Moving to Barcelona with Kids 2026: Nurseries and Schools

Your child needs a place, you do not know which office decides it, the forms are in Catalan, and a friend says the nursery deadline passed in May. This guide sets out what the council, the Barcelona Education Consortium and the schools themselves say in 2026, in the order a newly arrived family needs it.

What should a family do first?

Register on the padrón. It is the register of where you live, you register at any citizen advice office (OAC), online or through 010, and the council says you do not need regular residence to join it. The nursery service gets the family address from the padrón, and the Catalan health card (TSI) needs padrón registration to receive the physical card. The council's Welcome Desk helps newcomers with these first steps in English.

How does a nursery place work in Barcelona?

Municipal nurseries (escoles bressol) take children from about four months to three years, and applications run in one annual window. For 2026-27 the council's page gives these dates:

• 1 May 2026: places published. 4 to 15 May: online pre-registration, with face-to-face appointments for families who cannot apply online.
• 21 May: provisional scores. 22 to 29 May: objections. 29 May: the tie-break draw. 1 June: final scores.
• 10 June: admitted list and waiting list. 11 to 25 June: enrolment.
• Late applications are accepted but recorded as late, submitted at the first-choice school by appointment. The page's late dates look inconsistent with the main window, so confirm them with the school.

Fees are means-tested: the council's price page gives a maximum of €406.85 a month, paid in ten instalments from September to June, and says schooling is free for children aged 2 to 3 while meals are charged under social pricing. Our nursery guide explains the bands, and the early help guide for children aged 0 to 6 covers CDIAP.

How do you get a state school place when you arrive mid-year?

Through the Barcelona Education Consortium, a body formed by Barcelona City Council and the Generalitat. According to Barcelona International Welcome, students aged 3 to 16 who have recently arrived can apply for publicly funded schools after the school year has started or after the official enrolment period has ended, at any time during the course, and the process is free.

• How: complete the electronic form online, one application per child. Families who need help can book an appointment at the Consortium's Help and Information Office (Roger de Llúria 1-3) by phone on 012 or 93 551 1000.
• Documents: a digital certificate or a scanned ID document, a passport if the applicant is not Spanish (EU nationals can use their national ID), and the family book or birth certificate if the child has never attended school in Catalonia.
• Places: applications are handled only where there are vacant places, processed in order of arrival, and requests are generally resolved within a maximum of two weeks. Applications received before August should get a response, as far as possible, before the September start.

Our living without Spanish guide covers the application in plain English.

What do international schools cost in 2026-27?

• Hamelin-Laie International School (Montgat): annual totals with lunch of €11,186 for early years, €12,920 for primary, €14,370 for secondary and about €15,491 to €15,493 for the IB Diploma, with exam fees not included.
• American School of Barcelona (Esplugues de Llobregat), family rate: €14,114 for early childhood, €19,407 for elementary, €22,237 for middle school and €27,062 for high school, plus a €250 application fee, a one-time capital levy of €6,000 from Grade 1 (€3,000 for PK3 to K5) and an annual matriculation fee of €975.

Our international school fees guide and the free guide's schools page compare more schools. Check where the school is: Hamelin-Laie is in Montgat and the American School in Esplugues, both outside the city.

What about the language of instruction?

Catalan remains the language of instruction in public schools, according to the Department of Education as reported by 3Cat on 30 March 2026, when the Catalan high court ordered provisional enforcement of a ruling annulling parts of the language decree. The ruling is not final and the Department said nothing changes immediately, so check the current position with the Consortium before you decide.

How do doctors and vaccinations work for children?

Children registered on the padrón can be registered for the Catalan health card (TSI), and the Hospital Clínic publishes the childhood vaccination schedule, so bring vaccination records from abroad and ask a paediatrician to map them onto the Catalan schedule. Our paediatrician guide covers private consultation prices and how to find a doctor who speaks English.

How do you get the free guide and help connecting with professionals?

Our free 19-page Barcelona English Speakers Directory 2026 puts the practical steps from this guide into a few pages you can keep on your phone: pages 7 to 9 cover nurseries, school routes, international school fees and doctors for kids, page 5 how to see a doctor in English and page 15 the eight neighbourhoods. It is plain English, free, and every page links to checked English-speaking professionals. Download it, then join the WhatsApp community for one-way updates when rules, fees or appointment systems change.

If you would like help before you arrive, tell us what you need and which neighbourhood you are considering, and we will point you to English-speaking professionals who serve it. Use the finder on the home page or the request form on any category page, for example paediatricians. We do not test fluency and a listing is not a ranking or an endorsement, so ask each professional directly whether they work in English with clients and what the work will cost.

Find an English-speaking paediatrician for your child: All of Barcelona, or by area: Eixample, Poblenou, Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, Les Corts, Diagonal Mar & Vila Olímpica, Gràcia, El Born & Barri Gòtic and Sants.