School in Bermuda: free public education for every child who lives there, and registration in November
By law, every child who lives in Bermuda has the right to free public education, including a Dutch child. Compulsory schooling runs from 5 to 18. For public schools you register in November for the following school year, which starts in mid-September. There are also private schools. Lessons are in English. Dutch child benefit stops.
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A Dutch child who lives in Bermuda may go to public school, and it is free. The Education Act 1996 gives every child resident in Bermuda that right (section 51). It contains no nationality requirement. Lessons are in English. For public schools you register in November for the following school year. There are also private schools, which you pay for yourself.
What does the law say?
| Subject | What applies | Education Act 1996 |
|---|---|---|
| Compulsory schooling | from 5 to 18, unless your child passes senior school earlier | section 40 |
| Duty of the parents | make sure your child receives suitable education | section 42 |
| Free education | primary, middle and senior school, for every child resident in Bermuda | section 51(1) |
| Pre-school | free from 3 to 5, if there is a place | section 51(2) |
You sometimes read that children of foreign workers may not attend public school. That is not in the law. You do have to show that your child really lives in Bermuda. Which proof the school wants for that is not in the official announcement. It is probably your residence document or your child's, such as the entry/re-entry permit that family members receive with a work permit. Ask at registration@moed.bm.
When do you register?
For the 2026/2027 school year, online registration ran from 17 to 28 November 2025, via the Ministry of Education website (moed.bm). Anyone who registers later goes on the list of late registrations and is dealt with after the others.
For the 2027/2028 school year we expect registration again in the second half of November 2026. That has not yet been announced. If you only leave in the spring, still register in November if your child is to start in September.
At registration, the ministry asks for:
- Your child's birth certificate. Request an international extract in the Netherlands.
- Proof of address in the parent's name. A lease, a bill from BELCO (the electricity company), a bank statement or an internet bill. A mobile phone bill does not count.
- Proof of guardianship, if you are not the parent yourself.
- A diagnosis, if your child needs extra support.
You only have proof of address once you have a home. So plan your move so that you can show a lease in time, or ask the ministry what you can send while you still live in the Netherlands. Questions go to registration@moed.bm or 441-278-3307.
What does the school year look like?
The public school year has three terms and runs from mid-September to the end of June. That is how it appeared in the last calendar the government published, for 2020/2021. We did not find a newer calendar. Check the dates for your year with the school.
Arriving in the middle of the school year, for example in April? Then your registration counts as late. Contact the ministry before you leave, so that there is a place when you arrive.
Public or private?
Besides the public schools, Bermuda has private schools, including Saltus Grammar School, Warwick Academy, Bermuda High School for Girls, Somersfield Academy, Mount Saint Agnes Academy and the Bermuda Institute. They have their own admission rules and fees. We have not researched the fees; ask each school.
If you get a work permit, ask whether your employer gives an allowance for school fees. The work permit policy mentions such an allowance, but does not count it towards the minimum salary. So it is not a right.
If you want your child to keep reading and writing Dutch, look in the school finder of Stichting NOB, for lessons in Dutch language and culture abroad.
What changes for your family?
Child benefit stops. Under article 7b of the Dutch General Child Benefit Act, you get no child benefit for a child who does not live in the Netherlands on the first day of a quarter. The exception only applies within the EU rules, and Bermuda falls outside them.
You arrange your child's health insurance separately. An employer in Bermuda must insure the employee and a non-employed spouse. Children are not part of that duty. So ask whether your employer also covers your children, and what that costs. Read healthcare in Bermuda.
Your child may come along on your route. With a work permit, a child up to 18 can come along, up to 25 in full-time study. Your child may live there and go to school, but not work. Who may come along on your route, you can read in residence routes for Bermuda. If a partner comes along without a job of their own, also read emigrating with your partner.
In Vertrekklaar this is phase 5 of 5 of the journey, step 5.7: the same steps, but for your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines watched. See the whole journey to Bermuda or go straight to step 5.7 in the open plan.
What this rests on
The facts in this article come from these official pages. Rules change. When in doubt, go by the source, not this article.
- Education Act 1996, sections 40, 42 and 51 — compulsory schooling from 5 to 18 and the right to free education for every child resident in Bermuda — bermudalaws.bm
- Government of Bermuda — public school registration 2026/2027, with the dates and the documents — gov.bm
- Government of Bermuda — the public school calendar (last published for 2020/2021) — gov.bm
- Health Insurance Act 1970, section 20 — the employer insures the employee and a non-employed spouse, not the children — bermudalaws.bm
- Dutch General Child Benefit Act, article 7b — no child benefit for a child living outside the Netherlands, outside the EU rules — wetten.overheid.nl
- Stichting NOB — the school finder for Dutch language and culture abroad — stichtingnob.nl
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