Moving to Canada with Kids: What Australian Families Need to Know

13 August 2026

Parents walking their child to school after moving to Canada

Moving countries with children is one of the most significant decisions a family makes. The logistics multiply, the emotional stakes are higher, and the wellbeing of children who didn’t choose the move depends entirely on how well you prepare and support the transition.

This guide covers the practical and emotional dimensions of moving from Australia to Canada as a family.

Schooling

How the school system works

Canadian schools are publicly funded and free for resident children from kindergarten through to the end of secondary school (Grade 12). The system is administered provincially, so there are slight differences between provinces, but the fundamentals are the same.

School years run from September to June. The grade structure:

Kindergarten: age 4-5 (Junior Kindergarten in Ontario starts at age 4)
Primary/Elementary: Grades 1-8 (approximately age 6-13)
Secondary/High School: Grades 9-12 (approximately age 14-18)

Enrolling your children

To enrol in a public school, contact the local school board (each city has a public and Catholic school board - both are publicly funded). You’ll need:

Proof of address in the school catchment area
Your child’s birth certificate and immunisation records
Previous school records (report cards, IEPs if applicable)
Proof of your immigration status in Canada

Enrolment can typically be done before you arrive by contacting the school board directly. Getting this sorted early means your children start school promptly, which is important for their social integration.

Language considerations

In other provinces, English is the primary language of instruction, with French immersion programs widely available.

Healthcare for your kids

Children are covered by provincial public health insurance on the same basis as their parents, once you're eligible, they're eligible. The catch is the start date: some provinces impose a waiting period of up to three months before coverage begins, BC being the best-known example. Australia's Medicare reciprocal healthcare agreements do not include Canada, so there's no fallback cover in that gap.

Bring complete immunisation records for each child, you'll need them for school enrolment as well as for any catch-up vaccinations, since the Canadian schedule differs slightly from Australia's. And start looking for a family doctor early. Canada has a well-documented GP shortage, and many families rely on walk-in clinics for their first year. Get on practice waitlists in your first week, not when someone gets sick.

Childcare and daycare: cheaper than Australia, if you can get a spot

This is one area where Canada now genuinely beats Australia. Under the national $10-a-day childcare program (CWELCC), fees at licensed centres for children under six have been cut by half or more. In Ontario, fees are capped at around CAD $22 a day, with the full $10-a-day average targeted through 2026, and six provinces and territories have already hit it. Compare that with typical out-of-pocket daycare costs in Australian capital cities and the savings for a family with one or two young kids can run to hundreds of dollars a week.

The catches: the reduced fees only apply to licensed centres enrolled in the program, only for children under six, and demand has predictably exploded. Waitlists in the big cities are long, Toronto parents joke about joining waitlists during pregnancy. If you'll need childcare, get on waitlists from Australia as soon as you know your destination city, before you've even booked flights. For school-age kids, licensed before-and-after-school care is widely available through schools and community centres at standard (unsubsidised) rates.

The Canada Child Benefit: who gets it and when

The Canada Child Benefit (CCB) is a tax-free monthly payment for families with children under 18, scaled to family income. It's genuinely substantial for low and middle income families, but eligibility depends heavily on your visa status.

Permanent residents can apply as soon as they arrive, once they have Social Insurance Numbers and have filed (or are filing) Canadian taxes.

Work permit holders must live in Canada for 18 consecutive months and hold a valid permit in the 19th month before they can receive it. If you're arriving on a temporary work permit, budget your first year and a half without this support, it catches a lot of families off guard. Both parents also need to file Canadian tax returns each year, even with no income, to keep payments flowing, and keep your permits valid, because the CRA stops payments if your status lapses in their system.

Timing your move around the school year

The Canadian school year runs September to June; the Australian one runs January to December. That six-month offset means your child will land mid-year no matter what, so the question is which disruption is smaller.

Arriving in July or August is the sweet spot: your kids finish an Australian semester, get a proper summer break to settle in, and start the Canadian year in September alongside everyone else, when friendship groups reset and new faces are normal. Arriving mid-Canadian-year (January to June) means joining established classes, harder socially, though schools handle it routinely. Because of the calendar offset, Australian kids typically slot into the grade matching their age; some effectively repeat six months of content and some skip ahead, and schools are flexible about placement in the first term. One more timing note: if you can avoid first landing in January or February, do. Starting a new school is easier when it isn't also minus 20 degrees outside.

Helping your kids actually make the transition

Tell them early and involve them in real decisions, which school, how their room will look, what to do on the first weekend. Kids cope far better with a move they feel part of than one that happens to them. Expect a dip around the three-to-six-month mark, after the novelty fades and before deep friendships form; it's normal, and routines from home (same breakfast, same weekend rituals, regular video calls with grandparents and mates) do more than any pep talk.

Sport is the fastest integration channel Canada offers. Winter sports are the social fabric of Canadian childhood, and signing up for skating lessons or beginner hockey (or skiing, if you're near mountains) gives your kids an instant community and a shared language with classmates. Familiar sports survive the move too: soccer, swimming, basketball and athletics are everywhere. The one genuine loss is AFL and cricket at junior level, they exist in the big cities but thinly, so if your child is deeply attached to either, look up the local club before you choose a suburb.