Formal Basic Education

To access a list of public schools in Lebanon, please refer to this page. 

To identify a public school, please note that the entrance sign of public schools display the Lebanese flag, and the term ‘Rasmiya’ (public) is included in the school’s name.

The second shift school was established to meet the increased demand for primary education enrolment after the Syrian crisis. Both first (morning) and second (afternoon) shift schools follow the same Lebanese curriculum.

For a comprehensive list of second-shift schools, please refer to this page. 

The Ministry of Education and Higher Education is responsible for communicating the registration period for public schools. UNHCR will share updates under the Latest News as soon as available.

If your children meet either of the following requirements, they are eligible for enrollment in pre-primary education. Please reach out to the nearest school for registration.

• Children who have reached the age of 5 by 31 January 2024 (inclusive), or

• Children who are 6 years old and above, but do not have the necessary academic learning abilities for admission into Grade 1. For these children, enrolment may be limited based on the physical capacity of the school.

For the required documents, please see Question 7.

For Grade 1:

If your children have reached the age of 6 by 31 January 2024, you can enroll your children in Grade 1.

When the registration period starts, please visit the nearest school in which you wish to enroll your children. For first-time students: approach the nearest school for advice and referral.

Please note that if your children are older than 6 but have not yet turned 9, they can still be accepted in Grade 1 if they can demonstrate the academic capability required for Grade 1.

For Grade 2 – 9:

If your children are continuing their education in the same school and not enrolling for the first time, they can register without submitting the required documents for registration if there is capacity in the school.

For the required documents, please see Question 7.

For children with no prior education, please see Question 9.

For enrollment in secondary education, if your children hold a Lebanese Brevet (Grade 9) certificate/diploma or an equivalent qualification, they can directly enroll in a secondary school without taking an entrance exam.

If there is no space for your child in a specific secondary school, you are advised to visit another nearby secondary school.

For the required documents, please see Question 7.

To enroll your children in public schools, please prepare the following documents and bring them to the school where you wish to register for enrollment.

Please note that even if you lack some of these documents, enrollment in primary and secondary school is still possible if you have a proof of residence from the mukhtar (إفادة سكن) and a birth certificate.

1. ID documents of each child (and/or UNHCR Certificate),
2. Two passport-sized photos of your children,
3. Vaccination card and health certificate of each child,
4. Previous certificate or transcript of the past two years. If not available, your children will have to take a mandatory placement test at the school, based on their academic level.
5. Birth registration certificates for children aged between 5 and 10 years old. Children who have been denied registration due to the lack of birth registration certificates should contact the education partner operating in their place of residence for counseling and referral.

To enroll your children in a secondary school, you need to submit the following additional documents:

1. Valid residency permit issued by the General Directorate of General Security and/or a valid UNHCR certificate.
2. Certified school attestation displaying the children’s final grades from the previous academic year.
3. Brevet certificate issued by the Lebanese department of official examinations, or its equivalent issued by the General Education Equivalence Committee of the Ministry of Education and Higher Education

📢 Attention! 📢 Do not confuse proof of residence from the mukhtar (إفادة السكن) with the residency permit (الإقامة القانونيّة) – they are different.

Yes, only for children who completed Grades 6 or above outside of Lebanon. If your children previously attended school outside Lebanon, they need to obtain equivalence documents for their transcripts above Grade 6. Equivalence documents are required to validate the authenticity of your children’s educational reports and certificates obtained outside Lebanon. The equivalence documents are crucial for their integration into the Lebanese educational system.

Here are the required documents for obtaining an equivalency:

1. Original and copies of report cards from the last three years (only for grades 6 and above), certified by the Ministry of Education and Higher Education of Lebanon, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of your country, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lebanon,
2. Residency permit for the past three years in the country where Grades 6, 7 and 8 were completed,
3. Original Foreign Passport (country of origin) along with copies for both student and guardian.

📢 Report cards and residency permit are not required if the actual Brevet (Grade 9) certificate from the country of study is available and if the country of study where the Brevet certificate was issued matches the country of nationality.

If your children were not enrolled in public school in previous years, here are the enrollment options:

• Students aged 9 years old and above with no previous education or more than three years of being out of school should be referred to non-formal education opportunities. To get more information on available opportunities, please contact the education partner in your area of residence, contact the UNHCR National Call Center at 📞 04726111, or contact us through 🗎 the Online Contact Form.

• For students at the secondary level (Grades 10-12)
  If your children have a Lebanese Brevet (Grade 9) certificate or its equivalent, they can directly enroll in a secondary school without needing to take an entrance exam. If your children have certificates of Grade 10 and 11, from a school outside Lebanon, they should undergo a placement test and provide an equivalence.

• For new students previously in recognized private schools
  Your children will need to take an entrance exam to enroll in a public school. Official transcripts certified by the Ministry of Education and Higher Education should be submitted to your chosen public school. Based on the results of the exam, they may be enrolled if there are available seats or be referred to non-formal education. If official certificates are unavailable, they can still be considered for acceptance if they present valid report cards from the previous school.

No, unless they are moving from Grade 9 to Grade 10. Once your children have been enrolled in a second shift school, they are not eligible to switch to a first shift school.

If they have successfully completed Grade 9 and are progressing to Grade 10 (secondary school), they are eligible to switch to a first-shift school to attend secondary education. For availability of seats in a first-shift school, please check with the nearest school.

For primary school, you should not be asked to pay a fee. For secondary school, you will be required to pay tuition fees, and in some cases, contribute to the parents’ committee fund. The secondary school tuition fee is decided by the Ministry of Education and Higher Education each year.

Yes. If your children are stateless (مكتوم القيد), they are eligible for enrollment in a public school. You will need to submit a document (إفادة خاصة تسمى إفادة تعريف) obtained from the local mukhtar. For more information, please contact the principal of the school where you intend to apply.

If your children cannot enroll in primary education because of a lack of academic capability, they will be referred to a preparatory program. Please contact the education partner for preparatory programs in your area.

Yes. If your children have special needs, you are encouraged to enroll them in inclusive public schools, designated by the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and capacitated by the international community. These schools provide technical support and assistive devices based on individual technical assessments. To enroll your child, please visit the nearest inclusive school and inquire about their ability to cater to your child’s specific needs. Alternatively, you can contact the Ministry of Education and Higher Education hotline at📞01772000 for further assistance.

If your children are denied enrollment, you can request support by:

1. Contacting the Ministry of Education and Higher Education’s hotline at 📞 01772000, or
2. Submitting a complaint through the education partner.

Yes. If your children are enrolled in Grades 9 or 12, they are eligible to sit for the Lebanese official exams. UNHCR will share updates under the Latest News as soon as available.

Yes. The second shift school provides the same formal education as the first shift school. Students from Grades 1 to 9 who successfully complete the academic year will receive an official certification from the Ministry of Education and Higher Education of Lebanon.

The Ministry of Education and Higher Education of Lebanon does not grant recognition to the Syrian curriculum or accredit Syrian learning centers within the country. UN agencies do not support Syrian learning centers in Lebanon.

Children from accredited Syrian schools seeking admission to public schools will undergo a placement test (conducted in Arabic) to assess their educational level and be referred to the appropriate age in formal education system.

Children that attended Syrian learning centers can contact the education partners or the UNHCR National Call Center at 📞 04726111 to be referred to recognized non-formal education programs.

Yes. Parents are responsible for educational materials like textbooks, copybooks, stationery (if not provided by the school), and transportation expenses.

If your children are enrolled in formal education, struggling with studying or at risk of dropping out due to academic challenges, please consider enrolling them in the following retention support programs:

• Homework support (Students bring their school materials)
• Foreign language support

The programs are designed to provide supplementary assistance to improve children’s learning outcomes and help them remain in formal education. The programs are offered at public schools and community venues. For more information, you can reach out to the UNHCR volunteers in schools or in the community or to the education partner in your area. They can guide and help you access homework support and foreign language support activities.

Partners and educational institutions offer programs to support children of different age groups across diverse community venues or schools. These programs are tailored to address the specific education needs of these children. Here are some examples of the programs:

• Community-Based Early Childhood Education, for children between 3 and 5 years of age;
• Basic Literacy and Numeracy for children between 10 and 14 years of age; or
• Youth Basic Literacy and Numeracy for youth between 15 and 24 years of age.

To explore the available options and the most suitable education program offered near your residence, contact UNHCR volunteers inside schools or contact the education partner in your area.

To report problems or concerns specifically related to children at second shift schools, please reach out to Education Community Liaisons volunteers if they are available at the school. They will assist you identify the best possible solutions.

In the event of misbehavior, fraud, discrimination, violence, or abuse within a public school, it is advisable to communicate directly with the school’s director and contact the Ministry of Education and Higher Education’s hotline at 📞01772000.