Check out our web page about the comparison between French and Canadian education systems to have a quick look on equivalences:

How to register your children ?

The web site of the French Ministry of Education provides you with all the useful information about student registration in a maternelle, in a primary or a secondary school (in French only).
Primary and secondary schools are free and your child will be affected to the nearest school from where you live. You can ask for a dispensation but you must justify this request. Parents must also bring certificates of vaccination.

• For a registration in a primary school in France, check with the city hall where the child's family is living.
• For a registration in a secondary school (collège and lycée), check with the "inspection académique" of the departement (to the rectorat in Paris)
  Registration must be completed before June of the year before the start of the new school year although it might differ in some cities.

If your child was a student in a foreign school abroad, his new school in France can request some tests in order to determine his level. The age won't give an automatic equivalence.

If your child was a student abroad in a French school agreed by the ministry or if he followed distance education from the CNED, equivalence will be automatic with the new school in France. Procedures for registration are the same as moving to a new place.
If you want your child keeps his level in a foreign language, you can register him in a school with foreign classes.
To know more more about the procedure to register after moving, check out the web site of the French Ministry of Education (in French only)

For all the information about the visas needed to go to France with your children, check out our web pages "Visas".
This section offers in particular information for minors of age who intend to stay in France more than 3 months to attend school.

List of primary and secondary schools

To obtain the list of the "maternelle" schools and primary schools, ask the city hall of your new home.
Primary schools in France are numerous and you shouldn't encounter any problems finding a school for your child unless you live in a rural area. Places are limited in maternelle schools and some parents could encounter some difficulties finding a school for their children.
To obtain the list of secondary schools (collèges and lycées), check out the web site of ONISEP (National Information Office about Trainings and Jobs, in French only) which offers a search engine on schools by geographical aera. You can also look for one school whether it's a private school or not and whether it offers student housing or not.

« Scolanet » is a website which offers a complete list of private catholic schools in France: écoles, collèges, lycées and higher education.

If you wish your child to follow courses in English so that he keeps a good level in his first language, you should register him either in a bilingual class in a public school or in a private bilingual school. You will find a partial list of bilingual schools in France on "enfants bilingues", a private web site about bilingualism (in French only)

When are school holidays? Can you get financial help? Which are the required vaccines?
The French Ministry of Education offers on its web site some useful information (in French only).