Start school (学校)
For you if: your child is 6 to 15 years old.
- Foreign children can attend public elementary and junior high schools.
- Tuition and textbooks are free.
- Tell your city office that you want your child to go to a public school.
Steps
- Tell the city office that you want to enroll your child.This can be different in each city.
- Get the enrollment permit from the city office.
- Go to the school with the permit and the papers it needs.
More details
School system. Elementary school is 6 years. Junior high school is 3 years. Then high school (3 years) and university (4 years).
More help. The Ministry of Education has a school enrollment guidebook in many languages.
At the end, check at the counter. You can show this card.
窓口の方へ
子どもを公立の学校に入れたいです。
This card says: “I want my child to go to a public school.”
Official information
- Guidebook on Living and Working, 7th edition (English), Chapter 5, 1 (p.54-55)Immigration Services Agency of Japan (出入国在留管理庁)www.moj.go.jp · Opens an English website
- Guidebook for School Enrollment for Foreign Children (multilingual)Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (文部科学省)www.mext.go.jp · Opens a Japanese website