Updated October 2026. Instruction is compulsory in France from age 3 to 16, and most families choose between free public school, a private school (either sous contrat, state-subsidised, or the pricier hors contrat), or an international school or public international section. Public school places follow the secteur scolaire tied to your home address, and enrolment starts at the mairie with a justificatif de domicile. The school year runs across three staggered holiday zones, A, B, and C.
Key takeaways
- Instruction is compulsory from age 3 to 16 (loi of 26 July 2019), though not all of that instruction has to happen in a classroom.
- Public school placement follows the secteur scolaire (carte scolaire), based on your home address.
- Private schools are either sous contrat (subsidised, national curriculum, lower fees) or hors contrat (independent, sets its own curriculum, higher fees).
- International sections exist inside some public schools, alongside fully private international schools.
- Enrol at your mairie with the child's birth certificate, parent ID, and a justificatif de domicile; children under 18 need no titre de séjour.
- The school calendar splits France into zones A, B, and C, with staggered winter and spring holidays.
What are your options: public, private, or international school?
Public school(Ă©cole publique) is free and is the default option, with your child's place decided by the secteur scolaire tied to your address rather than by choice. Private schools split into two very different categories:
- Sous contrat (under contract with the State): follows the national curriculum, uses state-paid teachers, and receives public subsidies, which keeps fees well below a fully private school. Most French Catholic and other faith-affiliated private schools fall into this category.
- Hors contrat (outside contract): no agreement with the State, free to set its own curriculum and hire its own staff, and funded entirely by tuition and private means. Most Montessori, Steiner-Waldorf, and other alternative-pedagogy schools, as well as many bilingual schools, are hors contrat, and fees are correspondingly higher.
International options exist both inside and outside the public system. Some public collèges and lycées run sections internationales teaching part of the curriculum in another language toward the Option Internationale du Baccalauréat (OIB); the Lycée International de Saint-Germain-en-Laye is a well-known example. Alongside these, the Paris region alone hosts more than 40 private international establishments offering IB, American, British, or bilingual French programmes, with published annual tuition running from roughly €8,000 to €41,000 depending on the school and programme.
A sector place is not automatic outside the public system
How do you enrol a child in a French public school?
Enrolment starts at your local mairie, which typically asks for:
- The child's birth certificate or the family's livret de famille.
- Proof of identity and status for the parent(s) or legal guardian (ID card, passport, or titre de séjour).
- A justificatif de domicile (proof of address), usually the latest tax notice, a home insurance certificate, or a utility bill less than three months old.
The mairie uses your address to confirm your secteur scolaire (carte scolaire), the zone attached to your assigned school, and issues a certificat d'inscription naming that school. You then complete admission directly with the school itself. See how to get a justificatif de domicile if you do not have one yet, and our housing guide if you are still choosing where to live and want to factor in the sector.
First registration deadlines run early
What do non-EU families need for school and, later, university?
Children under 18 need no titre de séjour in France. Each adult on a long-stay visa validates it online on ANEF within three months, at €100 to €300 depending on the category since 1 May 2026, but the children have no validation to buy. The mairie enrolment above and the family's CAF file both run on a proof of addressunder three months old in a parent's name, so get that document first.
The bigger money question comes at 18. Children with the French baccalauréat apply to university through Parcoursup: in 2026, wishes ran from 19 January to 12 March, with confirmation by 1 April and answers from 2 June to 11 July. A non-EU child attached to a French tax household for at least two years pays the EU rate of €178 a year for a licence instead of the €2,902 differentiated fee, per service-public.gouv.fr. Over a three-year licence that is €8,172 saved (our calculation: €2,724 a year × 3). Every student also pays the €105 CVECin 2026-27, and the child can apply for a CROUS bursary on the family's income. Keep every avis d'imposition, since the two-year condition rests on the family's French tax file.
How does the French school calendar work?
Instruction is compulsory from age 3 to 16 in France, following the law of 26 July 2019, which lowered the starting age from 6. In practice, the large majority of 3 to 5 year olds attend Ă©cole maternelle rather than being homeschooled for that period.
The academic year is split into three staggered holiday zones: A, B, and C. All zones share the same start of year, Toussaint (autumn), and Christmas break dates, but the February (winter) and April (spring) holidays are staggered roughly two weeks apart between zones, to spread travel demand. The 2026-2027 school year is set to start on 1 September 2026. Zone assignments and exact dates are published on education.gouv.fr and change from year to year, so check the current calendar before booking travel around school holidays.
Sources: education.gouv.fr and the Ministère de l'Éducation nationale (compulsory instruction age, school calendar and zones), Légifrance (loi n° 2019-791 of 26 July 2019), and service-public.fr (mairie enrolment, secteur scolaire, 2026-27 university fees), as of October 2026. Zone assignments, exact holiday dates, and private-school fees change each year, so verify current details on education.gouv.fr and with individual schools.
Frequently Asked Questions
At what age does school become compulsory in France?
Instruction is compulsory from age 3 to age 16, under the law of 26 July 2019, which lowered the starting age from 6 to 3. This is an obligation to receive instruction, not necessarily to attend a classroom: families may homeschool, but the large majority of 3 to 5 year olds attend Ă©cole maternelle in practice.
What is the secteur scolaire and how does it decide which school my child attends?
The secteur scolaire (also called the carte scolaire) is the geographic zone attached to each public school. Public school places are allocated by the home address of the child's legal representative, so the school you are assigned depends on where you live, not on choice. Private and international schools are not bound by this rule, which is why families sometimes choose them specifically to pick a school outside their sector.
What is the difference between a private school sous contrat and hors contrat in France?
A school sous contrat (under contract with the State) follows the national curriculum, has state-paid teachers, and is subsidised, which keeps its fees well below a fully private school. A school hors contrat has no state contract, sets its own curriculum and hires its own staff, and relies entirely on tuition and other private funding; these schools include most Montessori, Steiner-Waldorf, and similar alternative-pedagogy schools, and tend to be considerably more expensive.
How do you enrol a child at a public school in France?
You start at your local mairie, which needs the child's birth certificate or livret de famille, proof of identity for the parent or guardian, and a justificatif de domicile less than three months old. The mairie confirms your secteur scolaire and issues a certificat d'inscription showing which school your child is assigned to; you then complete admission directly with that school.
Do non-EU children need a titre de séjour to go to school in France?
No. Children under 18 need no titre de séjour in France; each adult validates their own long-stay visa on ANEF. The mairie enrols the child with a birth certificate, the parent's ID and a proof of address under three months old. Later, a non-EU child attached to a French tax household for at least two years pays the EU university rate of €178 a year instead of €2,902.
How is the French school calendar organised?
France is split into three academic zones, A, B, and C, mainly to spread winter and spring holiday traffic. All zones share the same start of year, Toussaint, and Christmas breaks, but the February (winter) and April (spring) holidays are staggered by zone. Check the current zone list and exact dates on education.gouv.fr before booking travel.