Germany · Munich
BIS is an English-medium day school with primary provision on both campuses and secondary provision in Haimhausen. It offers all four IB programmes, but its Grade 11–12 routes do not carry the same recognition. Admissions are rolling and capacity-led.
Bavarian International School, usually called BIS, is a co-educational, non-profit day school. Its two campuses serve different age ranges, so the family’s location matters as much as the curriculum.
The City Campus is at Leopoldstraße 208 in Munich-Schwabing. It serves Early Childhood and Grades 1–5. The Haimhausen Campus, about 15 kilometres north of Munich, serves Early Childhood through Grade 12.
This arrangement is attractive for a city-based primary family. It becomes less convenient in Grade 6, when every pupil moves to Haimhausen. Test that journey before accepting a primary place.
The school’s current brochure says its new Creativity and Innovation Centre in Haimhausen is expected to open in spring 2027. Treat that as a planned facility until BIS confirms it is operating.
The IB organisation’s record confirms that BIS is authorised for all four International Baccalaureate programmes. It records the Diploma Programme from 1995, the Primary Years Programme from 2002, the Middle Years Programme from 2012 and the Career-related Programme from 2018.
The stages are straightforward:
These routes do not have identical status in Germany. The KMK MYP agreement includes BIS, but recognition as a Mittlerer Schulabschluss is conditional. The certificate, subjects, scores and German-language requirements all matter.
The IB Diploma can qualify a pupil for German university entry only when the KMK subject, level and score rules are met. A pass alone is not an automatic German Abitur equivalent.
The KMK agreements cited by the school concern the MYP certificate and the full IB Diploma. Do not assume that the CP or BIS High School Diploma provides the same German university access. Ask the target institution before choosing subjects.
English is the school’s main teaching language. The IB directory lists English and German for the Career-related Programme, while BIS describes English as its general language of instruction.
German is taught from Grade 1, but prior German is not an admissions requirement. This is not a German-English bilingual school and it does not offer the Bavarian Abitur.
The admissions page says beginner English support is available through Grade 8. From Grade 9, applicants are expected to have intermediate English.
The student-services page adds useful detail. Beginners in Grades 6–8 enter the Newcomer Centre for English, humanities and science. Intermediate learners in Grades 6–10 take MYP English Language Acquisition.
Grade 11 entrants who need English support are placed in English B for the IB Diploma or High School Diploma route. BIS does not publish an equivalent beginner route after Grade 8 or a public Grade 12 entry standard.
Learning support covers pupils with mild learning differences in primary and secondary. It may include classroom support, monitoring, small-group teaching, re-teaching and adjustments in an Individualised Education Plan.
That wording is a real limit. BIS does not publish support staffing, available places, exclusion criteria or a separate support charge. Send all reports before assessment and require written confirmation that the proposed provision is available.
BIS accepts applications throughout the year and permits mid-year entry when a place is available. It had not published a separate 2027 deadline by 4 September 2026.
The school has published 2027/28 birthdate guidance. It uses 30 September as the primary cut-off and describes every initial placement as tentative.
For example, Grade 1 applicants for 2027/28 were born from 1 October 2020 through 30 September 2021. Grade 12 applicants were born from 1 October 2009 through 30 September 2010.
Secondary placement also considers the pupil’s age and previous education. BIS may change a tentative grade after assessment.
The application sequence is:
Applicants from Early Childhood 2 through Grade 5 may be invited to one or more guest days. German-speaking pupils in this group may also have a German screening.
Applicants to Grades 6–12 may complete an online English placement test, an unaided writing task and an interview. The interview can be held by video for a distant applicant.
BIS aims to decide within ten working days after receiving a complete file. Holidays, missing support information or further assessments can make the process longer.
When a grade is full, an admissible applicant may join a waitlist. BIS does not disclose positions or give binding wait times.
The published priority order is important. Children of expatriate families come first, then siblings of current pupils, then local German families. Applying early does not override this order.
A place is secure only after committee approval, a signed contract and payment. Do not withdraw a child from another school on the strength of an application or verbal conversation.
The May 2026 fee schedule applies to both campuses. BIS had not published 2027/28 fees by the review date.
| Compulsory charge | 2026/27 amount |
|---|---|
| Application, new pupil | €200 |
| Registration, new pupil | €2,250 |
| Re-registration, returning pupil | €1,125 |
| Late re-registration | €2,250 |
| Entrance fee, first year | €7,960 |
| Entrance fee, second year | €4,550 |
| Entrance fee, third year | €2,280 |
| Entrance fee, three-year total | €14,790 |
The application, registration, re-registration and entrance fees are non-refundable. The entrance-fee schedule in force during the pupil’s first year continues for that pupil.
| Grade | Annual tuition |
|---|---|
| Early Childhood | €18,500 |
| Grades 1–5 | €18,530 |
| Grades 6–8 | €21,460 |
| Grade 9 | €22,530 |
| Grades 10–12 | €24,850 |
A new Grade 6 pupil therefore faces €31,870 before transport, meals and other extras. That calculation adds the application, registration, first entrance instalment and annual tuition.
The single-payment due date was 15 July 2026. Families joining later must pay the invoiced amount in full when accepting, although the tuition percentage falls under the schedule below.
| Start date | Tuition payable |
|---|---|
| Before 15 October | 100% |
| From 15 October | 95% |
| From 15 November | 85% |
| From 15 December | 75% |
| From 7 January | 65% |
| From 15 February | 55% |
| From 15 March | 45% |
| From 15 April | 35% |
| From 15 May | 25% |
| From 15 June | 15% |
The two-term option charges 102% of tuition, split into 65% and 37%. The detailed clause gives payment dates of 15 July 2026 and 15 January 2027.
The monthly option charges 104% of tuition and can include the first entrance instalment. It uses ten direct-debit payments from 15 July 2026 through 15 April 2027.
Both instalment options require an EU bank account and are unavailable to company payers. Changing a payment option after an invoice costs €50 per pupil.
Late balances attract 1% interest per month. For a missed monthly instalment without prior written agreement, the full balance becomes due with an additional 1% surcharge.
Parents or guardians must give at least six weeks’ written notice. The fee schedule then applies the following tuition refund percentages:
| Leaving date | Tuition refunded |
|---|---|
| 20 August–15 September | 75% |
| 16 September–15 October | 65% |
| 16 October–15 November | 55% |
| 16 November–22 December | 45% |
| 23 December–15 January | 35% |
| 16 January–15 February | 25% |
| 16 February–15 March | 15% |
| 16 March–15 April | 5% |
| 16 April–25 June | 0% |
This refund table covers annual tuition. The non-refundable application, registration, re-registration and entrance fees remain payable. BIS also says a pupil cannot attend while due fees remain unpaid.
No separate refundable deposit appears in the public 2026/27 schedule.
Transport is optional and priced by distance. The 2026/27 fee schedule says the bus requires a full-year contract, with invoices in October and February.
However, the live transport page still links to a 2025/26 price table. Do not use those old amounts for a 2026/27 budget. Obtain the current route, annual charge and cancellation terms before signing.
The current admissions brochure prices lunch at €7.20 for kindergarten and Grades 1–2. It gives €7.80 for Grade 3 through adults. Secondary pupils can also buy snacks.
Primary pupils use school-provided devices. Grades 6–12 must bring a laptop meeting the school’s specification; BIS publishes no standard device cost.
The fee schedule also identifies these extra costs without publishing fixed prices:
The admissions brochure says a home-language course can cost at least €40 per academic hour. The exact language, group size and provider contract should be checked before enrolment.
Sibling discounts cover tuition and the entrance fee, not registration, transport or other extras. For families first enrolled from 2019/20, the third concurrent sibling receives 10% and the fourth receives 15%.
The Fee Reduction Programme is for new and returning pupils in Grades 1–12. It is restricted to self-paying families without employer, government or sponsor funding.
Assessment uses gross worldwide household income and assets. Applicants must meet normal admissions standards, document need and prove their main residence in Germany. Support is reassessed every year and remains subject to funding.
The current PDF gives deadlines of 15 March for returning families and 15 May for new families. It does not name the application year and still compares its bands with 2025/26 fees.
The scholarship page says no free scholarship is currently available. Its remaining references concern a Grade 9–12 award for 2026/27 and contain two different closed deadlines.
Do not plan a 2027 application around either scholarship date. Ask whether a new award and deadline have been approved.
BIS is a day school and the IB directory records no boarding facilities. The school publishes no residential guardian service.
The current admissions brochure requires at least one parent to be legally resident in Munich or the surrounding area. That parent must live there throughout the pupil’s enrolment.
Admission does not create eligibility for a student visa, and BIS does not give immigration advice. A family proposing a third-party guardian arrangement needs written approval before paying non-refundable fees.
The transport page describes buses across greater Munich, a Garching-Hochbrück shuttle and a city line to Haimhausen. It also offers an after-activities bus for secondary pupils from Monday to Thursday.
Choose BIS if you want an English-medium IB pathway and value a city primary option. It is especially practical when an employer covers the substantial entrance fee and the family can manage the Grade 6 move to Haimhausen.
Look elsewhere if you need boarding, a beginner-English route after Grade 8 or a guaranteed German Abitur. Compare Munich International School if Starnberg is easier for the family’s home and work locations.
Official pages and documents we read. If a figure matters to your budget or your application, open the link and confirm it is still current.
Friendly orientation, not an application. Dates, fees, and programme details move. Confirm everything with the school.
European School Munich offers a multilingual route to the European Baccalaureate, with kindergarten and primary in Fasangarten and secondary in Neuperlach. Category I pupils have an admission entitlement and pay no tuition. Other families need to establish eligibility, available places and fees.
StarnbergMIS offers English-medium IB education at Schloss Buchhof in Starnberg, with German for every pupil. Check older-year English requirements, the commute and tuition plus three years of entrance fees.
KleinmachnowBBIS offers English-language education from age three through Grade 12, with boarding from Grade 9. Its Kleinmachnow location and the separate tuition, registration and boarding charges are central to the decision.
BonnBonn International School offers the full IB continuum in English, with German taught in every grade. It is a day school in southern Bonn, not a Düsseldorf campus. Its current online fee table is undated, so families planning for 2026–27 should confirm the figures in writing.
Munich International, Bavarian International and the European School serve different locations and admissions routes. Start with eligibility, qualification and the actual campus.
7 minStart with the qualification your child would actually receive. Then check its subjects, language demands, and recognition in the countries where they may study next.
7 minStart with your child and the family's likely plans. Define the non-negotiables, verify the school's claims, compare three realistic options and visit with specific questions.
7 minTuition is only one line of the budget. Separate charges from advance payments, record what each figure includes, and ask the school to confirm your calculation in writing.