Dear parents,

Your FLT representatives attended the Board of Directors (CA) and the Assembly of Councillors (AC) meetings for the first period.

The main agenda item for both the AC and CA was the proposed 5% increase in tuition fees for the 2026/27 academic year. 

The FLT representatives voted in favor, and we wish to explain our position here.

• This increase is regrettable, especially as it follows previous years’ increases, which have been difficult for some families to manage. 
• As detailed during the public meeting on February 14, 2025, on financial and budgetary policy, these increases are necessary to rebuild a cash reserve in preparation for future sizable loans. These loans will fund essential real estate transactions, including the purchase of land and the demolition/reconstruction of buildings. The need for these investments to secure the school’s future must be understood by all. 
• These increases are also a legacy of past years when tuition fees did not rise, leading to a significant deterioration in the school’s financial situation.
• Our vote followed the presentation of a detailed multi-year budget plan up to 2042. This plan aims to address upcoming real estate deadlines, particularly in 2030, 2040, and 2042, and to prepare for even more distant ones, such as in 2060. 
• After reviewing various simulations, which show that any lesser increase would be unsustainable, we understand and support the proposed plan, which ensures the long-term sustainability of LFIT (Lycée Français International de Tokyo). This includes enabling the foundation to acquire real estate assets whose current leases cannot be renewed. 
• The plan appears reasonable and is based on conservative assumptions, which gives us hope that future increases will be in line with or lower than projections.
• The need for another increase this year, limited to 5%, is clearly demonstrated. Without it and without this plan, LFIT would face the real possibility of losing access to the football and tennis courts in 2032 and, by 2040, being unable to accommodate students due to a lack of buildings. 
• A limited 5% increase is a responsible vote that helps secure LFIT’s future and ensures students are welcomed in good conditions. In the short term, it will rebuild a prudential working capital fund, provisions for major maintenance, and reserves for necessary major works, such as air conditioning the gymnasium and renovating the primary school courtyard.
• However, we continue to believe that the financial burden should not fall solely on families. We insist that efforts to secure alternative funding (corporate partnerships, financial aid from the French or Japanese governments, patron support, etc.) must continue. 
• We also emphasized the importance of keeping families informed about the financial situation and projections in the coming years. The administration has guaranteed that a new public information meeting on financial and budgetary policy will be held early next year.

2024-2025 Activity Report 

Highlights:

• Numerous sports and other clubs
• PhARE program in place
• Creation of DAIS (Dispositif d’Accompagnement à l’Inclusion Scolaire – School Inclusion Support System)

The administrators commend the richness of school and extracurricular activities at LFIT and believe this section of the activity report should be highlighted.

Back-to-School Review / Pedagogical Structure 

At the end of September 2025, LFIT had 1,571 students (1,562 in 2024), with an average of 23.8 students per class (24 in 2024).

• Preschool: 184 students (23 per class) vs. 175 in 2024. Last-minute enrolments allowed the cancellation of a planned class closure, which is a welcome surprise.
• Primary school: 600 students (down from 632 in 2024), leading to the closure of one first-grade class, with 24 students per class.
• Middle and high school: Enrolment continues to increase as cohorts progress: Middle school 488 (vs. 477 in 2024, 24.4 students per class), High school 299 (vs. 278 in 2024). The secondary level has increased from 11 to 13 classes, bringing the ratio to 23 students per class (vs. 23.8 in 2024).

Enrolment growth is slowing after the post-Covid rebound. While these trends need to be monitored, the administration is satisfied with the results. The FLT welcomes these positive figures but urges attention to the decline in preschool enrolment. Efforts to attract students must continue, as LFIT competes with cheaper and more conveniently located Japanese public schools. LFIT families face rising transportation and tuition costs, so incentives to keep students in the French system must be considered.

The AEFE Director General noted that recruiting preschool students is a challenge for the entire network. She praised the school’s outreach efforts and said this mobilization must continue. AEFE’s central services are developing a global preschool plan to justify parents’ choice to join the French network, and the agency will share this with schools.

These changes have led to the elimination of some expatriate teaching positions and the creation of local positions, with no net financial impact. 

The FLT voted in favor.

Financial Situation 

The current year’s financial outlook is better than expected, thanks to slightly higher-than-expected enrolments and reduced maintenance and security costs.

The administration presented a financial projection for 2025-2042, a period during which LFIT will face significant deadlines:

• 2030: End of the lease with the Tokyo municipality for the football and tennis courts
• 2040: Mandatory demolition of the main building (Building B). A new building must be constructed to replace both Building B and the annex. There are options to build the new facility before demolishing Building B to avoid temporary installations.
• 2042: End of the annex lease and return of the land after building demolition
• 2060: End of the emphyteutic lease with the French State for the main site’s land

The proposed plan includes purchasing the land in 2032 and constructing a new building between 2040 and 2042.

Based on stable enrolment and inflation-adjusted cost growth, the plan calls for tuition fee increases in line with the projections presented to parents in 2024 and 2025: 5% in 2026/27, 4% the following year, then 3% for three years, and finally 2%.

Based on this presentation, the CA and AC were asked to vote on the 5% tuition fee increase for 2026/27. 

The FLT voted in favor.

AEFE Situation 

The Director General explained that AEFE is approaching its extraordinary Board meeting on December 18 in a challenging context. The French State’s subsidy to AEFE in 2026 will be 15% lower than in 2024, while 90% of its budget goes to payroll, with rising costs, especially employer contributions for detached staff pensions. AEFE must implement an ambitious reform and cost-cutting program. A proposal will be presented at the December 18 Board meeting, requesting additional contributions from directly managed and partner schools.

Although not explicitly stated, through information from their federation FAPEE and parliamentary representatives, the FLT understands that it is highly likely that part of the civil pensions for detached staff currently paid by AEFE will be charged to the schools. This will be an additional cost in the budget. According to the administration, the additional cost (not yet precisely quantified) should not require a specific further increase in tuition fees beyond what is planned in the multi-year plan. Nationally, FAPEE, which represents parent associations like ours on AEFE’s Board, will vote against these proposals and examine other measures.

Miscellaneous

School Psychologist 

As agreed at the June 2025 Board meeting, recruitment for a school psychologist has begun. The role includes individual counselling, supporting educational teams and students on topics such as stress management and addictions. 

Five high-quality applications were received. The selection will consider professional value, language skills, commitment, and ethics, especially ensuring that LFIT students are not part of the psychologist’s private practice. 

Two candidates have been shortlisted, and a decision is expected before the Christmas holidays for a January start.

Swimming Pools 

This topic was already discussed in the school council. 

Studies are underway on the necessary work to improve the availability of the main pool and possibly rehabilitate the annex pool.