Toronto, Canada
International schools in Toronto: what families need to know
Most families who move to Toronto use the public system, which is free for children of residents and generally strong, and a smaller group chooses independent schools or the few IB and language-specific options. The choice is usually made by neighbourhood rather than by school search. The year runs early September to late June. This guide covers how enrolment works, the Ontario curriculum, independent options, fees and where families settle.
Your contact details stay private until you choose to continue with a school.
Your request
- Where you are moving
- Toronto
- Children
- Sofia (age 8) · Luca (age 5)
- Curriculum
- British preferred
- Start
- August
One request. We ask relevant schools whether they have places for each child. Your contact details stay private until you choose to continue with a school.
Example request. School names in these examples are fictional.
Toronto in short
- Curricula available in Toronto: Ontario curriculum leading to the OSSD, plus IB, Advanced Placement and French programmes.
- The Toronto school year runs Early September to late June, in two semesters at secondary level, with the main intake at the start of it.
- Schools are overseen by Ontario Ministry of Education; four publicly funded school boards serve the city.
- Tuition is published per year group by each school. Registration, deposit, transport, uniform, meals and examination entries are normally billed separately.
- Availability is decided per child, per year group and per campus, so two children in one family can get two different answers from the same Toronto school.
- You can create one request and we ask relevant Toronto schools whether they have places for your children and what happens next.
Prepared by InternationalSchools.orgPublished September 2026Last reviewed September 2026
Toronto at a glance
The facts that shape a Toronto school search
- Oversight
- Ontario Ministry of Education; four publicly funded school boards serve the city
- Main curricula
- Ontario curriculum leading to the OSSD, plus IB, Advanced Placement and French programmes
- School year
- Early September to late June, in two semesters at secondary level
- Ages served
- Junior kindergarten from age 4 through Grade 12 at about 17 or 18
- Language
- English, with French immersion widely available in the public boards
How admissions work in Toronto
Most Toronto schools follow the same stages, whatever the curriculum.
- 1
Enquire and check the year group
Confirm the year group each child would enter in Toronto. Age cut-offs differ between systems, so the same child can be placed a year apart in two schools.
- 2
Assessment
Most schools assess before offering a place. This can be a short online task, a classroom visit or a subject test, depending on age.
- 3
Offer, deposit and registration
An offer is usually held only after a registration fee or deposit is paid. Check whether either is refundable before you accept.
Documents to prepare
Some documents can take time to arrange from abroad. Start collecting them before you have chosen a school.
- Passport and, where required, visa or residence documents for each child
- Birth certificate
- School reports for the last two years
- Transfer or leaving certificate from the previous school
- Vaccination and health records
- Any learning support or assessment reports, shared early rather than late
More detail: how international-school admissions work.
Curricula families meet in Toronto
We explain each system once, in the curricula library, rather than repeating it city by city.
British curriculum
IGCSE and A Level, and how English year groups are set by age.
International Baccalaureate
PYP, MYP and the Diploma, and who the IB suits on a later move.
American curriculum
US grades, high-school credits and AP, with their own placement rules.
Changing curriculum mid-move
What transfers cleanly between systems and where a child may repeat or skip a year.
The Toronto school year and when to apply
Timing decides how much choice you have. These are the stages most families move through.
Six to nine months ahead
Start looking for the main intake
Popular year groups in Toronto fill first, and assessment slots become scarce close to the intake.
Three to six months ahead
Assessments and offers
Schools assess, then make offers within days or weeks. Registration fees and deposits usually follow immediately.
One to three months ahead
Places confirmed, waiting lists move
Waiting lists move as leaving families release places, so keep asking rather than assuming a school is closed.
Start of the school year
Term begins
The Toronto school year runs early September to late June, in two semesters at secondary level.
Mid-year
In-year entry
Possible, but limited to whichever year groups have room. This is where asking schools directly saves the most time.
What school costs in Toronto
Published tuition is the starting figure, not the total. These are the charges to budget for.
What the Toronto market costs, in round numbers
High band- Primary, per year
- CAD 28,000 – 40,000
- Secondary, per year
- CAD 32,000 – 45,000
- Roughly, in US dollars
- US$21,000 – 33,000
Indicative annual tuition across mainstream international schools, for the stated academic year. Individual schools publish their own fees per year group, the top of each market runs above these ranges, and registration, deposits, transport, uniform, meals and examination entries are billed separately. Figures refer to the 2025/26 academic year. Compare fees across cities.
- Tuition
- Published per year group by each school
- Registration fee
- Charged at application or offer stage, usually non-refundable
- Deposit
- Secures the place and is often deducted from the first term's tuition
- Transport
- School transport is charged separately and varies by distance and route
- Uniform, books, devices
- One-off costs at the start of the year, higher in the first year
- Meals and activities
- Optional at most schools, but a real part of the annual budget
- Examination entries
- IGCSE, A Level, IB and AP entries are billed in the exam years
See also understanding international school fees.
Places and waiting lists
Which Toronto schools have places for your children?
A place is not something a school has in general. It exists for one year group, at one campus, for one intake. Two children in the same family can get two different answers from the same school on the same day.
School websites cannot tell you this. Availability changes when a family leaves, when a contract ends, or when a new year group opens. That is why we ask schools directly instead of publishing a number that would be out of date by the time you read it.
For each child, a Toronto school can answer that a place is available, that there is a waiting list, that the intake is full, or that it cannot confirm yet. You see the answer, the fees and the next step, and you decide where to focus.
Your contact details stay private until you choose to continue with a school.
Answers from schools · 2 children · British curriculum · Starting August
Westbrook International School
Answered in 1 day
North campus · British · Annual fees: Shared with your answer
- Sofia · Year 4Place available for AugustPlace available
- Luca · Year 1Place available for AugustPlace available
Next step: Assessment, then offer
Harbour Ridge Academy
Answered in 2 days
City campus · British · Annual fees: Shared with your answer
- Sofia · Year 4Place available for AugustPlace available
- Luca · Year 1Waiting list, reviewed monthlyWaiting list
Next step: Campus visit, then assessment
Elmfield International College
Answered in 3 days
Main campus · British · Annual fees: Shared with your answer
- Sofia · Year 4Full for the August intakeFull for this intake
- Luca · Year 1Place available for AugustPlace available
Next step: Register interest for January
Your contact details are shared only with the schools you continue with.
Example answers. School names in these examples are fictional.
Choosing where to live in Toronto
We do not rank areas. These are the questions that decide whether a school works day to day.
Midtown: Leaside, Davisville, Forest Hill
Central, family-oriented and close to several well-known independent schools, with strong local public schools.
The Beaches and East York
Lakeside, community-minded and more affordable than midtown, with a straightforward commute downtown.
Etobicoke and North York
More space for the money, good public schools and easy highway access, with a longer trip into the core.
Oakville, Mississauga and Markham
Suburban towns with highly rated schools and large international communities, chosen by families who want houses and gardens.
Moving to Toronto with children: a checklist
The school-related steps that decide how smooth the first term is.
- Confirm each child's year group under the curriculum you are moving to in Toronto.
- Collect and, where required, attest school reports and certificates before you leave.
- Ask schools about places for every child in the same request, not one at a time.
- Check whether registration fees and deposits are refundable if your move date changes.
- Check the visa or residency steps that enrolment can depend on.
- Ask about learning support early, since capacity is decided case by case.
- Line up housing only after you know which school can take all of your children.
See also the moving-abroad timeline.
Moving with more than one child
One school that works for every child, not one child
Most families moving to Toronto are moving with more than one child, and the hardest part is rarely finding a good school. It is finding one school that can take all of your children in the same year.
Checking each child separately, school by school, is where the search becomes slow. A school that has room in Year 1 may be full in Year 4, and you only learn that after two emails and a wait.
One request covers every child. Each school answers for each child, so you can see immediately where all of your children could start together, and where you would be splitting the family across two schools.
- Ask once for the whole family, not once per child.
- See sibling answers side by side before you contact anyone.
- Ask about sibling priority and start dates while places are still open.
Answers side by side
Westbrook International School
Harbour Ridge Academy
Elmfield International College
Sofia · Year 4
Luca · Year 1
Curriculum
British
British
British
Area
North campus
City campus
Main campus
Annual fees
Shared in answer
Shared in answer
Shared in answer
Next step
Assessment, then offer
Campus visit, then assessment
Register interest for January
Example comparison. School names in these examples are fictional.
How schooling works in Toronto
Public education is funded provincially and delivered by four boards: English public, English Catholic, French public and French Catholic. Children of residents with valid status attend free. Independent schools are privately funded, inspected for credit-granting purposes and set their own fees and admissions.
Public enrolment is by address and status
You register at the school assigned to your home address, with proof of address, immunisation records and your child's immigration documents. Children of work-permit and study-permit holders can attend free; visitors generally cannot.
Boards also run optional and specialised programmes, including French immersion and some IB, which have their own application windows earlier in the year.
Ontario curriculum and the OSSD
Secondary students work towards the Ontario Secondary School Diploma, which requires a set number of credits, a literacy requirement and community-involvement hours.
The OSSD is well recognised for university entry in Canada and abroad. If another international move is likely, ask how the school handles transfers and whether IB or AP is offered alongside.
Independent schools and when they make sense
Independent schools range from long-established day and boarding schools to smaller specialist ones. Their cycle runs a year ahead, with applications in the autumn and offers in the winter.
Families usually choose independent for continuity with a previous system, a specific programme, or smaller classes — not because public provision is weak.
Fees, and what free actually covers
Public schooling is free for eligible children; families pay for supplies, trips, some athletics and lunch. International students without resident status pay board tuition fees.
Independent tuition is billed annually or termly, with deposits and application fees separate, plus uniform, buses, technology and trips.
Winter, commuting and daily rhythm
Winter is long and real. School buses run in the suburbs; in the city many children walk or take transit, and snow-day closures are rare but possible.
Traffic across the city is heavy at peak. Living within your school's catchment matters more here than choosing between neighbourhoods on paper.
What families get wrong in Toronto
The local details that cost families a term, a deposit or a long daily drive.
Assuming you can pick any public school
Placement follows your home address. Confirm the catchment before signing a lease.
Arriving without immunisation records
Ontario requires proof of specified vaccinations to register. Bring translated records.
Missing the French immersion window
Immersion and other optional programmes apply months ahead, separately from ordinary registration.
Applying to independent schools late
Their cycle runs a year ahead, with offers in the winter for the following September.
Overlooking immigration status
Free attendance depends on the parents' permit type. Check eligibility before you plan a budget.
Official Toronto resources
Primary sources for regulation, inspection and enrolment. We link out rather than paraphrase.
How InternationalSchools.org works in Toronto
One request. We ask relevant Toronto schools whether they have places for your children and what happens next.
- 1
Create one request for Toronto
Where you are moving, each child's age, the curriculum you prefer and when you want to start. One request covers the whole family.
- 2
We ask relevant Toronto schools
We start with schools that serve your children's ages in Toronto. Curriculum, budget and area help us decide which relevant schools to ask first.
- 3
Schools answer for each child
Availability, fees, timing and what happens next. Your contact details stay private until you choose to continue with a school.
Schools cannot pay to be prioritised, and we do not publish scores or predict availability. How we select schools.
Questions families ask about Toronto
Find out which Toronto schools have places for your children
One request, every child, answers from the schools themselves.
Your contact details stay private until you choose to continue with a school.
Go deeper on Toronto
How fees compare across cities
What is published, what is billed separately and how Toronto compares with the other markets we cover.
Compare the main curricula
British, IB and American side by side, and what a later move between countries changes.
How admissions work
The stages most international schools use, and where relocating families lose time.
Continue reading
Waiting lists and availability
How waiting lists really work, and what to ask before you join one.
School year and intake timing
When places open, and what a mid-year move changes.
How it works
From one request to answers from the schools themselves.
Other destinations
You can create a request for any destination, published guide or not.
Last reviewed: September 2026
Guide version 3.1. Toronto information is compiled from official regulators, curriculum authorities and school-published material. Fees, intakes and requirements are set by individual schools and change, so confirm details directly with a school before you rely on them.
Sources
Something look wrong? Report a correction.