Berlin is a green, spacious capital that is surprisingly gentle on families: huge parks, free nurseries, museums designed for children and a long-standing French community, from the Lycée français founded in 1689 to the free bilingual state schools. Here are the first landmarks to help you settle.
Currency
Euro (€)
Language
German (English gets you by day to day)
Time vs Paris
None
Emergencies
112 (out-of-hours doctor: 116 117)
FIAFE network
The Accueil for French-speaking families
In each city, a volunteer-run association from the FIAFE network welcomes, informs and helps French-speaking families settling in.
Berlin Accueil
Since 1994
Since 1994, Berlin Accueil has brought together French and French-speaking families in the German capital: conversation groups in German, French and English, guided visits in French of the major exhibitions, hikes, book clubs, craft workshops and board games, from September to June.
Where to meet them
No fixed drop-in: activities run from September to June across the city (coffee meetups, visits, workshops); first contact by e-mail or through the website, annual general meeting at the Lycée français de Berlin.
Berlin Accueil practical guide and members newsletter
Other support networks
Two large national networks also support the French abroad, each with its local chapter.
UFE
UFE Berlin
The Berlin chapter of the Union des Français de l'Étranger: conviviality, mutual aid and French presence abroad, with loyal gatherings through the year (Beaujolais nouveau, galettes des rois, Candlemas crêpes, pétanque tournament, Bastille Day and Franco-German friendship).
Français du monde – ADFE Berlin et nouveaux Länder
The Berlin and new Länder section of Français du monde - ADFE (a recognised public-interest association) runs citizens' cafés, games nights, guided visits (Reichstag) and associations days, and supports French residents in their social, civic and cultural life.
The local French chamber of commerce (CCI France International network) is a real asset for work: networking, job offers and help to restart a career or start a business locally.
CCI France International
CCI France Allemagne (Chambre de Commerce et d'Industrie Française en Allemagne)
Founded in 1957, the French chamber in Germany covers the whole country from its business centres in Saarbrücken and Frankfurt: forums and webinars, a jobboard, support for VIE volunteers and companies setting up. It has no Berlin office, where the Cercle Économique Franco-Allemand (formerly Club des affaires de Berlin) takes over, but its network remains useful to a spouse looking for work.
To follow local life in French: news, what's on, good addresses and, often, a directory of French-speaking professionals.
lepetitjournal.com Berlin
MediaIn French
The Berlin edition of the online daily for French expatriates, opened in 2006 and run from Berlin for the five German editions: news, community, events, and Living in Berlin sections (housing, education, health, settling in, jobs).
Directory of useful addresses and French-speaking professionals in Berlin (health, education, services), complemented each year by the printed Petit Guide de Berlin.
The French-language guide to Berlin, for residents and visitors alike: Children (schools, childcare, activities), Practical life (housing, transport, health, settling in), Going out and Culture sections, weekly newsletter and classified ads.
Health directory by speciality (GPs, paediatricians, dentists, gynaecologists, speech therapists, psychologists) and a participative map of French-speaking doctors and allied professionals; languages spoken are not always stated.
lepetitjournal.com's free yearly magazine for French speakers in Berlin: practical articles, portraits and a directory of shops and service providers, distributed in some thirty places including the consulate, the Institut français and the Centre français, and readable online.
The printed directory of French-speaking providers (health, education, services), to browse online in the presentation article.
Before you even land in Berlin, Facebook groups are the best shortcut: ask your questions, find a flat, a nanny, a second-hand stroller, and often your first friends.
Private In English
berlin EXPATS
93,400 members
This is an English language group for internationals living in Berlin.
We are interested to hear about your Berlin expat life experiences:
- Berlin...
✨Welcome to International Women in Berlin! This group is for everybody who identifies as a woman and lives in Berlin. Here we want to have as close to a...
This is a platform for expats to help each other and provide information on the life in the coolest city in Europe: Berlin. Ask questions & share things!...
This is International Families Berlin, a closed group for international families to help and support each other.
We welcome parents, expectant parents,...
**Ceci n'est pas un groupe pour la recherche de logement!**
Pour toutes celles et tous ceux qui, résident/es ou ancien/nes résident/es de cette ville en...
Bons plans et astuces,locations ,partage d'expérience,osez critiquer Berlin et l'Allemagne aussi .
Groupe non "business friendly"
Pas de pub commerciale...
En suivant ce groupe, vous pourrez suivre les dernières offres d'emploi et de stage pour les Français et francophones de Berlin.
Ce groupe est un groupe...
A virtual way for American Citizens to connect in Berlin, Germany. This group is not political. There are enough places to discuss politics. This is not...
Compiled from Facebook's public search, links checked in July 2026. Group sizes change all the time.
AEFE network
Accredited French schools
Schools accredited by the French Ministry of Education follow the French curriculum: your child can continue their schooling seamlessly, abroad and back in France.
Source: official AEFE directory, verified June 2026. aefe.gouv.fr
Tutoring and private lessons
To support your children's schooling across two systems, two solutions designed for expat families.
Axiom Academic
Private lessons and tutoring for expat families: French curriculum, IB and British curriculum, at home or online, with teachers who know the schools in your city.
Three systems live side by side: free Berlin state schools, including the bilingual Franco-German European schools (SESB), the AEFE École Voltaire for the younger ones, and the Lycée français de Berlin, the oldest French lycée in the world, which is also a state school of the Land.
Good to know
School is compulsory from age 6; Berlin primary school (Grundschule) lasts six years, then children move to a Gymnasium or a Sekundarschule.
The bilingual European schools (SESB) teach equally in German and French, with no fees: four primary schools and two secondary schools, with a lottery when demand exceeds places.
The École Voltaire (AEFE, directly managed) takes children from nursery to sixième, with yearly fees and income-based reductions; the Lycée français takes over from cinquième to the baccalauréat, free of charge.
Nursery (Kita) is free in Berlin from age one: apply for the Kita-Gutschein at your district Jugendamt nine to two months before the start date, and aim for a Franco-German bilingual Kita if you can.
French-speaking community
The French have been in Berlin since the Huguenots: Reinickendorf was the post-war French sector and the Lycée français dates from 1689. Today the community lives between Tiergarten, Charlottenburg, Prenzlauer Berg and Kreuzberg, around the schools, the Institut français and a dense network of associations.
Good to know
Berlin Accueil (FIAFE network) has welcomed newcomers since 1994: conversation groups, guided visits in French, workshops and hikes.
UFE Berlin and Français du monde - ADFE complete the support network; the embassy keeps an up-to-date list of the city's French associations, from circus in French to the sailing club in Tegel.
The Institut français on the Kurfürstendamm houses the largest French-language library in Europe outside France and the Cinema Paris; the Centre français de Berlin, in Wedding, runs youth exchanges.
lepetitjournal.com Berlin and Vivre à Berlin list the week's events, the bilingual Kitas and good addresses; Facebook groups of French-speaking parents do the rest.
A place has closed, something has changed?
The arrival reflex
The apps to download when you land
Drop your bags, download these and you're set: the apps everyone in Berlin uses to get around, get things delivered and organise daily life.
Getting around
BVG Fahrinfo
Berlin's official transit app: live U-Bahn, S-Bahn, tram and bus times, disruptions included.
What mums ask when they arrive in Berlin, in short, sourced answers.
German school, bilingual European school or French school: where do we start?
It depends on age and length of stay. Berlin state school is free from age 6, with six years of Grundschule; the bilingual European schools (SESB) teach equally in German and French, free, but draw lots when demand exceeds places. The École Voltaire (AEFE, fee-paying) runs from nursery to sixième, then the Lycée français de Berlin, public and free, leads to the baccalauréat and the Abitur. Our Schools and School fees pages have the details: /en/cities/berlin/school-fees/.
Source ↗How do I get a nursery place, and how much does it cost?
Kita has been free in Berlin since 2018, from age one until school, apart from a monthly lunch contribution. First obtain the Kita-Gutschein from your district Jugendamt, at the earliest nine months and at the latest two months before the start date, then find a Kita with a free place: that is where patience begins. Several Franco-German Kitas exist (Domino in Prenzlauer Berg, the public Deutsch-Französischer Kindergarten in Wedding, Jungle in Kreuzberg, Loupiot in Neukölln).
Source ↗Do we need health insurance for the children?
Yes, it is compulsory for anyone living in Germany, but in the statutory scheme the spouse without income and the children are covered free by the employee's fund (Familienversicherung). Everyone gets a health card and pays nothing upfront with contracted practitioners. It is all explained on our Health page: /en/cities/berlin/health/.
Source ↗How do I find a paediatrician, ideally French-speaking?
No official registration: you freely choose a community paediatrician (Kinderarzt) taking new patients, and the U1 to U9 check-ups of the yellow booklet happen there. The embassy publishes a list of French-speaking doctors in Berlin (GPs, dentists, therapists, speech therapists), but no paediatrician is on it yet: use the official 116 117 directory with the language filter, or ask around the École Voltaire. Our Health page reproduces the list: /en/cities/berlin/health/.
Source ↗Which number do I call if my child is ill at night?
112 only for a life-threatening emergency. For everything else, 116 117, free and open 24/7, reaches the on-call doctor and directs you to an evening or weekend practice. If the child must be seen at once, the big hospitals have separate children's emergency departments, open day and night: Charité in Wedding, Vivantes in Friedrichshain and Neukölln, DRK Westend, Helios Buch.
Source ↗Which neighbourhood should we settle in with children?
French families follow the schools: Tiergarten and Schöneberg around the École Voltaire and the Lycée français, Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf around the Institut français and the bilingual Judith-Kerr school, Prenzlauer Berg, Kreuzberg and Neukölln for the Franco-German Kitas and European schools, Reinickendorf, the former French sector, for greenery. Our Settling in page reviews the neighbourhoods: /en/cities/berlin/settling-in/.
In order: address registration (Anmeldung) at the Bürgeramt within 14 days, with the landlord's confirmation; choice of health fund; bank account; Kita-Gutschein application; broadcasting fee; and registration with the French consular register, online, free and valid 5 years. The tax number then arrives by itself in the post. Details on /en/cities/berlin/settling-in/.
Under-6s travel free with you, and 6 to 14-year-olds at the reduced fare. Once they attend school in Berlin, the Schülerticket is free on presentation of the school ID card (Schülerausweis I) and is valid in zones AB, bike included; a 6-year-old who has not yet started school also qualifies with the school allocation letter. The pushchair travels free with your ticket.
Source ↗Nanny, Tagesmutter, au pair: how do you get a little one looked after?
Kita and registered childminders (Kindertagespflege) are the two routes covered by the Kita-Gutschein, hence free apart from meals, from age one. Before age one, or alongside, there are nannies at home (you become an employer), babysitting and au pairs. Parental allowance (Elterngeld) lets many parents stay home for the first year: 65% of lost net income for 12 basic months, or twice as long at half the amount.
Source ↗My child does not speak German: how will they cope?
Very well, and faster than you: Berlin Kitas and schools welcome children of seventy nationalities, and the bilingual European schools were designed for this. The real challenge then becomes keeping French: École Domino FLAM classes and camps, theatre with Cours et Jardins, circus in French, the Institut français library and the Zadig bookshop. Our addresses are on /en/cities/berlin/family-outings/.
Less than it seems, except for housing: rents have soared in ten years and the deposit reaches three months' rent. Everything else lightens the bill: free nursery, free state school and Lycée français, free transport for schoolchildren, free museums for under-18s, nothing to pay upfront at the doctor's. Our Settling in page details the budget line by line: /en/cities/berlin/settling-in/.
Source ↗Where can I meet other French-speaking mums?
Berlin Accueil runs coffee meetups, guided visits in French, workshops and hikes from September to June; UFE Berlin and Français du monde - ADFE have their own friendly gatherings. The school gates of the École Voltaire and the Franco-German Kitas, École Domino's Saturday classes and Facebook groups of French-speaking parents do the rest; lepetitjournal.com Berlin and Vivre à Berlin list the week's events.
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