Moving to Dubai with children: schools and catching up

The order to do things in

1. Choose the curriculum: usually the one your child is in now, unless you are at a natural switching point such as age 11, 14 or 16.
2. Shortlist by area: school runs in Dubai traffic shape family life more than most parents expect.
3. Check each school's KHDA rating and inspection report, and its School Fees Fact Sheet in the KHDA directory.
4. Contact admissions early: popular year groups fill, and many schools assess applicants.
5. Gather documents: reports, certificates, transfer or leaving certificates, passports and visas.
6. Pay the registration deposit only after a formal offer, and keep everything in writing.

Dubai's 2026-27 school calendar

KHDA's calendar for private schools that start in September. Individual schools publish their own dates within it.

Indian, Pakistani and Japanese curriculum schools follow an April to March year; for 2026-27 KHDA lists a start on 6 April 2026.

Choosing a curriculum and school

KHDA's 2024-25 figures show the UK curriculum taught to 37% of Dubai's private pupils, the Indian curriculum to 26%, the US curriculum to 14%, the IB to 7% and UK/IB hybrid schools to 4%. Supply follows the same pattern: British schools are the easiest to find in most areas, and of the seven new schools opening in 2026-27, four are British and three IB.

If your child is mid-way through exams, stay with the same system and, ideally, the same exam board. A student halfway through Cambridge IGCSEs should look for a Cambridge school; a student in the second year of the IB Diploma needs an IB school that can continue their subjects and internal assessments.

KHDA ratings give a first filter. Most ratings in the directory date from 2023-24, and KHDA has said quality assurance visits resume in 2026-27, so read the report for your child's phase and ask schools what has changed.

Documents you are likely to need

The Ministry's equivalency service for Grades 2 to 11 from abroad asks for certificates for the previous two years, costs AED 50 and takes up to 30 working days. Ask your new school whether it needs it.

Fees and deposits

KHDA confirmed in May 2026 that Dubai private schools may not raise fees for 2026-27. Application fees are capped at AED 500, and the registration deposit at 10% of annual tuition, which is deducted from fees once your child starts. The deposit is refundable with at least 60 days' written notice before the start date, which matters if your move date might change. Each school's KHDA fee fact sheet lists tuition and mandatory fees by year group.

Catching up after the move

Most children settle within a term, but academic gaps are common. A child moving from England may meet different set texts or a different exam board; a child from an American or Indian school moving into a British school may find maths taught in a different order and more written, timed answers. Year placement can also shift: British schools number year groups one higher than American grades, and KHDA leaves the final decision to the school.

Arabic is taught in Dubai schools and Islamic Education is taught to Muslim students, which is new for many arriving families. Schools set their own expectations for newcomers, so ask what support they offer in the first year.

How one-to-one lessons help new arrivals

The quickest catch-up starts with a gap check: a tutor compares what your child covered at their last school with the new syllabus, then teaches only the missing topics. For IGCSE students that may mean a different board's paper style; for younger children it may be phonics, written methods in maths or extended writing. Lessons can start before you land, so the first term is less of a shock.

LiveTutor lessons are one to one, 60 minutes, online, after school in Dubai time, with tutors who teach British, American and IB curricula. Tutor matching normally takes up to 24 hours.