Dubai school fees and the KHDA ratings: what British schools cost and what the grades mean

A good British school in Dubai costs about what a day school in the Home Counties does, and sometimes more. Before you sign anything, it pays to understand the KHDA rating on the gate and the extras that don't appear in the headline fee.

The short version

• Fees are frozen for 2026/27. The KHDA told the press in May 2026 that Dubai private school fees won't rise this academic year; check your school's fee letter [3].
• The 2025/26 increase was capped by the Education Cost Index at 2.35% for for-profit schools, adjusted by each school's inspection grade [2].
• Ratings run on a six-point scale from Outstanding to Very weak, but full inspections have been paused, so most schools' current ratings are from the last full round [4].
• Typical 2026/27 fees at top British schools run from about AED 53,000–67,000 (about £10,700–13,600) in FS1 to AED 100,000–111,000 (about £20,200–22,400) in Year 13 [6][7][8][9][10].
• The extras add up: a AED 30,000 (about £6,100) debenture at Dubai College, a 10% registration deposit at Repton, a 5% re-registration fee and application fees [6][9].

Pound conversions use a rate derived from the Bank of England USD spot rate of 5 November 2026 (£1 = USD 1.3476) and the dirham's fixed peg of AED 3.6725 per USD, which gives £1 = AED 4.9491.

The KHDA and its ratings

School is compulsory in the UAE for children aged 6 to 18, as the FCDO's "Living in the United Arab Emirates" guide points out [1], and for British families that almost always means a private school. The Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) is Dubai's education regulator. Its inspectors, through the Dubai School Inspection Bureau, grade every private school on a six-point scale [4][2]:

Think of it as Ofsted with two extra rungs. The big difference for parents is that the grade is tied to money: a for-profit school's permitted fee rise depends on its rating and the Education Cost Index [2].

The inspection pause

Here's the catch. Full inspections were paused, and in November 2025 the Khaleej Times reported that only four newer schools got full reviews in 2025/26, with the rest getting targeted check-ins or self-evaluation, so most Dubai schools went a second year without an updated overall rating [4]. When a school says it's "Outstanding", ask which year that rating is from.

Which British schools are rated Outstanding

On the press lists of Outstanding schools from the last full round, which we couldn't check against KHDA's own site, British-curriculum schools include Dubai College, Repton, JESS Arabian Ranches, Kings' School Al Barsha, Dubai English Speaking College, GEMS Wellington International School, Dubai British School Emirates Hills, Dubai British School Jumeirah Park, Nord Anglia International School Dubai, Safa Community School and Jumeirah College, plus primaries such as Kings' School Umm Suqeim, Dubai English Speaking School and Horizons English School [5]. Repton says it has held an Outstanding rating since 2014, and Dubai British School since 2017 [9][7].

Brighton College Dubai wasn't on that list. It cites an Outstanding rating in every category from British Schools Overseas, the UK-approved inspection scheme for British schools abroad [10].

What the fees look like for 2026/27

All figures are annual tuition from each school's own 2026/27 fee page.

Sources: [6][8][7][9][10].

A few things stand out. Dubai British School Emirates Hills is markedly cheaper at secondary level than the others, despite its Outstanding rating [7]. Brighton College publishes discounted tuition below its KHDA-approved fees, which reach AED 117,933 for Years 10 to 13 on the official sheet [10]. And JESS charges one primary fee from FS2 to Year 6 [8].

For two children through a British secondary school, you're looking at roughly AED 145,000–220,000 (about £29,000–44,000) a year before extras. That's in line with a London day school, without the VAT that now applies to private school fees back home.

The extras nobody mentions at the open day

Then add uniforms, buses, lunches, trips, exam fees and laptops. Brighton College lists trips, food, transport and exam fees as extras [10].

Debentures

Not-for-profit schools such as JESS and Dubai College fund their buildings partly through debentures, a lump sum lent to the school and repaid when your child leaves [6][11]. There are two kinds:

• Personal debentures, which you pay yourself.
• Corporate debentures, which companies buy so their staff's children can get places. At JESS, corporate debenture holders are one of the few groups it can still take waiting-list applications from in most year groups [11].

If your employer holds corporate debentures at a school you like, it can be the difference between a place and a waiting list.

Waiting lists and timing

1. Start a year ahead, at least. Dubai College's Year 7 applications for August 2027 had already closed when we checked [12]. JESS expects FS1 applications for 2028/29 to open on 8 February 2027 [11].
2. Watch the update dates. JESS publishes admissions updates on set dates, the next being 1 December 2026, and reopens closed year groups only when waiting lists fall [11].
3. Mind the gaps. Neither Dubai College nor JESS takes new pupils into Year 11 or Year 13 [12][11].
4. Apply to more than one school. Application fees are small next to the cost of a year with no place.

Education allowances: what employers pay

There's no rule that an employer must pay school fees in Dubai, and practice varies a lot. Senior expat packages may include an allowance per child, sometimes capped at a set figure, sometimes paid only for two children. Many locally hired roles include nothing.

Before you accept a job:

• get the allowance and its cap in writing in your contract
• check whether it covers debentures, application fees and registration deposits
• ask whether the company holds corporate debentures and at which schools
• find out what happens if you leave mid-year, because you may owe the school a term's notice

The fee freeze helps for 2026/27 [3], but the KHDA can allow increases again in future years, so don't assume today's figure holds for 13 years.

For the bigger picture on choosing a school, see our guide to schools in Dubai. And our community group for Brits in the UAE is a good place to ask other parents how long the waiting list really was: you can join here.

Sources

1. GOV.UK: Living in the United Arab Emirates
2. UAE government portal: school fees (updated 21 October 2026)
3. Gulf News: no private school fee hike for 2026-27, KHDA confirms (22 May 2026)
4. Khaleej Times: Dubai schools get new KHDA ratings (20 November 2025)
5. Khaleej Times: fees at Dubai's Outstanding KHDA schools
6. Dubai College: school fees 2026–27
7. Dubai British School Emirates Hills: fees 2026-27
8. JESS Dubai: school fees 2026/27
9. Repton Dubai: fees 2026-27
10. Brighton College Dubai: school fees 2026/27
11. JESS Dubai: admissions
12. Dubai College: admissions

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