The Finance Committee shall monitor and manage the budget planning process and, in coordination with the Administration, shall submit the budgets to the Board of Trustees annually for approval. The Board's approval of the budgets authorizes the Head of School to commit and spend the funds necessary for the execution of the educational and co-curricular and capital programs. The Board may, at any time, withdraw, restrict or amend prior budget authorizations if the Board considers such action to be in the best interest of the school.

The Head of School is responsible for operating the school within the limits of the budgets and for reporting revenues, expenses, and performance against budgets to the Finance Committee on a regular basis and in a format agreed upon by the Finance Committee. The Administration shall consult with the Board of Trustees via the Finance Committee in situations where a deviation (>2% of the overall budget volume) amount is anticipated within income or expenses or in the case of a significant unbudgeted expenditure, along with proposed actions for consideration.

The budgets consist of the following: 

• The Operating Budget

• The Transportation Budget

• The Auxiliary Service Budget 

• The Capital Budget. 

Each budget shall be administered according to generally accepted accounting principles and according to the principles, procedures and responsibilities set forth in the FIS Handbook of Accounting.

Operating Budget

The Operating Budget shall balance expected revenues and expected expenses and include anticipated inflationary increases in the costs of goods and services and changes in salaries of school employees.

The Head of School shall administer a contingency account, which shall be annually set in the Operating Budget, and report expenses to the Finance Committee on an annual basis. Funds from the contingency account shall generally not be used to cover salaries or benefits of school personnel or any item related to salaries or benefits of school personnel and in any event not beyond one year.

The Operating Budget shall at a minimum contain the following revenue items:

• FIS Primary School - Revenue

• FIS Elementary School - Revenue

• FIS Upper School - Revenue

• FISW - Revenue

• General - Revenue

• Auxiliary Services - Revenue

• Gifts and Donations - Revenue

• Partnership - Revenue

The Operating Budget shall at a minimum detail the following expense items:

• FIS Primary School - Expenses

• FIS Elementary School - Expenses

• FIS Upper School - Expenses

• FISW - Expenses

• Physical Facilities - Expenses

• Central Services - Expenses

• Auxiliary Services - Expenses

• Operation Reserves

• Capital Allocation - Expenses 

Auxiliary Service Budget

The Auxiliary Service Budget contains a list of revenue accounts and expense accounts for items that are part of the school’s economic business operation (wirtschaftlicher Geschäftsbetrieb), such as transportation, the bookstore, music supplies, student publications/yearbook, I.B.examinations and other programs having revenues and expenses which do not appropriately fit into the main sections of the Operating Budget. FIS aims for the revenues and expenses to offset each other. The Auxiliary Service Budget is part of the Operating Budget.

Transportation Budget

The Transportation Budget details the revenues and expenses associated with providing students transportation between FIS and their bus stop. The Transportation Budget is incorporated in the Auxiliary Service Budget, which is part of the Operating Budget. The aggregate transportation fees charged shall approximate the school’s aggregate transportation expenses. The cost of the bus system shall be based on competitive offers based on a regular bidding process at minimum every two to three years.

Capital Budget

The Capital Budget is a statement of capital expenses planned in the Fiscal Year. The Administration shall prepare a suggested Capital Budget in light of the projects proposed by FIS and in line with the financial guidelines. The Board of Trustees shall approve both the size and structure of the Capital Budget, and in the longer run shall aim to spend and invest the equivalent of annual depreciation on capital renewal, renovation and replacement, funded fully by Capital Assessment Fee contributions. The annual depreciation shall be established by computing the following formula for buildings and equipment owned and operated by FIS for educational purposes or in support of the school's operation and totalling the results of the formula for all such buildings and equipment:

R ÷ L,where:

R is the approximate historic cost value of each building and each equipment

L is the estimated useful life (in years) for each such building and each such equipment.

Budget Planning & Approval Schedule

In January of each year, the Administration shall provide a preliminary budget, initially to the Finance Committee for review, and subsequently to the Board of Trustees, for the following school year based on estimates of key metrics (e.g. enrollment estimates, partnerships, salaries, non-personnel costs). In March of each year, the final Capital and Operating Budgets shall be submitted by the Finance Committee to the Board. The Board shall present the proposed budget for the following school year at the General Membership Meeting, and approve the budget in the open session Board meeting.