In France, the school comes first: it decides the neighborhood you will live in, the calendar you will move on and the date by which the residency file must be ready. For expatriates and their families, we map the schools that fit each child, manage every application and stay involved until the first day of term. As of 2026, private international schools charge €7,000 to €40,000 a year; the state's international sections cost almost nothing, and select accordingly.
The most sought-after schools close their files 12 to 18 months before the start of term. The main intake is September, and some schools also admit in January. Here is the calendar we run for families, one senior interlocutor answering for the whole file. We take on a limited number of families each year, so each child's application gets close attention.
We map the schools against curriculum, Arabic provision, commute and budget, then visit them with you or on your behalf.
Files, past school reports, recommendation letters and assessment sittings, sequenced so that sibling applications land together.
We follow waiting lists where they exist, confirm the seat, and anchor the neighborhood search and the residency filing to the enrolment date.
With enrolment complete, uniforms, transport, bus routes and first-day logistics are settled before your family lands.
Mid-year arrivals are common and workable: places open in January and after the spring term. They cannot be assumed at the most selective schools, which is an argument for starting early.
France offers more routes than most families expect. Four cover nearly every case, and the right one depends on your children's ages, their languages and the universities you have in mind.
Teaching in English or in two languages, familiar curricula and admissions offices used to arriving families. Fees run from €7,000 to €40,000 per child per year as of 2026, rising with grade and reputation. Most are clustered in western Paris and on the Côte d'Azur, which is why the school search and the home search are one exercise, not two.
State schools with international sections taught partly in English, Arabic or another partner language. Tuition is nominal, often a few hundred euros a year as of 2026, and entry runs through a written test and a file. They suit families planning a long French chapter who are comfortable with a selective gate.
The International Baccalaureate travels well and is the default for mobile families. Bilingual French programmes lead to the French baccalauréat and keep every French university and grande école open. British and American programmes suit a planned return to those systems. We advise with the end point in mind.
A number of private schools teach Arabic as a modern language, and the state runs Arabic international sections in selected schools. For every school on your shortlist we confirm the exact provision: hours per week, level groups and who teaches them.
School fees at a glance, as of 2026
| School type | Annual fees, 2026 | How they admit |
|---|---|---|
| Private international and bilingual schools | €7,000 to €40,000 | Application and assessment |
| Public sections internationales | A few hundred euros | Written test and file |
Private fees rise with grade and reputation. We map the exact fee, calendar and admission basis for every school on your child's shortlist.
Families ask two questions here: whether the children keep their Arabic, and whether they keep their bearings. We answer both school by school.
Arabic can stay on the timetable: as a modern language in several private schools, in the state's Arabic international sections, or through weekend tuition we arrange in Paris. We put the options for each child in writing, with hours and levels, before you choose the school.
Dietary accommodations, arrangements during Ramadan and a school's actual experience with families like yours vary considerably, and the honest answer is rarely on the website. We put the precise questions to each admissions office before you apply, and report the answers back as given.
A move lands differently at 6, at 11 and at 16, so we calibrate the work to the child rather than to a single template.
Before the shortlist, we map each child's level against the target curriculum, IB, bilingual or French, and flag the gaps that matter for admission tests and for the first term.
French tuition begins months before the move, calibrated to the entry date and the school's expectations. Children do not need to arrive fluent, only confident enough to settle in. Our guide to getting started with French shows how families begin.
Subject tutoring and homework structure through the first two terms, with a checkpoint after each report card. Most children need it for months, not years.
The school year your children start now is the first line of a French academic record.
Al Qantara Institute was built on admissions to France's leading institutions: HEC Paris, Ecole Polytechnique, Sciences Po and the Sorbonne. That practice now serves the children of the families we settle.
The choices that decide a French university application are made years earlier: the French baccalauréat against the IB, subject specialisms at 15, a file built quietly from 16. We advise on each of them, and when the time comes we run the application itself. Our Journal compares the grandes écoles and the universities in detail.
Schools & Education is one of the five workstreams we orchestrate. For families moving wholesale, it slots into the 360° family engagement, alongside residency and property. We remain a boutique practice and accept fifteen families and mandates a year, so each child's preparation is followed closely.
Scholarship students and independent applicants remain welcome through our dedicated student services. Answers to common questions are in our FAQ and in the Journal.
Six questions we answer in almost every first conversation.
No. International and bilingual schools teach principally in English, and admissions decisions weigh overall ability rather than French alone. We arrange French preparation in the months before the move; children arrive confident rather than fluent, and the fluency follows.
As of 2026, private international and bilingual schools charge between €7,000 and €40,000 per child per year, depending on the school, the grade and the curriculum. The state's sections internationales charge little more than incidental fees, but admit by test and file.
12 to 18 months before the start of term for the most sought-after schools. The main intake is September; some schools also admit in January, and mid-year places exist but cannot be assumed.
Yes. Several private schools teach Arabic as a modern language, the state runs Arabic international sections in selected schools, and weekend tuition can cover the rest. We confirm the exact provision for every school on your shortlist.
It fixes the neighborhood, because most families house themselves around the school run; it sets the moving calendar, because term dates anchor everything else; and it drives the date by which the residency file must be ready. We therefore settle the school first.
Yes. Admissions to HEC Paris, Ecole Polytechnique, Sciences Po and the Sorbonne are the practice on which Al Qantara was founded. We advise on subject choices and curricula years ahead, then run the application when the time comes.
A senior advisor will reply within one business day, in confidence and without obligation.
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