Hong Kong international schools for Aussie kids

In Hong Kong the school decides the suburb, not the other way round. Families who start early have choices. Families who start late take what is left.

The short version

The Australian International School Hong Kong (AISHK) in Kowloon Tong runs from Reception to Year 12 and offers both the NSW HSC and the IB [1].
AISHK's 2026 fees run from HK$156,200 for Reception to HK$265,400 for the IB years, plus a HK$25,000 annual capital levy [2].
ESF, the largest English-medium international school group in Hong Kong, runs 22 schools teaching IB programmes [3][4].
ESF's central application for K1, Year 1 and Year 7 runs during September, with interviews from October to January [4].
If you move on a General Employment Policy visa, your children under 18 can come as dependants and study [5].

The three big choices

Australian families tend to weigh three paths. None is automatically best. It depends on your child's age, how long you plan to stay, and where you might land next.

Option	Curriculum	Best for	What to watch
Australian International School Hong Kong	Australian curriculum to Year 10, then NSW HSC or IB [1][2]	Families heading back to Australia within a few years	Fees, the annual capital levy and debenture options [2]
ESF schools	IB PYP, MYP and Diploma, plus IGCSE, BTEC and a developing IB Career-related Programme [4]	Families wanting the IB with a large network of schools	Fixed application windows and catchments [4]
Other international and private schools	British, American, Canadian, European and bilingual programmes	Families with ties to another system or wanting Mandarin	Debentures, waiting lists, very different fee levels

The Australian International School

AISHK sits at 3A Norfolk Road in Kowloon Tong and is a co-educational day school from Reception to Year 12 [1]. Its big advantage is continuity. A child who sits the HSC in Hong Kong gets an ATAR-based pathway into Australian universities, and the move back to an Australian classroom in earlier years is smoother because the curriculum lines up.

In Years 11 and 12 families choose between the HSC and the IB Diploma [2]. The IB costs more, and it travels better if your next posting might be London or New York rather than Sydney.

ESF

The English Schools Foundation describes itself as the largest English-medium international school organisation in Hong Kong, with 22 schools [3]. Its schools teach the IB Primary Years Programme in kindergarten and primary, the Middle Years Programme from Year 7, and the IB Diploma in Years 12 and 13 [4]. Some schools also offer IGCSEs and BTEC courses.

ESF primaries feed into linked secondaries. Students enrolled in Year 6 by 1 December are guaranteed a Year 7 place [4]. That makes the primary choice more important than it looks.

What it costs in 2026

AISHK published these annual fees [2]. We have converted at roughly HK$5.5 to A$1, in line with the Inland Revenue Department's 2026 monthly averages [6].

Year level	2026 fee	About in A$	2027 fee
Reception	HK$156,200	A$28,400	HK$163,600 (full day)
Preparatory to Year 6	HK$182,500	A$33,200	HK$191,200
Years 7 to 10	HK$210,500	A$38,300	HK$220,500
Years 11 to 12, HSC	HK$220,900	A$40,200	HK$231,400
Years 11 to 12, IB	HK$265,400	A$48,300	HK$270,000

Other costs to budget for [2]:

Application fee: HK$1,500, valid for a year.
Capital levy: HK$25,000 per student per year, reviewed every five years.
Debentures: AISHK publishes a depreciating debenture repayment schedule. Ask the school which option applies to you.

The 2027 figures may still rise, because fee increases need Education Bureau approval [2].

ESF publishes fees school by school. For 2026/27 it asked families for an advance payment of HK$13,900 for Years 2 to 6 and HK$18,110 for Years 8 to 11, offset against September fees [7]. It also mentions a refundable capital levy of HK$25,000 [7]. Check the full fee letter for your school, as annual tuition is set separately.

Debentures, levies and nomination rights, explained

These are the words that confuse new arrivals most.

Capital levy: a yearly or one-off charge per student for buildings and facilities. Some are refundable, some are not.
Debenture: a larger sum paid by a family or company that can give priority in admissions. Many are refunded, sometimes on a depreciating scale.
Nomination rights: usually bought by companies, these let the employer nominate a child for priority consideration. ESF opens nomination rights applications in early September [4].

If your employer is relocating you, ask in writing who pays which of these. A package that covers tuition but not a debenture can leave a large gap.

The timeline that works

Hong Kong school admissions run on fixed dates. Here is a sensible order for a family moving with school-age kids.

Twelve months out: shortlist. Decide between HSC, IB or another system based on how long you will stay.
Check visas. Children under 18 can join you as dependants on a General Employment Policy visa and may study [5].
September: apply. ESF's central application for K1, Year 1 and Year 7 runs through September, with supporting documents due by the first Friday of October [4]. Other schools set their own dates.
October to January: interviews and assessments. ESF Year 7 interviews run mid-October to late November, and Year 1 interviews from November to January [4].
November to December: offers and deposits. ESF Year 1 offers go out at the end of November and Year 7 offers in December, with a deposit and levy due quickly to confirm [4].
Then pick a flat. Choose your home near the school, not the other way round. Our renting guide helps.

Arriving mid-year? Apply directly to schools for in-year places and ask to go on waiting lists. Movement happens, especially around the end of the academic year.

Questions to ask on a school tour

How many Australian families are enrolled, and how many leave each year?
What support is there for a child arriving mid-year or without a second language?
How do Year 12 results translate into Australian university entry?
What are the real annual costs, including levies, uniforms, buses and camps?
How long is the bus ride from the areas families actually live in?

Planning the return

If there is a good chance you will move back, think about timing. Moving in the middle of the HSC or IB Diploma is hard on kids. Our moving back to Australia checklist covers schools on return. If your child was born in Hong Kong, sort their Australian citizenship by descent and passport early; see babies born overseas.

Other parents are the best guide to what the brochures leave out. Join Cooee Hong Kong, our Facebook group for Australians in Hong Kong, and ask about bus routes, waiting lists and which schools suit which kids.

International schools in Hong Kong: HSC, IB or ESF, and how to get a place