Best international schools in Belgium (2026)

This guide is for parents who are moving to Belgium with school-age children and want them taught mainly in English, or in a multilingual international programme, rather than in the Belgian French- or Dutch-speaking school system. It compares four private international schools and the European Schools network, using the fee tables and admission rules each school publishes for the 2026-27 year.

The situation most families face is the same. The job offer arrives, the start date is a few months away, and the school year in Belgium starts in late August or early September. Belgian public schools are free but teach in French, Dutch or German depending on the region, and older children who do not speak the language often struggle to join in secondary. International schools fill that gap, but they are expensive, their places are limited in some year groups, and the cheapest option on paper (the European Schools) is not open to everyone on the same terms.

Three things decide the choice in practice: where you will live (school runs across Brussels traffic are long, and the schools here sit in four different municipalities), who pays (your employer, you, or a mix), and which exit qualification your child needs for university. Price comes after those, because a cheaper school an hour away is rarely cheaper once buses and time are counted.

How to choose an international school in Belgium

Start with the commute, not the scores

The schools in this guide are spread out. ISB is in Watermael-Boitsfort in the south-east of Brussels, BSB in Tervuren just east of the city, St John’s in Waterloo to the south, AIS in the Ekeren district of Antwerp, and the European Schools have four sites in Brussels plus one in Mol. Before you sign a lease, check the school bus routes on each school’s site and test the drive at rush hour. Many families choose the school first and the house second for this reason.

Check who pays and what the contract says

Some employers pay school fees directly, others reimburse a fixed amount. Read the fee terms in both cases, because the school bills the parents. The British School of Brussels states plainly that parents remain liable for the full fees whatever their employer has agreed to pay. Payment rhythm also differs: BSB asks for a single annual payment each May, AIS invoices in two parts (July and December), and St John’s allows termly instalments for a yearly administrative charge. Ask each school for the full payment schedule before you commit.

Count the one-off fees

Every private school here charges an application or enrolment fee, and none of them refund it. They range from €750 per child, non-refundable at BSB to €2,000 once per family at ISB. AIS adds a yearly capital building fee per student on top of its application fee, while BSB says it does not plan a building levy. If you are still comparing two or three schools, ask whether the fee is due when you apply or only when a place is offered.

Look at the exit qualification

All four private schools state that they offer the IB Diploma. BSB is the only one that also offers A Levels and a BTEC route, which suits children heading to UK universities or who prefer a vocational track. The European Schools lead to the European Baccalaureate, which is recognised across the EU, and teach in language sections, so your child follows most lessons in one language section and learns other languages alongside.

Understand the European Schools categories before you count on them

The European Schools are public intergovernmental schools, not private international schools, and their fees are far lower. But admission depends on your category. European Schools pupils are split into Category I (admitted by right, fee-exempt), Category II (individual agreements) and Category III (admitted only if places are available, paying ordinary fees). (source, checked 2 November 2026) In other words, if neither parent works for an EU institution or a body on the official list, you are Category III and your place is not guaranteed. The fee for Category III families is €4,457.80 (Category III nursery, new pupils, 2026/2027); Category I free at the lowest level and €8,358.46 (Category III secondary, new pupils, 2026/2027) at the highest. See the terms and conditions of admission for the full order of priority.

Traps to avoid

• Assuming the fee table is everything. Buses, lunches, after-school care (garderie), instrument lessons and some trips are billed separately at most schools. BSB lists what is excluded on its fees page; ISB lists what is included.
• Missing the notice period. BSB requires a full academic term’s written notice before withdrawal, or it invoices a term’s fees. If your posting could end early, factor this in.
• Ignoring refund rules. ISB reimburses part of the tuition only if a student who paid in full leaves before the end of January, and nothing after that.
• Waiting for the lease to be signed before applying. Popular year groups fill, and applications take time to process.

The providers compared

The ranking below uses our published method: value for money weighs most, then English accessibility, service, simplicity of admission and digital tools. Scores come only from what each school publishes.

If you work for an EU institution

Check your category first. The European Schools admission page lists who counts as Category I: in short, staff of the EU institutions and listed bodies employed directly and continuously for at least one year, plus some other listed groups. If you qualify, your children are admitted by right and pay no fees, and a private school only makes sense for a specific reason (a curriculum, a location, a sibling already enrolled elsewhere).

In Brussels you still go through the central process. You apply to the school you prefer, the Central Enrolment Authority decides, and you may be placed in a different Brussels school from the one you asked for. Read the current year’s Brussels enrolment policy as soon as your appointment date is known, because the phase calendar is fixed.

If your employer pays the fees

Ask HR three questions before you choose: is there a cap, does the employer pay the school directly or reimburse you, and are one-off fees (application, enrolment, capital fee) covered. Then match that to the school’s payment rhythm. A school that wants the whole year in May (BSB) and an employer that reimburses monthly can leave you short for a while. St John’s allows termly instalments for a charge, and AIS splits the bill in two invoices.

Keep in mind that most schools state that the parents are the debtors. If the posting ends early, the notice and refund rules in the school’s contract apply to you, not to your employer.

If you pay the fees yourself

The gap between options is wide. For a family paying privately, the European Schools as Category III are by far the cheapest, but the place is uncertain. Among the private schools, AIS is the cheapest at every level, followed by St John’s in the younger years. At the upper end, the difference between AIS and ISB in the last grades is large enough to cover a lot of other costs.

If you want to compare the full cost of one school year, add: the application or enrolment fee, any yearly capital fee, buses, lunches, garderie and exam fees in the final years. Ask each school for a written estimate for your child’s grade.

If you live outside Brussels

Families posted to Antwerp have AIS as the natural choice. The European School in Mol serves families in the Kempen, under the same category rules as the Brussels schools. South of Brussels, St John’s in Waterloo is the closest. East of Brussels, BSB in Tervuren is reachable from the Woluwe communes, Kraainem and Wezembeek-Oppem. In Wallonia and the rest of Flanders, check bus routes before you rule out a school: some run long routes.

If you are considering the French or German school

The Lycée français Jean Monnet in Brussels and the German school are options for French- and German-speaking families. We could not verify their fees for 2026-27: the Lycée français site returned an access error when we checked it, and we did not find the German school’s current official site. They are not rated here. Contact them directly if they fit your family.

Step by step: enrolling in an international school

1. As soon as the move is likely, list the schools within a reasonable commute of the areas you are considering, and check bus routes.
2. Read each school’s fee page and terms (application fee, payment schedule, notice period, refund rule). Download the PDF where one is published.
3. Ask HR what the employer pays, how, and whether one-off fees are covered.
4. Book a visit or a virtual tour. All the private schools here offer tours; St John’s also runs discovery days.
5. Apply online and pay the application or enrolment fee. Check the admissions FAQ of each school for the documents it wants (school reports, identity documents, any learning support assessment) and gather them early.
6. If you are eligible for a European School, apply in the right phase. In Brussels, follow the enrolment procedure and watch for the random ranking results, which are published by file number.
7. Once a place is offered, confirm in writing, check the first invoice date, and register for transport and lunch.
8. If your child does not speak the teaching language, ask about English language support (ISB includes it in tuition) before the first day.

Our verdict

Antwerp International School (AIS) comes out ahead in the table, but the commute decides first. On value, Antwerp International School stands out: a full IB programme in English, the lowest private fees here and guaranteed places for expat families who meet its criteria. It is only practical if you live in or near Antwerp. For EU institution staff, the European Schools are the obvious choice, and for anyone else they are worth an application but not a plan you can rely on. In the Brussels area, St John’s suits families south of the city or who need boarding, BSB suits families who want A Levels or BTEC as well as IB, and ISB suits families in the south-east who want the most included in tuition and can pay the highest fees in the guide.