International Student Admissions

Children of Work Permit (R Pass) and S Pass holders who earn less than S$2,500 per month, whose parents are not SC/SPR, may be considered for admission to a mainstream public school if they pass a Qualifying Test (QT) or the Admissions Exercise for International Students (AEIS). For more information on this requirement, please refer to the Ministry of Manpower’s website.

Age Criteria

International students should ensure that they satisfy the age requirements for the levels they are seeking admission into. MOE does not recommend admission to levels where international students will be more than two years older than their classmates.

Please refer to the section on the age criteria for admission of international students for more information.

Admissions Exercise for International Students (AEIS)

International students seeking admission into Primary 2–5 and Secondary 1–3 in the following academic year are to take part in the AEIS. Under AEIS, international students would be able to enjoy the convenience of a centralised test on English and Mathematics, and an offer of a school place if they pass the test. Applicants who pass the test would be offered a place in a suitable school, based on available school vacancies and their performance in the centralised test. To register for or find out more about AEIS, please visit the AEIS webpage.

Applying Directly to Schools

If you are seeking admission to Primary 2–5 or Secondary 1–3 and are unable to make it for the AEIS exercise or if you are seeking admission to Primary 1 or JCs, you are required to sit for and pass the Qualifying Test (QT) before you can apply to schools for admission.

For admission to Primary 1 in the following year, the international student can register with the school of choice during or after Phase 3 of the annual Primary One Registration Exercise. Prior to that, you are required to sit for and pass the QT before registering.

Step-by-Step Guide for Qualifying Test and Applying to Schools

Admission is subject to the availability of vacancies, provided there are no SC/SPR children on the schools’ waiting lists, and the schools’ admission criteria.

1. Qualifying Test

   Children of S Pass and Work Permit (R Pass) holders without DP, IEO and whose parents are not SC/SPR are required to sit for and pass the Qualifying Test before they can be considered for admission to mainstream public schools.

   For more information, please visit the Qualifying Test section on this website. If you have passed the QT and are eligible for school admission, please see Step 2.

2. Apply at school of choice with QT letter of eligibility

3. Sit for placement test conducted by school if there is a vacancy. Applicants will be tested on subjects such as English, Mathematics and Mother Tongue Language (where applicable).

   If applicant passes the placement test, he / she will receive a Student’s Pass Online Application & Registration (SOLAR+) Registration Acknowledgement Letter from the school that will register him / her for student’s pass (STP) application (see Step 4).

   Admission is subject to the applicant obtaining and returning with a student’s pass issued by the ICA.

4. Apply for student’s pass at ICA

   Upon receiving the SOLAR+ Registration Acknowledgement Letter issued by the school, the applicant should log in to SOLAR+ on-line at ICA website immediately to apply for a student’s pass.

5. Return to school with student’s pass

   The applicant must return to the school with a valid student’s pass. Otherwise, the applicant will forfeit his / her admission to the school.