Of all the moving parts in a family relocation to Valencia, the one that bends to nothing is the school admission calendar. Your visa appointment can be expedited. Your rental can be found in a tight week. Your apostilles can be rushed. But Spanish public and concertado school admissions are governed by a centrally-managed regional calendar published every year in February or March, and once those windows close, the next opportunity is months away. The single most consequential decision in a family move to Valencia is not where to live or which visa to apply for — it is whether your children’s school strategy is calibrated to the calendar from day one.
This article is the guide we wish we’d had then, written specifically for the 2026-2027 school year — the official Comunidad Valenciana calendar dates published in February 2026, the four school lanes, the visa-school synchronisation challenge, and how to land your children in the right school without losing your timeline or your sanity.
If you’re reading this in mid- or late-2026, the ordinary phase for September 2026 has already closed — but the fase extraordinària is still live, and there are smart moves available. If you’re reading earlier in the year or planning ahead for 2027-2028, you’re in the strongest possible position, because the families who synchronise the school timeline with the relocation timeline almost always get into their first or second choice school.
The 2026-2027 official admission calendar
The Conselleria de Educación, Cultura y Universidades has published the official 2026-2027 admission calendar in the Diari Oficial de la Generalitat Valenciana (DOGV nº 10313, published 2 March 2026). For families relocating to Valencia, these are the dates that anchor every other decision.
Confirmation of place in adscribed centres (telematic, for students moving from a feeder school): 9 to 23 March 2026.
Infantil and Primaria ordinary phase (ages 3-12, the largest cohort): applications submitted exclusively online through adminova.gva.es, 7 to 18 May 2026. Provisional lists published in early June; final lists confirmed in mid-June. Enrolment confirmation in June and July.
ESO ordinary phase (Secondary, ages 12-16): applications 21 May to 1 June 2026 through adminova.gva.es. The dates for ESO have been compressed in 2026 specifically to allow provisional and final lists to be published earlier, accelerating the start of the fase extraordinària.
Bachillerato ordinary phase: parallel ESO timing.
Special Education centres: in-person applications 7 to 18 May 2026, processed separately.
Fase Extraordinària: opens in July 2026 and reopens in early September 2026 to fill places left vacant by withdrawals, families who didn’t claim their place, or new arrivals. This is the route most foreign families relocating mid-year actually use — and it has its own dynamics, which we’ll come to.
The lottery for tied applications (the sorteo) was held on 21 April 2026 under Article 38 of Decree 48/2024, and the result is published on the Generalitat’s admission portal. This matters when multiple families tie on points for the same school — the lottery letter determines who gets the place.
International and private schools do not follow this calendar. They admit directly throughout the year, often with assessments and waiting lists, and the strongest schools want your application nine to twelve months before your intended start date.
The four school lanes, and what they actually mean for your children
The Spanish school system runs from optional preschool at age 3 (educación infantil), through compulsory primary and secondary (ages 6 to 16), and on into post-compulsory bachillerato. Families relocating to Valencia have four real options.
Public schools (colegios públicos) are free, of generally high quality in Valencia, and follow the Spanish national curriculum, with instruction primarily in Spanish and Valencian. They are allocated by catchment area, which means your address and your school are genuinely the same decision. For children under roughly ten, public school is the single most powerful integration tool we know — within a year, most expat children are functionally bilingual and have local friendships that will outlast the relocation itself. The trade-off is that the first three to six months are hard: no English-language support, homework in Spanish, parents doing more translation than expected. Families who push through this period are almost universally glad they did.
Concertado schools are privately run but partly state-funded, charging modest monthly fees for a more structured environment, frequently with stronger English programmes and, in many cases, a religious affiliation. Places are competitive in the better-rated schools, particularly in central Valencia.
Private Spanish schools offer smaller classes and full Spanish-language immersion at private-school fees.
International schools cluster in and around the western and northern suburbs. The names families ask about most often include Caxton College (British curriculum, Puçol, ages 1-18, BSO-rated “Outstanding”) and the American School of Valencia (also in Puçol); British College La Cañada, Mas Camarena, and the Lycée Français in the Paterna-La Cañada area; Cambridge House British International School in Rocafort; the British School of Valencia in central Eixample; and the Deutsche Schule for German families. Fees typically run €7,000 to €15,000 per year per child, plus enrolment (€1,500–€3,000 the first year), capital levies (€600–€1,200/year), lunch (€120–€160/month), and transport (€110–€170/month). Valencia’s international school fees run roughly 30-40% below comparable Madrid and Barcelona schools — a quiet financial advantage of the city.
The honest framing we share with relocating families: international school is right for older teenagers needing exam continuity (IGCSE, A Levels, IB, Baccalauréat), for families on a defined two-to-four-year posting, and for parents who want their children’s social anchor to remain international. Public or concertado is often right for younger children, for families committing long-term, and for those who actively want their children to grow up Spanish-fluent. There is no universally correct answer — only the one that fits your family. We’ve explored the decision underneath the lanes in more depth in our expat family relocation guide.
The visa-school synchronization: the hardest part of the move
This is where most families looking at a September 2026 start, or even a 2027-2028 start, lose the most time. The calendar runs as follows:
For a September 2026 start in a public or concertado school, the application had to be submitted in May 2026. To apply, you needed (at minimum) a Spanish address, the children’s apostilled birth certificates with sworn Spanish translations, vaccination records, and ideally an empadronamiento certificate to score the catchment-area points. To have a Spanish address by May, you needed a rental contract by April, which required Spanish solvency documents and ideally a visa appointment scheduled. To have a visa appointment by April, you needed apostilled criminal record certificates from every country of residence in the past five years — and for US applicants, the FBI Identity History Summary plus US Department of State apostille combined takes 12 to 20 weeks through standard channels.
In plain English: families committing to a September 2026 start needed to have the FBI background check moving by November or December 2025. Most don’t, and most discover this in February or March 2026 when they realise the chain is stuck behind a single document.
For families now looking at September 2027 — which means the 2027-2028 school year — the calculus reverses. The ordinary phase will run May 2027. Working backwards: visa documentation should begin by July or August 2026; visa application submitted between October 2026 and January 2027; arrival in Spain anywhere from February to April 2027; rental and empadronamiento by April 2027; school application in May 2027; and the family settled by mid-summer for a September 2027 start. That’s a realistic, low-stress timeline if started now — and it’s the conversation we have most often with families twelve to eighteen months out.
The other tracking we run in parallel for every family is the international school application. International schools admit on rolling waiting lists, but the strongest places fill nine to twelve months ahead. A family targeting Caxton College or the American School of Valencia for September 2026 should have applied in late 2025; for September 2027, applications should be moving by autumn 2026.
We’ve covered the full administrative chain — visa, FBI, empadronamiento, TIE — in our 2026 relocation costs and process guide and the pitfalls that catch families most often in our relocation mistakes guide. For school admissions specifically, our deeper navigating school admissions in Valencia walks through the adminova process and the points system.
The points system and what actually wins places
For oversubscribed public and concertado schools, places are awarded on a points system codified in Decree 48/2024. The points categories that matter most for foreign families:
Catchment area (zona de influencia): the highest single category, weighted heavily. Living in the school’s catchment area is worth significantly more than living one street outside it. This is why your address and your school are genuinely the same decision in Valencia — and why we strongly advise families to choose the rental neighbourhood with the school target already identified, not the other way around.
Siblings already at the school: a major boost for second and third children.
Parents working in the catchment area: a smaller but real factor.
Family income below certain thresholds, familia numerosa status (three or more children), single-parent status, disability of a family member, and familia monoparental status all add points.
Random lottery (sorteo) breaks ties. The 2026 sorteo letter for the 2026-2027 admission cycle was drawn on 21 April 2026.
What does not score: foreign nationality, prior English-medium schooling, international school history, or any external academic record. The Spanish system is deliberately blind to most international credentials — your children will be ranked by the same criteria as Spanish-resident families on the same page.
The practical consequence: for foreign families targeting the better public schools, the rental contract that creates catchment-area eligibility is the single most consequential document. If you sign a lease one street outside the catchment of the school you want, you’ve effectively chosen a different school. We map this for every family before any viewing.
Neighbourhood choice driven by school choice
Because catchment area determines public-school placement, the neighbourhood map for relocating families is shaped almost entirely by the schools you’re targeting.
For families targeting public or concertado schools in central Valencia: identify the school first, then look for rentals within its catchment area. Pla del Real, L’Eixample, Ruzafa, Benimaclet, Patraix, and Campanar all have well-regarded public schools, and the right catchment can be a single block of difference. Property prices in these neighbourhoods range from €2,440/m² in Patraix to over €4,840/m² in Ruzafa, with rentals correspondingly varied.
For families targeting international schools in the western and northern suburbs: the rental hunt centres on La Cañada, L’Eliana, Rocafort, Godella, Campolivar, and Puçol — the last home to Caxton College and the American School. These are quiet, leafy towns fifteen to twenty-five minutes from central Valencia, with houses, gardens, and the kind of family-friendly residential rhythm that international families specifically seek.
For a hybrid family — one parent commuting into central Valencia, children at an international school — the best operational choice is often a property along the Metrovalencia line 1 or 2 axis: Burjassot, Godella, Rocafort, or Bétera, which connect directly to the city centre by metro in 15-25 minutes and sit near the international school cluster.
The rental market in early 2026 is tight: vacancy around 3%, good properties renting within 72 hours of being listed. Families who try to handle the search remotely from abroad, without a school strategy already in place, consistently end up in the wrong house in the wrong catchment. We’ve covered the full housing cost map in our 2026 relocation costs and process guide.
How we work with families targeting the 2026-2027 or 2027-2028 cycle
For families targeting the 2026-2027 school year at this stage — i.e., a September 2026 start — the realistic options depend on where you are in the chain. If the visa is approved or close, the priority is the fase extraordinària in July or September, alongside parallel international-school waiting-list applications. If the visa is still being prepared, a January 2027 fase extraordinària for the second half of the 2026-2027 year is realistic, with the family arriving mid-year and starting school in January. We’ve helped families navigate both, and neither is ideal, but both work.
For families targeting the 2027-2028 school year, you are in the strongest possible position. The full ordinary phase is available, the timeline allows for proper FBI / criminal record processing, the visa application can move at the right pace, and the family can arrive in Valencia in spring 2027 with the school admission already in hand. This is the version of family relocation we most prefer to run for our clients, because every part of it can be done well.
Our family relocation service is built specifically around the synchronisation of the visa, housing, and school tracks. We start with a free pre-move consultation where we map the children’s ages, the visa path, the budget, the target school lane, and the timeline. We then run the three tracks in parallel: trusted immigration attorneys handling the visa documentation, the on-the-ground team running the rental search calibrated to school catchments, and our school-finding service handling the school applications themselves — public, concertado, or international — through the relevant calendars. After arrival, we coordinate the empadronamiento, the TIE bookings, the SIP card, the utilities, and the soft landing in the first ninety days.
Start the conversation
If you’re seriously planning a move to Valencia for the 2026-2027 or 2027-2028 school year, the most useful next step is an honest, no-pressure conversation about your situation, your children’s ages, your timeline, and whether we are the right team to walk it with you. We offer that conversation for free, fifteen minutes by video, no pitch — because the families we end up working with usually just need a quiet hour with people who have run this process hundreds of times.
Book your free 15-minute consultation here →
Valencia is a remarkable place to raise children. The first school year is the hardest, and the most important. Let’s make it as good as the years that follow.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What are the official 2026-2027 school admission dates in Valencia? For public and concertado schools in the Comunidad Valenciana, the ordinary phase ran 7-18 May 2026 for Infantil and Primaria, and 21 May-1 June 2026 for ESO and Bachillerato, all via adminova.gva.es. Confirmation of places at adscribed centres ran 9-23 March 2026. The fase extraordinària opens in July 2026 and again in early September 2026 to fill remaining places. International schools admit directly throughout the year on their own waiting lists.
2. We missed the May 2026 ordinary phase. Can we still get our children into a Valencia school for September 2026? Yes, through the fase extraordinària, which opens in July and again in early September 2026 to fill places left vacant by withdrawals. Available places vary by school and grade level — strong central schools may have nothing, while less oversubscribed schools and outlying areas often have capacity. International schools admit on rolling waiting lists year-round, so this is often the faster route for late-deciding families.
3. How does the catchment area (zona de influencia) work? For public and concertado schools, your residential address determines which schools you can apply to and how many points you receive. Living within a school’s zona de influencia is the single highest-weighted scoring category in the admissions points system. This is why your choice of neighbourhood and your choice of school are genuinely the same decision — and why families should target the school first, then find a rental within its catchment.
4. What documents do we need to apply for school in Valencia? For public and concertado applications through adminova.gva.es: a valid DNI, NIE, or EU citizenship registration certificate; the empadronamiento certificate showing your Valencia address; the children’s apostilled birth certificates with sworn Spanish translations; vaccination records (typically apostilled and translated for non-EU children); and any documents supporting additional points (sibling enrolment, familia numerosa certificate, income statements where applicable).
5. How early should we apply to international schools in Valencia? For the strongest international schools (Caxton College, American School of Valencia, British College La Cañada, Cambridge House, the Lycée Français, the Deutsche Schule), applications should be submitted nine to twelve months before your intended start date. Waiting lists are real, particularly at primary level. Mid-year arrivals are possible at most international schools, but the strongest year-group placements require advance planning.
6. What is the points system used by adminova.gva.es? The Comunidad Valenciana uses a points system codified in Decree 48/2024. The categories are: catchment area (the highest weighted), siblings already at the school, parents working in the catchment area, family income below specified thresholds, familia numerosa status (three or more children), single-parent status, disability of a family member, and additional weighted criteria. Random lottery (the sorteo, drawn in April each year) breaks ties between families on the same point total.
7. When should we start the relocation for a 2027-2028 school year start? For a September 2027 start in a public or concertado school, plan to begin visa documentation by July or August 2026. The chain runs roughly: FBI / country-of-origin background check (8-20 weeks for US applicants); apostilles and sworn translations (4-6 weeks); visa application submitted October 2026 to January 2027; arrival in Spain February to April 2027; rental and empadronamiento by April 2027; school application in May 2027 through adminova.gva.es; family settled by mid-summer for September 2027 start.
8. Can our children attend a Spanish public school without speaking Spanish? Yes. Public and concertado schools accept children of legal residents regardless of language level, and many Valencia schools have experience integrating newly arrived non-Spanish-speaking children. For children under roughly ten, language acquisition is typically rapid and complete within a year. Older children and teenagers integrate more slowly into Spanish-language schools and often benefit from international school as a bridge, particularly if arriving mid-secondary.
9. How much do international schools in Valencia cost in 2026-2027? Valencia international school tuition typically runs €7,000 to €15,000 per year per child, plus enrolment fees of €1,500-€3,000 in the first year, annual capital levies of €600-€1,200, lunch at €120-€160 per month, and transport at €110-€170 per month. This runs roughly 30-40% below comparable schools in Madrid or Barcelona — a quiet financial advantage of relocating specifically to Valencia rather than the larger Spanish metros.
10. What does Livin’Valencia actually do for a family targeting a specific school year? We coordinate the three tracks that determine whether your children land in the right school on the right date: the visa documentation through our trusted immigration attorneys; the housing search calibrated to the catchment areas of your target schools; and the school applications themselves — public, concertado, or international — through the relevant calendars. We synchronise the three so that the rental contract, the empadronamiento, and the adminova.gva.es application or international school file all align in time. We stay close for the first ninety days after arrival because that is when most real questions arrive.
Have a question we haven’t covered? Get in touch → — we read every message.
