🎒 Moving abroad with school-age children: schools, matric and university

For many families, the children's schooling is the hardest part of emigrating to plan. Which year will they go into? Will the school down the road take them? Will matric get them into university, and will you pay local or international fees? This guide covers the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States, and what to sort out before you leave South Africa.

1. How the school years line up

South African children start Grade 1 in the calendar year they turn seven, and the school year runs from January to December. Most other countries place children strictly by date of birth, not by the grade they finished at home, so your child may "jump" or "repeat" a year on paper. As a rough guide:

• England and Wales: the year group number is usually one higher than the SA grade. A child in SA Grade 4 would normally be in Year 5, and matric (Grade 12) lines up with Year 13. The school year runs September to August, and children are placed by their age on 31 August. Scotland and Northern Ireland use different systems.
• Australia: year numbers roughly match SA grades (Grade 4 is about Year 4) and Year 12 is the final year. The year starts in late January or early February, like ours, but each state sets its own age cut-off, and the first year has different names (Prep, Foundation, Kindergarten, Reception or Pre-primary).
• New Zealand: children start school around their fifth birthday, so the year number is usually one higher than the SA grade, and Year 13 is the final year. The school year runs from about February to December.
• Canada and the United States: grade numbers roughly match SA grades, with Grade 12 the final year (Quebec differs, with CEGEP after Secondary V). The school year runs from late August or September to June, so a January move from South Africa lands your child halfway through a year.

Before you book flights, look up the age cut-off for your destination state, province or local authority and work out where your child will be placed. Moving at the start of the destination's school year is usually easiest, academically and socially.

2. Getting a school place

• UK: state school places are allocated by the local council using published admissions criteria, and "catchment" or distance from home is often decisive for popular schools. Most councils only process an in-year application once you have a UK address, so families often rent first and apply second. Start with gov.uk: school admissions and the council's website, and read Ofsted reports.
• Australia: government schools usually have a defined local intake area and must take children who live in it, but some popular schools only accept out-of-area students if they have space. Some states charge fees for the children of certain temporary visa holders (New South Wales has historically done so for subclass 482 dependants, with recent changes). Check the state education department's rules for your exact visa before you sign a lease.
• New Zealand: many schools have an enrolment scheme ("school zone"). Living inside the zone guarantees a place. Children of most work visa holders have been treated as domestic students for school fees for the length of the parent's visa, but confirm your category with Immigration New Zealand and the school.
• Canada: public schools are run by provincial school boards and you enrol with the board for your address. Many provinces let the children of work-permit holders attend public school without international fees. Check the board's international or newcomer page.
• United States: you enrol with the school district for your address, and property prices often follow district reputation. Children who are dependants on a parent's work visa (for example H-4 or L-2) can generally attend public school. A child on their own F-1 student visa cannot attend a public primary school, and can only attend a public high school for up to 12 months, paying the full cost.

3. Documents to get before you leave South Africa

1. Report cards for at least the last two years, and the most recent term. Ask the school for an English version if your child is at an Afrikaans-medium school.
2. A transfer letter or testimonial on school letterhead, giving the grade completed, subjects, the language of instruction and a short comment from the principal or class teacher.
3. Curriculum details for high school learners: subject choices, whether they followed CAPS (government) or the IEB, and any Advanced Programme Mathematics or English. Schools abroad use this to choose a pathway.
4. Support records: educational psychologist reports, learning support plans, concessions (such as extra time) and therapy reports. Getting help abroad is faster with these in hand.
5. Medical records and vaccination cards. Some countries, states and districts check immunisation records at enrolment, and may require catch-up vaccines.
6. Unabridged birth certificates and, if relevant, custody or parental consent documents.

4. Is matric accepted for university?

Yes, broadly, but each university sets its own requirements, and they are higher for competitive courses. Both the government (DBE) NSC and the IEB NSC are national senior certificates quality-assured by Umalusi, and universities usually list them together. A bachelor's pass is the starting point, but individual subject percentages matter more.

• UK (UCAS): many UK universities accept the NSC or IEB for direct entry and publish a South Africa entry page. For example, at the time of writing (October 2026), Sheffield asks for five subjects at 70% or more, with 80% in subjects where it would ask for an A at A level. Highly selective universities and courses may expect A levels or a foundation year instead, and Mathematics (not Mathematical Literacy) is essential for many courses. You apply through UCAS, and the deadline for Oxford, Cambridge, medicine, dentistry and veterinary courses falls in mid-October of the year before entry.
• Australia: universities convert the NSC into an ATAR-equivalent. The University of Western Australia, for instance, publishes a table based on the average achievement level of the six best subjects, excluding Life Orientation. Each university uses its own method, so check the specific institution. Matric results come out in January, which makes a February or March start tight; some students begin in the mid-year intake.
• New Zealand: local students need University Entrance through NCEA, but universities admit students with overseas qualifications such as the NSC by assessing them as equivalent, with their own minimum requirements for each programme. Check the university's international admissions page.
• Canada: admission is decided by each university, and most publish requirements for South African applicants, normally a strong NSC or IEB with the right Grade 12 subjects.
• United States: colleges assess applications as a whole (grades, essays, activities, and sometimes the SAT or ACT). An NSC or IEB transcript is accepted at most colleges, and some ask for a credential evaluation.