International school vs Japanese public school: costs and entry for foreign families

The international school Japan families pay for costs ¥600,000 to ¥3,440,000 a year in tuition at the five schools we checked, plus one-time entry fees of up to about ¥1.5 million. A Japanese public elementary or junior high school charges no tuition, and foreign children get a place on request through the city office. Families spent about ¥367,000 a year on a public elementary child in the government’s FY2023 survey. These are fees as listed on each school’s site as of October 2026.

How much does an international school in Japan cost?

These are five examples, not a directory or a ranking. Figures are as listed on each school’s own fee page, read on 24 October 2026. Schools change fees every year, so check the page before you apply.

ELC means early learning center (preschool). K. International School Tokyo already shows fees for August 2027 to June 2028.

What a first year costs for one child entering Grade 1, from those pages:

• Yokohama International School: ¥50,000 + ¥1,480,000 + ¥3,210,000 tuition + ¥399,000 = ¥5,139,000.
• Nagoya International School: ¥50,000 + ¥1,000,000 + ¥2,700,000 + ¥250,000 = ¥4,000,000.
• India International School in Japan: ¥20,000 + ¥5,000 + ¥600,000 + ¥10,000 textbooks = ¥635,000, plus about ¥20,000 for the uniform.

Buses usually cost extra: ¥500,000 a year for Nagoya’s neighborhood bus, and ¥150,000 to ¥360,000 for a round trip at the India school, depending on the ward. Uniforms, trips and lunch are often extra too.

Are public schools free in Japan for foreign children?

Yes, for tuition. Japan places no school-attendance duty (就学義務) on the parents of foreign children. But if your child wants to attend a public elementary or junior high school, the Ministry of Education (文部科学省, MEXT) says the school accepts them free of charge, on the same basis as Japanese children. MEXT sets no residence-status condition for this.

MEXT’s guidance, revised on 28 August 2026, tells cities to explain this to foreign families. Its FY2025 survey found about 9,000 foreign children who may not be in any school.

What do you still pay at a Japanese public school?

Tuition is free, but not everything else. Shinjuku City, for example, charges no admission, tuition, textbook or school lunch fees, but parents pay for school supplies (gym clothes, workbooks), excursions and school trips.

The FY2023 national survey shows the average yearly spend per child:

Lunch costs have changed since that survey. From April 2026, the national government funds public elementary school lunch at up to ¥5,200 a month per child, for 11 months a year. Cities can still charge parents anything above that, and the scheme doesn’t cover junior high school, so ask your city what it charges.

If money is tight, ask the board of education about school-expense assistance (就学援助). MEXT tells cities to explain it to foreign families, and Shinjuku offers it based on household income.

How do you enroll a foreign child in a Japanese public school?

Children past junior high age can still be accepted into a public junior high school if the local board agrees. Where the city has a night junior high school (夜間中学), it should be offered too.

Is there Japanese-language support in public schools?

Usually, though how much depends on the school. In MEXT’s survey of 1 May 2025, public schools had a record 84,759 students who needed Japanese-language instruction (日本語指導), 73,313 of them foreign nationals. Of these students, 88.6% got some form of Japanese support at school, and 11.4% got none.

Support is spread thinly. About 12,668 public schools had at least one such student, but only 28 had 100 or more. Nationwide there were 8,706 Japanese-language support staff and 7,301 native-language supporters.

The gap shows later. Among students needing Japanese support, 91.5% went on to high school, against 98.9% of all junior high students. Only 41.2% of them went on to university or similar, against 75.0% of all high school students.

Can foreign students apply to Japanese public high schools?

Yes. Your child can sit the general entrance exam, and in some prefectures a special selection too. MEXT’s 2026 guidance also tells prefectures to promote special quotas for foreign students (外国人生徒等を対象とした特別定員枠) and exam adjustments such as furigana on questions. It is guidance, not a rule, so it varies by prefecture.

Tokyo is one example. Its metropolitan high schools run a separate selection for foreign students living in Tokyo (在京外国人生徒等対象) who need Japanese support:

• Who: any nationality, at least the age of a Japanese third-year junior high student, living in Tokyo with parents (for full-time schools).
• Arrival rule: if your child is finishing school abroad or a Japanese junior high school, they must have entered Japan within 3 years of the entrance date.
• Tests: an essay and an interview, each in Japanese or English. The Japanese essay has kana readings (furigana).
• Schools: Tokyo’s 2026 pamphlet introduces schools such as Kokusai (International), Minami-Katsushika, Takedai, Tagara and Suginami Sogo.
• Timing: eligibility checks around December, applications and exams in late January, and a September-entry round in early July.

Students can take this selection and the general exam, because the foreign-student selection comes first. If they pass it, they can’t sit the later exams.

Is high school tuition free for foreign residents?

It depends on residence status. From April 2026 the high school tuition support (高等学校等就学支援金) has no income limit, but non-Japanese students must meet status rules. The yearly cap is ¥118,800 at a public full-time high school (the full public tuition) and ¥457,200 at a private full-time one.

MEXT’s example of a Dependent child is one supported by a parent on a status such as Professor or Artist. Because the condition names both elementary and junior high school, a Dependent child who arrived in Japan during junior high school may not meet it. Ask your prefecture’s board of education before you rely on it.

Students outside the new system can still get help:

• Entering from April 2026 (not on Student status): a separate payment (高校生等・新修学支援金) if household income is under about ¥9.1 million. It is up to ¥118,800, or up to ¥396,000 at a private school if income is under about ¥5.9 million.
• Already enrolled before April 2026: the old system continues under ¥9.1 million; above that, up to ¥118,800.

Students at some foreign schools (外国人学校) also fall under the separate payment. The India International School says its Grades 10 to 12 students can apply for Tokyo tuition support. Apply through the school, with a residence card copy or certificate of residence (住民票).

What do 各種学校 and 一条校 mean for switching schools later?

This is the biggest non-money question. Some international schools are Article 1 schools (一条校), the legal category of Japanese schools, but MEXT says most are miscellaneous schools (各種学校), and quite a few are unlicensed.

For a foreign child, any of these is a legal choice. For a Japanese-national child, including a dual national, it is different:

• A non-Article-1 international school does not fulfill the legal school-attendance duty.
• A child who finishes its elementary section is not allowed into a Japanese junior high school (an Article 1 school). The same applies to switching midway through its junior high section.
• Yokohama lets dual nationals defer that duty through the ward office if they attend such a school.

Accreditation and university. For Japanese universities, the school’s accreditation matters more than its legal status. MEXT accepts graduates who completed a 12-year course at a school accredited by international bodies such as WASC or CIS, and holders of the International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma or A levels. Graduates of MEXT-designated foreign schools also qualify. Other routes are the High School Equivalency Examination (高等学校卒業程度認定試験) or a university’s own screening at 18 or older. Ask the school which of these applies to its graduates.

Are there cheaper alternatives to international schools?

Yes, but we could confirm fees for only one. MEXT notes that families can choose ethnic schools (民族学校) as well as international schools. The India International School in Japan, which follows India’s CBSE curriculum, charged ¥600,000 a year up to Grade 9 for 2026-27. That is less than a third of the lowest tuition at the four other schools we checked.

We found no official fee pages for Nepali or Brazilian schools, so they aren’t listed here. Ask any school for its fee sheet, its legal status (一条校, 各種学校 or unlicensed) and its accreditation before you pay an entry fee.

More guides

• Child allowance for foreigners: ¥10,000 to ¥30,000 a month per child, up to high-school age.
• Dependent visa in Japan: your child’s status, and the route to a work status after Japanese high school.
• Gift tax for foreigners: whether grandparents paying school fees counts as a taxable gift.
• Permanent residency requirements
• Long-term resident visa