How to Choose a Boarding School in France: Costs, Types and Locations

When a job or diplomatic posting brings your family to France, two decisions tend to arrive at the same time: where your child will study, and where your household will live. For families considering boarding school, those decisions are more connected than they might first appear.

This guide covers what expat families, diplomatic staff, executives, entrepreneurs, and American and British nationals need to know before choosing a boarding school in France. That includes school types, real 2026 fees, admission timelines, and the angle most guides miss entirely: what parents need to plan for their own housing once a child boards.

The school decision is the decision that shapes everything else about your move: your neighborhood, your commute, your apartment size, and even the lease type you sign. That order matters.

For families choosing a day school, the logic is immediate. You need to live within a manageable commute from campus, since Paris transit can stretch a 15-minute journey to 45 minutes during peak hours. For boarding school families, the equation shifts. Your child lives at school during the week. That frees your housing search from catchment zones entirely.

But the timing pressure stays.

The admission calendar and what it means in practice

International boarding schools near Paris open waiting lists in October and November for the following September entry. Applications typically close in February and March, with offers issued in March and acceptances due in April. If you are planning a September 2027 start, the school process should begin in autumn 2026. Housing search needs to start at minimum three months before your intended move-in date, running at the same time.

Paris has a rental vacancy rate below 2% as of 2026, according to ANIL, the national housing information agency. Well-priced furnished family apartments are claimed within 7 to 15 days of listing. Families who assume the school search and housing search can happen one after the other frequently find they cannot.

The admission calendar, in practice, looks like this:

• Open days and campus visits: September to November (year prior to enrollment)
• Application submission: December to February
• Assessments and interviews: January to March
• Offers issued: March
• Acceptance deposits due: April to May
• Boarding arrival: late August or early September

For visa-required students, NDIHS notes that applications must be submitted at least four months before the intended start date. This is a hard administrative deadline, not a suggestion.

How boarding school changes your housing search

If your child boards Monday to Friday, or full-time with a 7-day option, you are not tied to a school zone. You can live in any arrondissement or suburb that suits your work location, commute, and daily routine. That is a genuine advantage in a market as tight as Paris.

It does not remove the need for a well-planned housing search. It changes the criteria. You will still need space to host your child during the four holiday periods per year (Christmas, Fall, Winter, and Spring, approximately two weeks each), since boarding accommodation is almost never available during school holidays. A two-bedroom minimum is the practical standard for most boarding school families.

France has far fewer true international boarding schools than the UK or Switzerland. According to the International Schools Database, there are 9 boarding international schools across France as of mid-2026. That smaller number makes the comparison more manageable, but it also means places are competitive.

Semi-permanent vs permanent boarding: what this means for traveling parents

French boarding structures fall into two categories that matter a great deal for families with complex travel schedules.

• Semi-permanent (internat semaine): Students stay Monday to Friday and must leave by Friday afternoon. Common in French national schools. This works for families who live locally, but it does not work for parents who travel internationally (this is more common than it might seem at the senior executive and diplomatic level), since the child needs a confirmed arrangement every weekend.
• Permanent (internat permanent): Students can board for 5 days (weekdays only) or 7 days (including weekends), with some schools offering extended holiday hosting through a homestay arrangement. This is the structure that actually functions for diplomat, executive, and mobile-family profiles. NDIHS and Ermitage both offer 7-day permanent boarding with weekend options.

This distinction is the first filter to apply when reviewing any school. An internat semaine can look like a boarding school on paper but does not function as one for families with international travel commitments.

Curricula available and which fits your family best

The main curricula available at international boarding schools in France:

• IB (International Baccalaureate): Globally portable, recognized by universities across the US, UK, and Europe. The preferred choice for families who may relocate again. Offered at Ermitage and the International Bilingual School of Provence.
• American curriculum with AP courses: NDIHS delivers a US High School Diploma with AP options. Well-suited to American families or those targeting US university admissions.
• French Baccalauréat with international sections: Available at state boarding schools and at Lycée International de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, which includes English and other-language national sections alongside the French bac. Fees are significantly lower than private options.
• British (IGCSE and A-Level): Less common in a boarding format within France. British families often access this through day schools such as the British School of Paris in Croissy-sur-Seine.

Before getting into fees and specific schools, it can help to see what day-to-day life at an international boarding school in France actually looks like. Here are three English-language video options to give you a practical sense of the environment:

Boarding fees in France are lower on average than in the UK or Switzerland, but the total cost picture is broader than most fee guides show. Including parents' own accommodation, the annual budget for a boarding school family in France typically runs from roughly €50,000 to €90,000 when tuition, boarding, and Paris housing are added together.

Annual tuition and boarding costs by school (2025-2026 verified)

Notre-Dame International High School (NDIHS), Verneuil-sur-Seine

• Tuition per year: approximately €21,520 to €22,120 (2026-27 rates, international-schools-database.com)
• 5-day boarding (weekdays only): approximately €5,300 per year
• 7-day full boarding (on-campus weekdays and weekends): approximately €13,800 per year
• 7-day homestay (family hosting on weekends and holidays): approximately €6,400 per year
• Total with 5-day boarding: around €27,000 per year
• Total with 7-day full boarding: around €35,000 per year

Ermitage International School, Maisons-Laffitte

• 5-day boarding (collège): approximately €30,820 per year
• 7-day boarding (collège): approximately €40,720 per year
• 5-day boarding (lycée): approximately €35,640 per year
• 7-day boarding (lycée): approximately €45,540 per year
• IB average: 34 points in 2025, third in France (source: world-schools.com, Sep 2025)

École des Roches, Verneuil-sur-Avre (Normandy)

• From €32,875 per term (approximately €65,000 to €70,000 per year)
• Full permanent boarding, ages 10 to 18, 50 nationalities on a 50-hectare campus

Lycée International de Saint-Germain-en-Laye (state school)

• State-funded, free of tuition; ancillary fees of approximately €1,000 to €2,000 per year
• Boarding available through the state system at low cost; places are selective and entry is competitive

What boarding fees typically include and what they do not

Most boarding fees cover:

• Weekday accommodation and meals (breakfast, lunch, afternoon snack, dinner)
• Study supervision during weekday evenings
• On-campus activities during the school week

What they do not cover:

• All four school holiday periods (each approximately two weeks), unless a separate holiday hosting arrangement is agreed with the school
• Optional extracurriculars (at École des Roches, for example: golf at €1,620, horse riding at €2,700, tennis at €1,620, all per year)
• International health insurance (budget €200 to €600 per month for a family plan; Cigna Global, Allianz Care, and AXA International are widely accepted by French providers)
• Airport transfers on non-official travel dates
• Application fees and non-refundable enrollment deposits

The holiday gap is the detail that surprises families most. It is the main reason boarding school parents still need a Paris apartment with enough space to host a child, even when the child spends most of the academic year on campus.

Two boarding schools within 30 minutes of Paris

1. Notre-Dame International High School, Verneuil-sur-Seine (Yvelines)

Located 35km west of Paris, reachable by Ligne J train from Gare Saint-Lazare in approximately 30 minutes. The school offers an American curriculum with AP courses to students aged 15 to 18 (grades 10 to 12). It is one of very few bilingual boarding schools in France with a fully English-medium academic program. Boarding options are 5-day or 7-day, with weekend homestay or campus options available for full-year students. Admissions are rolling and open for 2026-27.

For American families specifically, NDIHS is the most direct option in France: it delivers a US High School Diploma, supports AP course selection, and has established pathways to US university applications through its UNIFROG partnership and Common App access. If you are comparing costs across US-accredited schools in Europe, the full breakdown in this guide for American expats moving to Paris puts international school fees in context alongside housing and administrative costs.

2. Ermitage International School, Maisons-Laffitte

Located 20km west of Paris, accessible by RER A in approximately 20 minutes from the center. A day and boarding school with 1,500 students from 80 nationalities, offering IB (PYP, MYP, Diploma) and French Bac with bilingual options. Boarding is available from age 11. The campus sits within a historic park in the pedestrian-friendly town of Maisons-Laffitte. Students have direct access to shops, cafes, and sports facilities without leaving the area, and Paris is a short RER ride away for weekend outings.

Quality options within 90 minutes of Paris

1. École des Roches, Verneuil-sur-Avre (Normandy)

Approximately 1 hour by train from Paris Saint-Lazare to Vernon, then a short transfer. Full permanent boarding for ages 10 to 18, with 240 students from over 50 nationalities. Bilingual French-English curriculum, wide extracurricular offering, and a large countryside campus. From €32,875 per term. Well-suited to families who specifically want a traditional residential boarding environment with a smaller, close-knit student body.

2. École Jeannine Manuel, Lille campus

The Paris campus in the 15th arrondissement is a day school only. The boarding campus is in Lille, with 120 boarders in grades 6 to 12. IB average 38.1 in 2025 (first in France, source: international-schools-guide.com). Two hours from Paris by TGV. Practical for families primarily based in Paris who want IB excellence and are comfortable with a longer travel distance for the child.

3. International Bilingual School of Provence (IBS), near Aix-en-Provence

For families assigned to southern France. IB and Cambridge GCSE. Boarding for secondary students on a wooded five-hectare estate. From €27,900 per year. A well-run option when the company's work location is outside the Paris region.

This is the section most boarding school guides do not cover. And it is the one that changes how you approach the housing search most directly.

When your child boards, your apartment serves a different function than it does for day-school families. It is your base for the week, your home for evenings and weekends, and your child's home for four holiday periods per year. The criteria shift accordingly.

Location flexibility is your main advantage as a boarding parent

Day-school families are anchored to a school zone. A parent dropping a child at the International School of Paris in the 16th arrondissement has real practical reasons to look in the 16th or nearby, since the daily commute to school shapes the family's entire morning routine.

Boarding parents are not anchored that way. You can live in the 11th, the 15th, the 2nd, Neuilly-sur-Seine, or anywhere your work location and lifestyle call for, because your child lives at school from Monday to Friday. That is a wider field. And it opens up arrondissements and suburbs that day-school constraints would rule out.

In practice, this means you can find a better apartment at a better price than families forced into the school zone premium. A furnished two-bedroom in the 15th arrondissement (Vaugirard, Commerce) runs roughly €1,800 to €2,200 per month in 2026, based on OLAP 2025 data and the SeLoger January 2026 barometer. The same size in the 8th or 16th starts around €2,500 and rises quickly. For a boarding school parent, both neighborhoods work equally well, as long as transit to your workplace is reliable.

If your child's school is Ermitage (RER A), living near the 16th, 17th, or Neuilly-sur-Seine gives a straightforward weekend pickup route. If your child attends NDIHS (Ligne J from Saint-Lazare), the 8th, 17th, or 1st all connect well. You can read more about how this plays out in terms of rent levels and neighborhood character in this arrondissement guide for expats considering the 16th.

Apartment size, lease type, and holiday planning

Size: During the school week, a one-bedroom may seem sufficient. But your child returns for every school holiday, four times per year, approximately two weeks each, plus every weekend if you choose 5-day boarding. A two-bedroom is the practical minimum. Families expecting frequent visits from extended family, or those with multiple children, should consider a three-bedroom from the start.

Lease type by assignment length:

If your assignment is 12 to 24 months, a bail mobilité (mobility lease, 1 to 10 months in duration) gives maximum flexibility. It cannot be renewed indefinitely under the same contract, but it can be followed by another lease and is the most common structure for shorter-term corporate moves.

For assignments of 2 to 3 years, a bail meublé (furnished lease, 1 year renewable) is standard across expat profiles in Paris. Tenants can exit with 1 month's notice, which is a meaningful protection given assignment uncertainty.

For senior executives and diplomatic staff where the company signs the lease directly, a civil code lease (bail code civil, outside the standard residential framework of the loi du 6 juillet 1989) may apply. These allow freely negotiated rent, term length, and exit conditions. They are common for properties above €4,000 to €5,000 per month and for diplomatic postings where the employer, not the individual, holds the tenancy.

And if you travel frequently, with your child in 7-day full boarding, property management is worth building into the plan. Having someone who holds keys, handles maintenance, and keeps the apartment ready for your return and your child's holidays is not a luxury for this profile. It is a practical solution to a real logistics problem.

A family choosing a boarding school for their child and looking for a Paris apartment at the same time is managing two competitive, deadline-driven processes simultaneously (this is harder than it sounds). The housing market does not pause while you wait for school offers. And school applications do not wait for your lease to be signed.

The families who handle this most smoothly are the ones who run both searches in parallel, with expert support on the housing side.

Property search aligned with your school and work timeline

Relocation in Paris builds each property search around a specific brief: your work location, commute requirements, preferred arrondissements, budget, lease type, and the practical needs of your boarding school scenario, including space for holiday hosting and transit access for weekend pickups.

Through off-market access, apartments are sourced before they reach public platforms. In a market where Paris rental vacancy is below 2% and well-priced family apartments are claimed within 7 to 15 days, getting in early is the mechanism that works. You can review the scope of the property search and accommodation service and the package options and pricing to understand what is included before your first call.

Dossier support, GarantMe partnership, and lease structure

Boarding school parents arriving from the US, UK, or elsewhere typically have a profile that French landlords assess with extra caution: no French payslips, no personal guarantor based in France, and income documented in foreign currency. These are not disqualifying factors. But they need to be addressed before the first viewing, not after a rejection.

Relocation in Paris is an official GarantMe partner. GarantMe replaces the need for a French individual guarantor by acting as the financial guarantee for the tenancy. Approval typically takes around 24 hours, and the annual cost runs approximately 3.5 to 4.1% of total annual rent.

For diplomatic families and senior executives whose companies sign the lease directly, civil code lease negotiation is handled by the team, including rent, term length, and exit provisions. In most cases this removes the guarantor requirement entirely, since the company rather than the individual holds the tenancy.

For a September school start, the housing search should begin no later than four to five months before your intended move-in date. For most families, that means housing search begins in April or May at the very latest for a September arrival. In a market with vacancy below 2%, that is already tight.

A practical sequence for a September move:

• October to November: begin school research, attend open days, prepare application documents
• December to February: submit school applications; start housing search brief in parallel
• March: school offers issued, accept or decline, confirm school start date
• March to April: housing search active; apartment viewings; dossier submitted to landlords
• April to May: lease signed, move-in date confirmed
• June to August: utilities, internet, home insurance, and key contracts activated
• September: school starts, family arrives in an operational apartment

Families who try to complete these steps one after another, rather than in parallel, frequently miss either the best apartments or the school intake deadline, and sometimes both.

The administrative layer runs underneath all of this: visa validation through the ANEF portal, French healthcare registration, bank account setup, and home insurance (mandatory before key handover under Article 7 of the loi du 6 juillet 1989). For the full breakdown of what needs to happen before and after arrival in Paris, this guide to the administrative steps of moving to Paris covers the four-phase timeline in detail.