Schooling and childcare in Munich

How the state system is structured

Grundschule runs from six to ten and is allocated by Sprengel — a strict catchment tied to your registered address, so the Anmeldung determines the school. At the end of year four children move to Gymnasium, Realschule or Mittelschule, with the recommendation driven by grade averages rather than parental choice. The system is permeable in principle, but changing track later takes deliberate effort.

• Grundschule placement follows the Sprengel of your registered address — no application, no choice.
• The Übertritt at the end of year four is decided on a grade average in German, maths and Heimat- und Sachunterricht.
• Gymnasium leads to the Abitur; Realschule and Mittelschule lead to vocational routes and further qualifications.
• Children with no German are placed in Deutschklassen or given intensive support, depending on the school.

Language, and what it means for an arriving child

State schooling is in German throughout, and Bavaria's support provision for newly arrived children is real but varies sharply between schools. A six-year-old will typically be functional within a year. A thirteen-year-old arriving into a Gymnasium curriculum in a second language, with the Abitur ahead, is a much harder ask — which is why teenagers are the demographic that most often ends up in the international sector.

The international sector

Munich supports English-language international schools, a French lycée, a European School and other national curricula, most of them outside the city in the surrounding towns rather than in the centre. That geography drives housing decisions for international families, because the commute is the real cost of the choice. Places at the established schools are limited and admission is decided months ahead.

• Apply the winter before the September you want; some year groups have no movement at all.
• Expect an assessment, an interview and reports from the last two years.
• Many employers negotiate school fees into relocation packages — ask before you sign the contract.
• Check the actual door-to-door journey time from any flat you are considering.

Kita, Krippe and after-school care

Krippe covers roughly nought to three and Kindergarten three to six, run by the city, by churches and by private providers, with places allocated through the city's central Kita application portal. Munich demand exceeds supply and applications are made far in advance. Note that German school days traditionally end at lunchtime, so Hort or Mittagsbetreuung after-school care is a separate arrangement that working parents have to solve.

• Apply through the city's Kita portal, and apply to more places than you think you need.
• Bavaria subsidises Kindergarten fees for older pre-schoolers; the net cost is lower than the sticker price.
• Hort and Mittagsbetreuung places for primary-age children are separately applied for and also scarce.