On this page
The two main academic calendars
International schools follow one of two academic calendars regardless of curriculum. The first, sometimes called the Northern Hemisphere or September calendar, runs from late August or early September to mid June or early July. This is the calendar used by most international schools in Europe, the Middle East, most of Asia, and parts of Africa. The second, sometimes called the Southern Hemisphere or January calendar, runs from late January to early December. This is the calendar used by international schools in Australia, New Zealand and parts of Latin America.
The distinction matters for two practical reasons. First, a child relocating between hemispheres mid-year may face a six-month curriculum gap, or six months of duplication, depending on the direction of move. Second, the admissions cycles and application deadlines are aligned to the local calendar, which means a family relocating in March will face different lead times in a September-calendar school than in a January-calendar one.
Some international schools, particularly in cities with significant Southern Hemisphere expatriate populations such as Singapore or Hong Kong, run a Southern Hemisphere stream alongside the main Northern Hemisphere offer. These are not universal and tend to be limited to a small number of premium schools.
The Northern Hemisphere calendar
The Northern Hemisphere or September calendar is by far the dominant international school model globally. Term One typically runs from late August or early September to mid December, with a half-term break in October. Term Two runs from early January to late March or early April, with a half-term break in February. Term Three runs from mid April to late June or early July.
There is some variation across schools and curricula. British curriculum schools tend to follow a three-term pattern with two half-term breaks and a long Easter break. American curriculum schools commonly run a two-semester pattern with Thanksgiving and spring break interruptions but no formal half-term equivalents. IB schools split the difference, often running a three-term shape but with semester-aligned reporting.
Most schools run between 175 and 195 teaching days per year. The total is broadly consistent across the major curricula, though the distribution across terms varies. Examination periods for IGCSE, A-Level and IB Diploma fall in May and June, which fixes the broad shape of Term Three for senior school students regardless of curriculum.
The Southern Hemisphere calendar
The Southern Hemisphere or January calendar runs from late January or early February through to early December, with the long summer break falling during December and January. Term One usually runs from late January to early April, followed by a two-week autumn break. Term Two runs from late April to late June, with a two-week winter break in July. Term Three runs from mid July to late September. Term Four runs from mid October to early December.
The four-term model is more common in Southern Hemisphere schools than in Northern Hemisphere ones. The break between Term Two and Term Three is sometimes called the winter holiday, though in tropical Southern Hemisphere cities the temperature variation is modest. The long summer break coincides with the Australian and New Zealand summer holidays, which are also when many family travel patterns are concentrated.
International schools following Southern Hemisphere calendars include those in Australia, New Zealand and most of Latin America, plus a smaller set of schools in Southeast Asia and Africa that have deliberately aligned with the Southern Hemisphere cycle for community reasons.
Free download: the relocation timing guide
Our family handbook includes the international school admissions calendar across all major destinations, with the realistic timelines and the application deadlines that families miss most often. Free on our guides page.
Term dates and holidays
Most international schools publish their term dates two to three years in advance, with annual confirmation each summer. Major religious and cultural holidays vary by host country: Christian schools in Western countries follow the Christmas and Easter calendar; schools in Muslim-majority countries observe Eid al-Fitr, Eid al-Adha and other Islamic holidays; schools in Asia observe Chinese New Year, Vesak and other regionally significant holidays.
Mid-term breaks of one week are common in October and February in Northern Hemisphere schools. End-of-term breaks of two to three weeks bracket Christmas and Easter. The long summer holiday in Northern Hemisphere schools runs from late June or early July to late August or early September, typically six to eight weeks. The long summer holiday in Southern Hemisphere schools runs from early December to late January, typically six to eight weeks.
Examination periods, parent-teacher conferences, and major school events tend to fall in predictable windows: late autumn parent meetings, January or February progress reports, end-of-year reports in June or November depending on hemisphere. Check the calendar before planning major family travel.
Mid-year transfers
Mid-year transfers are routine at international schools and most schools have admissions processes designed to handle them. The most common mid-year intake is January, particularly at Northern Hemisphere schools accepting students mid-year from Southern Hemisphere schools that have just completed their academic year.
Practical considerations matter. A child transferring mid-year may join a curriculum that is six months ahead of where they left off, or six months behind, depending on direction. Strong schools assess incoming students and design a bridging plan, which may involve a temporary placement in a lower year group, intensive catch-up sessions, or curriculum mapping across hemispheres.
For families relocating mid-year, ask the receiving school explicitly about how they handle hemisphere transfers, how the year-group placement will be set, and what bridging support is provided. The honest schools will give you specific examples of recent mid-year transfers and how they were handled. For wider context, see our piece on helping your child adjust to a new country and school.
Why this matters for relocation
For families planning an international move, the school calendar shapes the timing of the move itself. Two broad approaches dominate. The first is to align the move with the start of a school year (September for Northern Hemisphere, late January for Southern), which gives the child a clean academic start. This is the cleanest approach and the one most often recommended by relocation specialists.
The second is to move mid-year when family or work circumstances require it. This is workable but creates more administrative load: transition planning, bridging curriculum, mid-year admissions cycles. If you can plan a move with twelve months of lead time, you can usually align with a clean start; if your timeline is shorter, the mid-year option is the practical reality.
For families considering both options, see our relocation cost calculator and the wider city guides for school-year context in your destination.
Visa and housing logistics are often the constraints that drive relocation timing more than school calendars. Schengen residence permits, US visa appointments, UK Tier 2 sponsorship and Gulf employment visas all have their own lead times that can run six to twelve weeks. Where the visa pipeline conflicts with the academic year, a short-term distance learning arrangement with the previous school can bridge the gap for one or two months. Most reputable international schools offer this for outgoing students.
FAQ
Most international schools follow the Northern Hemisphere calendar with a start date in late August or early September. Schools in Australia, New Zealand and parts of Latin America follow the Southern Hemisphere calendar with a start date in late January or early February.
Yes. Mid-year transfers are routine at most international schools and admissions teams have processes designed to handle them. Most schools require an assessment for incoming students and may design a bridging plan to account for curriculum differences.
Most premium schools assess the incoming student's curriculum stage and either place them in the appropriate equivalent year or provide bridging support to align them with the local year. Some schools run formal Southern Hemisphere streams; most do not.
Most international schools run between 175 and 195 teaching days per year. The distribution varies across terms, but the annual total is broadly consistent across the major curricula.