Good to know
Good to Know
- Brisbane has essentially no dedicated American-curriculum or British/Cambridge (IGCSE/A-Level) day schools — the city's 'international education' options are almost entirely IB programmes bolted onto Australian independent, Catholic, or state schools, so families used to a distinct American/British-school scene elsewhere should expect an IB-or-Australian-Curriculum choice instead.
- For overseas families on temporary visas, both tuition and non-tuition fees apply even at 'free' state schools — this is handled through Education Queensland International (EQI), and is a separate fee track from the domestic fees quoted for local residents.
- Genuine language-immersion bilingual programs (French at Whites Hill State College, Japanese at Wellers Hill State School) are run through the free Queensland state-school system, not fee-charging private schools — a very different cost model from the IB private schools listed above.
- Published tuition figures for several well-known Brisbane private schools (e.g. Brisbane Girls Grammar, Somerville House, St Peters Lutheran College) were not fully confirmable from current public sources at the time of writing — always request a current fee schedule directly from the school before budgeting.
- Brisbane has relatively few dedicated 'international schools' — most expat families end up at CRICOS-registered private/independent schools or IB-programme schools rather than a purpose-built international-school campus.
- For Brisbane's top private schools, being on a 'Waiting List' does not guarantee an offer even after a long wait — some offers only come through as late as January of the intended start year, so don't bank on a specific timeline for these schools.
- If you're relocating on shorter notice, call the school's admissions office directly and ask about current-year vacancies rather than assuming you must apply years in advance — policies and current openings vary a lot by school.
- Homeschooling in Queensland is genuinely straightforward to start even for temporary-visa families: provisional registration can begin almost immediately after lodging an application, with the full education plan able to follow within a matter of weeks.
- There is no home-visit requirement for homeschool compliance in Queensland — oversight is done via a written annual progress report.
IB And Private Schools
Anglican Church Grammar School (Churchie)
- Type
- Independent Anglican, boys, day and boarding, ages 5–18
- Location
- East Brisbane
- Curricula
- Australian Curriculum / Queensland QCE-ATAR pathway, plus authorised IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) and IB Diploma Programme (DP) as an alternative senior pathway; a VET pathway is also offered.
Tuition Annual
- Amount Local Low
- A$24,820
- Amount Local High
- A$47,579
- Note
- Range depends on year level (Reception through Year 12); figures are 2025/2026 tuition-only, before levies, uniforms, camps.
Brisbane Girls Grammar School
- Type
- Independent, girls, day, founded 1875
- Location
- Spring Hill (adjacent to CBD)
- Curricula
- Australian Curriculum / QCE-ATAR alongside an IB Diploma Programme pathway in senior years.
Tuition Annual
- Note
- Specific current tuition figures were not confirmed via the sources checked for this call; comparable mid-to-top-tier Brisbane independent day schools charge roughly AUD 28,000–42,000/year for secondary years — treat this as an indicative market band, not this school's confirmed fee.
Somerville House
- Type
- Independent (PMSA), girls, day and boarding from Year 5, Early Learning Centre to Year 12
- Location
- South Brisbane
- Curricula
- Australian Curriculum framework; IB Primary Years Programme in the Junior School; IB Diploma Programme authorised from 2026, with the first DP cohort starting that year. Languages include French from Prep, with immersion days in Chinese, Japanese and German.
Tuition Annual
- Note
- One directory listed a starting/junior figure of roughly AUD 9,270/year, but this could not be confirmed as the full or current annual tuition — treat as approximate only and confirm directly with the school.
St John's Anglican College
- Type
- Independent Anglican, co-ed, day, K-12, founded 1994
- Location
- Forest Lake, south-west Brisbane
- Curricula
- Australian Curriculum with an authorised IB Primary Years Programme (PYP); IB code 051384; instrumental music compulsory from Prep.
- Tuition Annual
- A$15,324
This is the confirmed official 2026 Year 12 domestic annual tuition figure (billed over three terms); fees for lower year levels are generally lower.
St Peters Lutheran College
- Type
- Independent Lutheran, co-ed, day and boarding, founded 1945
- Location
- Indooroopilly
- Curricula
- IB Diploma Programme alongside the Australian Curriculum senior pathway.
Tuition Annual
- Note
- Specific current fee figures were not confirmed via the sources checked for this call; contact the school directly for a current schedule.
Moreton Bay College
- Type
- Independent, girls, day, ages 2–18
- Location
- Manly West
- Curricula
- Australian Curriculum with an authorised IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) in the junior years.
IB State Selective Schools
Queensland Academy for Science, Mathematics and Technology (QASMT)
- Type
- Public selective-entry secondary school, university-linked (University of Queensland)
- Location
- Toowong
- Curricula
- IB Middle Years Programme (Years 7–10) and IB Diploma Programme (Years 11–12), with a STEM emphasis; core teaching language English.
Tuition Annual
- Note
- Free/nominal fees for domestic students (standard Queensland state-school resource levies only, typically a few hundred AUD/year); overseas student-visa holders pay full international tuition through Education Queensland International (EQI) rather than the fees shown for private schools above.
Queensland Academy for Creative Industries (QACI)
- Type
- Public selective-entry secondary school, linked to QUT
- Location
- Kelvin Grove
- Curricula
- IB Diploma Programme only (Years 11–12, ages 16–19), with Year 10 introducing IB concepts.
Tuition Annual
- Note
- Same domestic-vs-overseas fee structure as QASMT above — minimal for local students, full tuition via EQI for overseas student-visa holders.
Calamvale Community College
- Type
- Public P-12 multicultural state school, founded 2002
- Location
- Calamvale, southern Brisbane
- Curricula
- IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) for Prep to Year 6 only; Years 7–12 follow the standard Queensland state curriculum (not IB).
Tuition Annual
- Note
- Free/nominal for domestic students; overseas student-visa holders pay tuition via Education Queensland International.
Bilingual Immersion Programs
Whites Hill State College
- Type
- Public state secondary/P-12 college
- Program
- French-Australian Bilingual Program, delivered through a harmonised curriculum combining the French Education Official Instructions (BOEN) with the Australian Curriculum; lessons delivered in both French and English, with the school working toward French Ministry of Education accreditation.
- Location
- Camp Hill
Cost
- Note
- Free/nominal for domestic students as a standard Queensland state school; entry has eligibility criteria rather than a tuition fee for locals.
Wellers Hill State School
- Type
- Public state primary school
- Program
- Japanese Bilingual Program aiming for conversational fluency in Japanese by Year 3 and technical fluency by Year 5, with a limited selection process for entry.
- Location
- Tarragindi
Cost
- Note
- Free/nominal for domestic students as a standard Queensland state school.
Homeschooling
- Legal Basis
- Home education is a lawful, recognised alternative to school enrolment in Queensland under the Education (General Provisions) Act 2006, administered by Queensland Home Education (QHE, formerly the Home Education Unit).
- Legal Status
- Fully legal and regulated
- Who Must Register
- Registration is compulsory for a home-educated child from age 6.5 (Queensland's compulsory schooling age) up to 16 or completion of Year 10, whichever comes first; optional early registration is available from age 5.5. A child cannot be simultaneously enrolled at school and registered for home education.
- Ongoing Obligations
- Once registered, parents are legally responsible for providing a high-quality education aligned with the Australian Curriculum's core learning areas, and must submit a written annual report (with work samples) demonstrating the child's educational progress around each registration anniversary. Unlike some other Australian states, Queensland does not require home visits as part of this review.
- Residency Requirement
- Eligibility requires that the parent/guardian lives in Queensland with the child — this is a residency test, not a citizenship test, so families in Brisbane on temporary visas are generally able to apply.
- Distance Education Alternative
- Families who prefer a structured, school-provided curriculum rather than parent-designed home education can instead enrol in a Queensland school of distance education, where the parent acts as supervisor/home tutor; children in distance education are not registered through QHE and follow a different pathway.
Process
- Applications can be lodged at any time of year — there is no fixed intake window.
- Submit the official Application for Registration for Home Education form, a certified copy of the child's birth certificate, proof of Queensland residence, and a summary/plan of the intended educational program for the next 12 months.
- Once a completed application is lodged, the child is immediately provisionally registered while the full application is assessed; QHE typically confirms this provisional status by email within about a week.
- A separate short-term option — a 60-day provisional registration without a full education plan — exists for families needing to withdraw a child from school urgently (this route has historically been used by temporary-visa-holding overseas families arriving in Queensland who want to start homeschooling immediately).
- If the child is currently enrolled in a Brisbane school, the parent must notify the school in writing of the intent to home educate before or alongside submitting the QHE application.
Local Community And Support
- Detail
- Home Education QLD Inc (HEQ) is a documented Queensland-based homeschooling advocacy and support body that offers volunteer help with registration paperwork and members-only registration webinars. The Home Education Association Australia (HEA) also maintains a dedicated Queensland page with registration guidance and volunteer support.
- Exists
- Yes
- Informal Groups
- Beyond these two associations, informal area-based Brisbane homeschool Facebook groups exist, though membership is generally by application/approval and specific group quality varies, so families should expect to try a few before finding the right fit.
International Bilingual School Enrollment
- Market Context
- Brisbane does not have a large cluster of dedicated "international schools" in the Singapore/Dubai sense. Expat and nomad families typically enroll children in CRICOS-registered independent/private schools (which accept overseas students on student visas) or in a handful of government/non-government schools offering the International Baccalaureate (IB) programme.
Application Timing
- Waitlist Realism
- Offers to Waiting List applicants at Brisbane Grammar can come as late as January of the intended commencement year, so a placement is not guaranteed even after years of waiting, and families should not assume a fast turnaround for popular entry points like Year 5 and Year 7.
- Elite Private Schools
- For the most sought-after boys'/girls' grammar-style private schools, families often need to apply years ahead. At Brisbane Grammar School, once the direct 'Enrolment List' is full, later applicants go on a 'Waiting List' that is reviewed for the intended entry year, and the school explicitly contacts families three years before the intended Year 5/7 entry to confirm continued interest.
- Practical Advice For Relocating Families
- Because of these long lead times, relocating families with shorter notice should contact each school's Enrolments/Admissions office directly to ask about current availability rather than assuming standard multi-year timelines apply — several Brisbane schools explicitly instruct overseas-student applicants to check placement availability before submitting a full application.
Application Fees Example
AUD
AUD
Government School Pathway
- Visa Requirement
- International students require a student visa and health cover to study in Australia for more than 12 weeks.
- Note
- International students can also study in Queensland Government (state) schools through Education Queensland International (EQI), which runs programs such as High School Study Abroad and a full High School Program leading to a Queensland Certificate of Education.
Required Documents And Steps
- Completed online/paper application form plus a non-refundable application fee (commonly in the AUD 650–665 range at Brisbane private schools)
- Certified copies of the student's birth certificate and passport/visa documentation
- Academic records/transcripts from the previous school
- For students without strong English, an AEAS or IELTS (or equivalent) English proficiency test result, since limited in-school English support is available at some academically selective schools
- Details of the student's proposed living/welfare arrangements in Brisbane (required for under-18 applicants living independently of parents)
- An interview with school academic leaders as part of the admissions review
- A written, signed offer/enrolment agreement and payment of a confirmation fee once an offer is made
Brisbane's 'international curriculum' landscape is overwhelmingly IB-centric rather than offering distinct American or British/Cambridge day schools. Almost all schools that market themselves as 'international' in Brisbane are Australian independent/Catholic/state schools that have been authorised as IB World Schools (offering the IB Primary Years Programme, Middle Years Programme, and/or Diploma Programme) layered on top of, or alongside, the Australian Curriculum and Queensland's ATAR/QCE senior pathway. A small number of Queensland state (public) schools also run genuine bilingual immersion streams (French, Japanese) rather than IB.
Currency Note
All tuition figures are in Australian Dollars (AUD), the local currency, with USD equivalents calculated at an approximate exchange rate of 1 AUD = 0.694 USD.
AI-generated estimateData refreshed July 2026
This section has no cited sources.
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Data last updated July 2026 · Verify anything important.