Schooling: Government School Admission, AEIS, International Schools and Student's Passes

Foreign children going to school in Singapore have three basic routes: entering a government primary or secondary school through the Ministry of Education's (MOE) Admissions Exercise for International Students (AEIS) or its supplementary round, the S-AEIS; applying directly to a government school; or attending an international or private school. Government school places are allocated according to test performance and places available, and MOE states expressly that admission is not guaranteed; international schools admit pupils under their own admission rules. The pass on which a child lives in Singapore determines whether a separate Student's Pass is needed, and also affects the fee tier and, for boys, National Service obligations.

This guide covers only the rules and the timing; it does not recommend or rank any school. Jurisdiction: Singapore.

The three admission routes compared

It helps to be clear about the routes and who decides each one before looking at timing. The "decided by" row in the table below matters most: MOE allocates government school places centrally, while international schools decide for themselves.

Note that children who are Singapore citizens are subject to Compulsory Education: MOE states that compulsory education applies to "all Singapore citizens born after 1 January 1996 and living in Singapore", who must attend a local primary school unless exempted (MOE, 2025-12-05). Foreign and PR children are not among those listed on that page and are free to choose international schools; but families planning to take up citizenship later should bear this in mind.

AEIS and S-AEIS: levels, timing and admission rules

The AEIS is a centralised admission test MOE runs for international students who wish to enter government primary and secondary schools, with school places allocated on test results and places available (test subjects and format follow MOE's announcement for the year). The key rules are:

1. Levels admitted: the AEIS admits pupils to Primary 2 to 5 and Secondary 1 to 3 for the following school year. Primary 1, Primary 6 and Secondary 4 and above are outside the AEIS.
2. Test dates: the 2026 AEIS is held in Singapore from Tuesday 1 September to Thursday 3 September 2026, with successful candidates entering school the following January. MOE's page says the process usually begins in July and that applications for 2026 have closed (MOE, 2026-07-17).
3. Supplementary round, S-AEIS: for international students who wish to enter Primary 2 to 4 or Secondary 1 to 2 within the same school year. The 2027 S-AEIS opens for applications in early January, with the written test provisionally scheduled for late February or early March 2027 and successful candidates starting in April or May (MOE S-AEIS, 2026-07-01), so it is too late for the January start.
4. Admission not guaranteed: MOE states that "Admission is not guaranteed and is subject to your child's performance in the tests". After a pass, MOE allocates the school, and parents cannot choose it themselves.
5. Eligibility: age and other eligibility conditions follow MOE's "Eligibility criteria" page, which should be checked item by item before registering.

In practice, this means that if a family plans for a child to enter a government school in January of a given year, it usually needs to settle the residency route by July of the previous year and have the child preparing for the test in Singapore. If the September AEIS is missed or not passed, the following year's S-AEIS is a supplementary chance within the same school year, but entry is pushed back to April or May and the range of levels is narrower. Many families place their child in an international or private school as a bridge while preparing for the test.

Student's Passes: who needs one and who does not

Student's Passes are issued by the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA). ICA's rule (2025-12-23) is that foreigners admitted to a full-time course at an educational institution must apply for a Student's Pass, unless they hold a valid Dependant's Pass (DP), Long-Term Visit Pass (LTVP), Immigration Exemption Order or similar. DP and LTVP holders do not need a Student's Pass for full-time, non-religious courses and may study at any school while their pass is valid.

The DP covers unmarried children under 21 (including legally adopted children), and the main pass holder must meet MOM's salary threshold (MOM, 2024-03-14); see Residency routes. ICA also reminds families that when a DP or LTVP expires or is cancelled, the child must apply for a Student's Pass to continue studying. So whenever the main applicant changes jobs, runs into difficulty renewing a pass or a child's 21st birthday approaches, check the child's basis for study at the same time to avoid a break mid-term.

Fee tiers and the effect of status changes

MOE's "School fees" page (2026-10-16) divides monthly primary and secondary school fees into three tiers: Singapore citizens, Singapore permanent residents and international students. It states that "The monthly fees are exclusive of GST for Singapore Citizens and Singapore Permanent Residents" and that "The fees for International Students are inclusive of GST". Amounts are adjusted each school year and there may be sub-tiers within the same status; this site does not quote amounts, and the current result from MOE's fee lookup tool prevails. A child's fee tier follows the child's own status, so school fees move together with the residency route:

1. Switching from a DP to PR: the child's status changes from "international student" to "PR student" and the fee tier changes with it; update the school's records proactively and confirm from the school's notice when the fee change takes effect.
2. Changes to the main applicant's pass: if an EP expires without renewal, the parent changes employer or leaves Singapore, the DP is affected. If the child is to keep studying, a Student's Pass or another pass must be obtained promptly, or schooling may be interrupted.
3. Sons obtaining PR through their parents: all male Singapore citizens and PRs must register for National Service (NS) at 16½ and serve full-time for 2 years from age 18; sons who obtain PR through their parents' sponsorship must also serve; and males aged 13 and above who are liable for NS must apply for an Exit Permit to leave Singapore for 3 months or more (CMPB, 2025-07-22). ICA states that renouncing or losing PR without completing full-time National Service will seriously affect later applications to work or study in Singapore.

National Service shapes a son's plans between ages 16 and 20, for example whether to serve before university and how to handle Exit Permits for study overseas. Families should discuss this before choosing the PR or GIP route; the detailed rules are in After you get PR, and individual cases should be checked with the Central Manpower Base (CMPB) or ICA. If school fees are a large item in the family's cash flow, education spending over the next 6–12 years can be set out separately; for how education fund tools work, see the sister site saving.sg.

Comparing international schools

This site does not assess individual schools; it only lists the dimensions commonly used in comparisons. It is worth settling the first three first.

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Planning backwards from the first day of school

Taking a child entering a Singapore government school in January 2028 as an example, the timeline working backwards is as follows (dates follow MOE and ICA announcements for the year):

Note: if the child is not admitted through the AEIS, the fallback is the S-AEIS in the same school year: registration in early January 2028, the written test in late February to early March and entry in April or May (subject to MOE's announcement for the year). It admits only to Primary 2–4 and Secondary 1–2 and cannot meet the January start.

There are three common sticking points: sitting the test before residency is settled, leaving the type of pass uncertain at the time of entry; missing the July–September AEIS window and having to wait for mid-year entry through the S-AEIS or for the following year; and overlooking the main pass's expiry date, so that the DP lapses partway through the school year. Putting these dates in the annual compliance calendar reduces the chance of something being missed; for the overall landing sequence, see Landing process and timeline.

To plan around your child's age, residency route and future studies as a whole, you can register an enquiry through the contact details on this site.