Enrolling your child in nursery or school in Spain: places, calendar and municipal registration (padrón)
Education in Spain is a right for every child — regardless of the parents' immigration status. This guide explains the system (guardería, infantil, colegio), the admission calendar, how the padrón gives you points (baremo), what documents you need and what to do if you arrive mid-year.
How the school system is organised
0–3 (primer ciclo / guardería, escuela infantil): usually paid (often subsidised), limited places, high demand.
3–6 (segundo ciclo de infantil): free in public/concertado centres, though not compulsory.
6–16 (Primaria + ESO): compulsory and free. Centres are público, concertado (semi-private, publicly funded) or privado.
Who has the right (and who must enrol)
- Every child living in Spain has the right to education — regardless of the parents' immigration status.
- Education is compulsory from 6 to 16; not enrolling a child of that age is a serious problem.
- Admission normally uses municipal registration (padrón), or another form of proof accepted by the region, to establish proximity; it is not a condition of the right to education.
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Your rights
- The right to schooling does not depend on the parents' immigration status. A preferred school is not guaranteed: the competent admissions service assigns a place under the regional rules and the places actually available.
- Free public education 6–16 (and free public infantil 3–6).
- You cannot be refused schooling because of your immigration status; if it happens, escalate.
Documents you need
- Municipal registration (padrón), or the alternative proof of address accepted by your region. It usually proves proximity, but it is not what creates the child's right to education.
- Birth certificate (or an older libro de familia if you have one), and the child's and parents' ID (NIE/TIE/passport).
- Cartilla de vacunación (vaccination record), if your regional procedure or centre asks for it.
- Previous school records. No convalidación is needed to join the Spanish system up to and including 4º ESO; homologación/convalidación matters for access to later studies or recognition of a qualification such as Bachiller.
From municipal registration (padrón) to a school place
- Register the child in the municipal register (empadronar); the address may be used to prove proximity under your region's admission rules (baremo).
- Check your autonomous community's admission calendar (periodo de admisión, usually in spring).
- Gather the documents required by your region: proof of address, birth certificate or older libro de familia, IDs and, where requested, the vaccination record.
- Submit the solicitud by the channel set by your region: online or at the authorised office or centre.
- When a centre has more applications than places, the regional baremo (proximity, siblings, income and other criteria) decides priority.
- Formalise the matrícula at the assigned centre. If you arrived mid-year, contact the competent admissions service for the out-of-period route.
A real case: why the same “support” did not make two schools equivalent
A family was refused its chosen school for a four-year-old child with special educational needs. The Supreme Court held that the refusal infringed the child’s rights. The La Rioja administration assigned the child to a split-day school and said it had the required classroom assistant (ATE). The parents asked for a continuous-day school where the mother worked: after class the child could rest and attend afternoon treatment. At the preferred school, 34 of the 35 staff members present voted that they were willing to receive him, and the administration did not show that the adjustment would impose a disproportionate burden. The Tribunal Supremo held that a formal comparison of resources was not enough.
The non-obvious detail. The same entry — “the school has an assistant” — does not necessarily provide the same access to education. The court considered the child’s whole day: timetable, treatment, rest, the mother’s presence and staff willingness. In an application, connect each request to a specific need of the child and a reasonable adjustment, not merely to general family convenience.
Outcome: the family had to pursue a dispute that began after the 2017 placement until the Supreme Court ruled in 2019. The refusal was annulled and the child’s right to attend the chosen school was recognised.
Limits of the case. It does not create a general right to the first-choice school and does not displace the regional admission scale. The result depended on the child’s special educational needs, the link between the timetable and treatment, and the absence of evidence that the adjustment imposed a disproportionate burden. Ordinary placements remain subject to regional rules and the places actually available. The date in the case details is the CGPJ communication date; the communication does not publish the judgment date or number.
Tribunal Supremo, Sala de lo Contencioso-Administrativo · 27.06.2019
School choice is not unconditional. But where a child has special needs, ask for a written decision that assesses the child’s actual circumstances and the reasonable adjustments available.
Check the school-place decisionCommon mistakes
- Missing the periodo de admisión and having to wait for a free place.
- Not confirming your address — you may lose proximity points if your region uses them; check accepted proof of address/workplace.
- Thinking you cannot enrol a child without papers — you can; education is a right.
- Spending time on a convalidación that is not required: entry up to 4º ESO does not need it; Bachiller and qualification recognition are different.
No place or you arrive mid-year
- No place in your first choice? Ask the competent admissions service for the available alternatives and the written route to challenge the scoring or assignment.
- Arrived mid-year (fuera de plazo)? Ask the competent admissions service to process the out-of-period application and identify the places available.
Not sure where to start? Ask NAVI
Tell NAVI your child's age and your situation — it explains the calendar, the documents, the municipal-registration points (padrón) and the next step.
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Related guides
Key terms in this guide
School enrolment FAQ
Can I enrol my child without residence papers?
Yes. Education is a right for every minor in Spain regardless of the parents' status. For the address, provide the padrón or another form of proof accepted by your region.
Is school free?
Public and concertado education is free for 3–16 (infantil 3–6 and the compulsory 6–16). 0–3 nurseries are usually paid/subsidised.
Why does municipal registration (padrón) matter?
The registered address is what normally proves where you live, and proximity is one of the statutory admission criteria. How many points it is worth, and what counts as proof, are set by your autonomous community for each admission call — so check this year’s rules for your region.
When do I apply?
In the admission period (periodo de admisión), usually in spring for the next course. Each comunidad has its own calendar.
I arrived mid-year — what now?
Ask the competent admissions service to process the out-of-period application and identify the places available.
Do foreign school records count?
To join the Spanish system up to 4º ESO, no convalidación is required. For Bachiller or recognition of a completed qualification, check the homologación/convalidación procedure.
Público, concertado or privado?
Público and concertado are free (concertado is publicly funded but privately run); privado is paid.
What if a school refuses over our status?
Schooling cannot be refused on immigration grounds — escalate to the comisión / education authority.
Official sources
- LOE/LOMLOE (educación, admisión y gratuidad)
- LO 4/2000 Extranjería (art. 9)
- Ministerio de Educación — joining the Spanish system with foreign studies
Informational guide; admission is managed by each autonomous community, so calendars and rules vary. Check your case with NAVI.
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This guide is general information about Spanish law, not a legal opinion on your case. Rules change and outcomes depend on your own facts and documents — check your situation before you act on it.
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