Education is often the longest decision an NRI family makes, and the hardest to reverse. Whether you are settling abroad for good or might return to India, it helps to understand how the two systems line up, and what each path costs.
How UK schooling is organised
| Age | UK year | Stage | Rough Indian equivalent |
|---|
| 4–5 | Reception | Early years | Nursery / LKG |
| 5–11 | Years 1–6 | Primary | Classes 1–6 |
| 11–16 | Years 7–11 | Secondary, ending in GCSEs | Classes 7–10 |
| 16–18 | Years 12–13 | Sixth form: A-levels, BTECs or the IB | Classes 11–12 |
| 18+ | University | Usually a three-year degree | Three- or four-year degree |
State schools are free and allocated largely by where you live. Grammar schools are free state schools that select by exam, and exist only in some areas. Private schools charge fees, now with VAT. Faith schools can be state or private, and may consider religious practice in admissions.
Choosing a school
Apply for a state school place through your local council, and research schools before you choose where to rent or buy, because catchment areas decide most places. Read the school’s Ofsted report, visit, and talk to other parents. The government’s school information service publishes performance data for every school in England.
University
Most students take three A-levels and apply through UCAS in their final year of school, with earlier deadlines for Oxford, Cambridge and medicine. Home fees in England are £9,790 a year for 2026-27, and home students can borrow to cover them.
The biggest cost variable is not the university but fee status. Home fees need settled status and three years of ordinary residence immediately before the course, and a British passport does not replace the residence test. A family that moves back to India a few years before university can find the fees multiply. Our
degree cost planner
prices degrees in India, the UK, the US, Canada, Australia and Singapore, inflated to the year your child starts and turned into a monthly saving.
If you might move back to India
- Qualifications. CBSE and CISCE schools offer the most direct path back into Indian education. The IB is widely accepted in both countries; acceptance of A-levels varies more.
- Placement. Age cut-offs differ between the systems, so a child may be placed a year ahead or behind. Check with the school you are aiming for.
- Adjustment. Children who have grown up abroad usually need time to adapt to the pace and exam focus of Indian schools.
- Records. Keep school reports and certificates from both countries.
Saving for it
A Junior ISA lets you save up to £9,000 a year tax-free for a child, locked until they turn 18. NRIs cannot open new PPF or Sukanya Samriddhi accounts, so rupee savings for education usually go into NRE deposits or mutual funds; our
investment guide
covers the options.
Life insurance
and a
will
that names guardians protect the plan if the worst happens.
This is general information. Check admissions and fee rules directly with schools and universities.
