euro. A family with a 4-year-old and a 9-year-old on 1 July receives 660.75 euro, 7.38 euro more than the 653.37 euro per quarter in the first half of the year. Subtract up to 0.48 euro if you are paid on a foreign account, and count 0 for a child born after 1 July. If the result does not match your bank statement, check each child's age on 1 July again before you contact the SVB. (source 1, source 3)

Hokimi field note: the SVB cannot say at what time the money lands because that depends on your bank, so it is normal for someone else to be paid earlier on the same day. Before a child moves to China or another country without an agreement, enter the country in the SVB country check to see whether benefit continues. Photos: Wikimedia Commons, by Donald Trung Quoc Don, Choinowski and Steven Lek, used under CC BY-SA 4.0.