A Dubai school can publish one figure for tuition, a second for the total on its fees fact sheet, and a separate price for the bus that actually serves your address. Each figure answers a different question. The tuition figure tells you the price of teaching for a particular year group. The fact sheet shows what else the school lists for that grade. The bus quote tells you what your household would spend on a service it plans to use. A useful comparison puts all three figures on the same page.
Dubai confirmed on 22 May 2026 that private school fees would not increase in the 2026–27 academic year. A child moving into a higher-priced year group can still have a different tuition bill, and a family moving across the city may need a different transport arrangement. Build your budget from the fee sheet for the year your child will actually enter. Dubai Media Office announcement.
Start with the exact campus and year group
Open the Knowledge and Human Development Authority’s education directory, select the school and campus, and find the School Fees Fact Sheet for the curriculum and year group on your offer. Check the academic year printed on the sheet itself. A school’s summary page can list a broad fee range across all grades, which is handy for an initial search but too broad for an application decision. Save the exact sheet as a reference when you read the Parent–School Contract or ask the accounts team to explain an invoice. KHDA says the fact sheet is valid for one academic year and can be verified with its QR code. KHDA school directory · KHDA fact sheet guide.
When your child is moving up a grade at the same school, put the two grade sheets side by side and mark the lines that change. If you are budgeting for siblings, build a separate row for each child. The older child may need an exam entry or a device while the younger child needs a fresh set of books. Apply a sibling concession only after the school confirms which child qualifies, what fee it applies to, and the period it covers. Record that confirmation separately from the published tuition so you can see what the budget would be if the concession ends.
Separate the bill into four parts
| Budget line | What to look for |
|---|---|
| Tuition | The annual figure for the exact campus, curriculum and grade, with any published tuition discount identified separately. |
| Mandatory charges | Charges listed as compulsory on that sheet. Check whether they are already included in the displayed total. |
| Required supplies | Items the child needs, such as books or uniform. Check whether the school includes them, provides a shopping list or permits an external supplier. |
| Services you will use | Your actual bus route, meals, paid activities or trips. Obtain a specific quote where the sheet gives a range. |
Pay particular attention to books. KHDA explains that book charges can appear differently depending on how the books are supplied. A family may be able to buy the required set elsewhere, or the books may already be included in tuition. Ask for the list before ordering and check which materials transfer from one year to the next. For a device, ask whether an existing device meets the school’s specification and what the amount on the sheet actually covers.
For older students, flag examination fees separately until the school confirms the board, subjects and entries that apply. If the sheet says board exams are charged at the board’s rate, a blank amount still leaves an open budget line. For sport, music and clubs, distinguish the activity fee from equipment, external competition costs and any late collection arrangements. Where an activity only runs for part of the year, ask whether its quote is per session, per term or for the full programme before adding it to an annual budget.
Worked example: KG 2 at GEMS Legacy School
The 2026–27 Indian curriculum KG 2 fact sheet for GEMS Legacy School’s Dubai branch lists AED 8,532 in tuition. A diary, ID card and e-resources add AED 380 in mandatory fees, producing a published total of AED 8,912. The required books and uniform sit below that total. Their listed ranges add AED 700 to AED 1,200. A household using those supply ranges would budget AED 9,612 to AED 10,112 before selected services and any applicable new-student application fee. GEMS Legacy School KG 2 fee sheet.
The same sheet shows transport at AED 4,500 to AED 6,000. Adding that range gives an illustrative AED 14,112 to AED 16,112 for the listed total, supplies and bus. A family comparing a campus close enough for a school run with one that needs paid transport can see how the bus changes the decision. Confirm the route, whether the address is served, the type of journey covered and the payment schedule before using a number from that range. Ask what happens if the household moves after paying.
Worked example: Year 12 at GEMS Wellington International School
The 2026–27 UK Year 12 sheet for GEMS Wellington International School’s Dubai branch lists tuition and a published total of AED 103,399. Its required supplies section lists uniform at AED 800 to AED 3,000 and a device line at AED 515. Adding those amounts to the published total gives AED 104,714 to AED 106,914. Including the listed bus range of AED 8,000 to AED 12,000 gives AED 112,714 to AED 118,914. Both illustrations leave the board exam cost open and exclude any applicable new-student application fee or other chosen services. GEMS Wellington International School Year 12 fee sheet.
These examples cover different grades and curricula. Their value is in showing how the same calculation works at two price points. Wellington’s own fee table also shows why grade matters inside one school. Its 2026–27 annual column lists AED 59,862 for Year 6 and AED 82,540 for Year 7, a step of AED 22,678 across the two grades shown in the same year’s schedule. That is a useful amount to model if you are planning for a phase change. Use the next year’s approved sheet when it becomes available for the actual payment decision. The school page carries a 2025/26 heading alongside columns dated 2026–27, so check the dates on the table and use the dated KHDA sheet for the current grade. Wellington’s published tuition table.
Track what you owe and when you owe it
Keep one annual total and a separate payment calendar. The KHDA parent FAQ for the registration and refund policy effective 23 March 2026 distinguishes an application fee from a registration deposit. A new-student application fee can be up to AED 500 under the FAQ, covers standard assessment and sits outside tuition. The registration deposit comes after a formal offer has been accepted, is capped at 10% of annual tuition and is credited towards the first term. Enter the deposit as an early cash payment and subtract the same credit from the balance when it appears. KHDA registration and refund FAQ.
The same FAQ describes termly payments with ceilings of 40%, 30% and 30%, or ten equal monthly payments. Check which schedule your school applies. Existing students may be asked for a re-registration deposit to hold their place for the following year. The FAQ sets the maximum at 5% of annual tuition or AED 500, whichever is higher, and treats it as a credit against the following year’s tuition. The resulting cash calendar may have a payment for next year while the current year still has fees due. Keep the academic year on each entry so you can match receipts to the right bill.
Ask for a written breakdown when the published pages use different figures. Wellington’s fee page, for example, lists an application payment of AED 525 inclusive of VAT, while KHDA’s parent FAQ describes the AED 500 application-fee cap. Ask the school to identify the fee and any VAT separately on the invoice and confirm the applicable terms. The two pages give you the right figures to ask about, without making an assumption about the tax treatment of a specific invoice. Get the same clarity on any employer payment. Record the date your employer reimburses you alongside the date the school requires payment so a delayed reimbursement does not hide an up-front cash requirement.
Ask about refunds while you still have options
KHDA’s FAQ says the application fee is refundable when assessment does not lead to a place, or when the school collected it without telling the family a place was unavailable or that they could only be waitlisted. It gives a separate rule for a family that turns down a formal offer. For a registration deposit already paid, the notice date matters. The FAQ describes refunds for formal notice given at least 60 calendar days before the child’s start date, with narrower circumstances for late notice. For a returning pupil, it measures the 60 days before the start of the next academic year. Confirm the relevant start date in writing, especially if one child is joining midyear while another is enrolled for September.
Once the term has started, the official withdrawal date drives tuition calculations. KHDA’s FAQ explains that an absence from class does not itself end enrolment. Submit the formal written request and keep the school’s acknowledgement and the date shown on the Withdrawal Certificate. Check transport and activity terms separately, especially if a third party took the payment. Ask the school to provide those terms in writing and identify who handles the refund. Some fee sheets and school pages use general wording about non-refundable deposits, so check that the actual refund calculation takes the circumstances and the current KHDA policy into account.
What to keep before you accept an offer
Keep the dated fact sheet, offer, draft contract, any confirmed discount, an itemised first invoice and the payment dates together. Ask for a written price for any essential service that appears as a range. If the school says an item is included, mark the invoice line against the corresponding fact sheet entry. If it quotes a separate charge, ask what it covers and when it is due.
For each child, finish with three figures you can compare across offers: the annual school cost including the services you expect to use, the amount due before the first day, and any still-unpriced line. That last figure might be an exam fee, a route-dependent bus quote or a device purchase. Keep it visible until you have the written amount. It is easier to choose between two schools when you can see the difference between the total that fits on a fact sheet and the cost that fits your family’s year.
Label each figure as published, quoted or confirmed on your invoice. That distinction helps when a school updates a circular. GEMS Legacy School, for example, issued a correction on 9 February 2026 after an earlier notice gave the wrong Grade 11 figure. Its corrected circular also gives the same AED 8,532 KG 2 tuition used in the example above. If you saved a fee sheet months ago while planning a move, pull it up again before committing and ask accounts to reconcile any revised amounts with your offer. GEMS Legacy School’s corrected 2026–27 circular.
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