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How to Apply State School (In-Year Application for Primary School & Secondary School)

After your visa is successfully approved, besides settling in the family and buying new home supplies, the next biggest concern is how to apply for school.

If the child is not yet of primary school age, please refer to the previous article [How to apply for a UK primary or secondary school]

If children are over 5 years old when they arrive in the UK, they need to make an in-year application to primary or secondary school (depending on age).

What is the in-year application procedure?

The procedures for transfer to Primary schools and Secondary schools are roughly the same. You will need to Provide:
1) Proof of address
2) Child’s passport
3) Admission application form

The admission application form can be downloaded from the Council webpage of each district. If you don’t know which council you belong to, you can follow the government webpage and enter the address Post Code.
https://www.gov.uk/apply-for-primary-school-place
https://www.gov.uk/apply-for-secondary-school-place

What do I need in order to fill in the application form?

Let’s take the Westminster Council’s In-Year Admission application form as an example (this is just an example so please download the application form of the council you belong to)
https://www.westminster.gov.uk/sites/default/files/biborough_primary_in-year_form_interactive.pdf

The first part:
Child profile
Note that the application form needs your Council Tax Number as proof of address. This will be found on your council tax letters.

The second part:
Parent Information

 

Parts 3, 4, 5:

Children’s background. Since the children are immigrating to the UK, the education background in Part 5 can be filled in from the original school.

Part 6

Please select a school, fill in the Local Authority, whether there are any siblings studying, and fill in the reason for choosing this school.

Usually, you can choose 4-6 schools, depending on different Councils, and the Council will start from your first choice to see if the school is available according to the school chosen by the parents.

What if there are no vacancies in the 4 selected schools?

Then the Council can arrange the place from a school which has a place for the child.

Part 7:
If the child is immigrating to the UK or returning to the UK,  you should fill in the arrival date.

Parts 8, 9

Additional information section

Part 10 Signature, date, and confirmation of application

There may be slight differences in each council’s application form, please make sure you refer to your own council requirements.

After you email the application form to the Council, you will receive an offer form the council in about 2 weeks. You will then follow the instruction from the council, and contact the school for admission.

After finishing all the processes above,  your child will be able to participate in their new school!

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How to Apply for State School (Primary School & Secondary School)

Families who have immigrated to the UK will want to help their children to find a school as the first priority. To help a child enroll in school, we must know if the child can apply for admission together with other local children, or whether to make an in-year application.

 

First of all, let us talk about the age of entry to British schools.

Elementary schools in the UK start school in early September after the age of 4. This grade is called Reception Class (or Primary 1 in Scotland). Children start in Reception Class, and will be promoted to Year 1 (Primary 2 in Scotland) after one year, and continue to Year 6 (Primary 7 in Scotland).

After Year 6, it will be the first year of Secondary school, Year 7.
(Some primary schools in the UK are divided into Infant (reception Class – Year 2) & Junior (Year 3 – Year 6), mainly because some areas are scattered, so some small Infant schools have been opened for younger students to go to school, and then to Year Upgrade to Junior School at 3 o’clock)

If your child will be 4 years old before September next year (before August 31), then you should apply for school by mid-January next year. For the exact registration date, please refer to the Council of each district. If you don’t know which Council you belong to, you can refer to the following government web page, and you can find out which Council you belong to by using the postal code of your address. On the  Council website, look for the “Apply for School” section.

https://www.gov.uk/apply-for-primary-school-place

https://www.gov.uk/apply-for-secondary-school-place

Each Council’s admission application form will have some differences but the registration and allocation time are roughly the same.

Process of Applying for Reception Class

If your child should start school in the 2021-2022 Reception Class, (which means your child will be 4 from 1st Sept 2020 to 31st Aug 2021) the admission timeline will be as below (please refer to the date announced by your own council)

  • January 15, 2021, Submit application form (each child can choose 4 schools)
  • Mid-April 2021 Receive an offer from Council
  • September 2021 Child to start their school life in Primary School

If the child should be enrolled in the Reception Class in September 2021 but did not submit the form before January 15, the Council will allocate the place according to the date of submission of the form, please check the Late Apply on the Council website Assignment date. Therefore, please arrange to apply for elementary school as soon as possible.

When children reach Year 6, they need to apply for secondary school. The process is similar but the timeline will be earlier:

If your child will enter year 7 in 2021-2022, the application timeline is as below (please refer to the date of your council)

  • October 31, 2020, Submit application form (each child can choose 4 schools)
  • mid-March 2021, Receive notification of allocation results from Council
  • Early July 2021, the transition day in New School (Introduction for New Student)
  • September 2021, Child starts Secondary School

 

Remark:

  • In Scotland, there are 6 years of Secondary school with 4 years University

In the next article, we’ll show you how to apply for transfers for children, so stay tuned!

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How to immigrate pets to the UK

What about my beloved pet when immigrating to the UK?

Immigration to the UK has to deal with as many tasks as there are stars. In addition to the family who has to fly to the UK, family members also include beloved pets. To apply for pets to immigrate to the UK such as cats, dogs or even ferrets (other pets have different immigration conditions), the following requirements must be met:

  • has been micro-chipped
  • has a pet passport or third-country official veterinary certificate
  • has been vaccinated against rabies – it will also need a blood test if you immigrate from an ‘unlisted country’

Dogs must also have a tapeworm treatment.

Your pet may be put into quarantine for up to 4 months if you do not follow these rules – or refused entry if you travelled by sea. You’re responsible for any fees or charges.

Before leaving for the UK:

  • Please check if your Airline/ Vessel can accept your pet for travel. If you bring more than one pet, how many pets will they accept?
  • You need a pet health certificate to ensure that your pet is fit for travel and healthy, such as a certificate from a veterinarian or a pet passport centre.
  • Note that you are not allowed to bring more than 5 pets to the UK, except for competitions, performances, or sports events. Please click here for more detailed requirements.

How to get a pet passport:

You can get a pet passport from a vet authorised to issue them in countries the UK accepts pet passports from.

When you get a pet passport you’ll need to take:

The passport is only valid if you meet the entry requirements.

You should travel with previous pet passports in some cases, for example, if your pet has had a blood test. Ask your vet if you think this applies to your pet.

Only vets in countries that the UK accepts pet passports from can enter information into the pet passport (except for tapeworm treatments).

When all treatment spaces in the pet passport are filled, you need to exchange for a new pet passport.

Before you travel

Check that the vet has filled in the following sections in the pet passport:

  • details of ownership – you must sign section I if your pet passport was issued on or after 29 December 2014
  • description of pet
  • marking or identification of pet
  • vaccination against rabies
  • rabies blood test (if needed)
  • details of the vet issuing the passport (for passports issued from 29 December 2014)
  • your dog’s tapeworm treatment (if needed)

The UK accepts pet passports from the following countries:
All EU countries and the following countries/regions outside the EU (excerpt, please click here for a list of all regions):

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • Hong Kong
  • Japan
  • Malaysia
  • New Zealand
  • Singapore
  • Taiwan
  • United States (including American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands),

For the full list of countries/regions that accept pet passports in the UK, please refer to the following UK government website:
https://www.gov.uk/take-pet-abroad/listed-and-unlisted-countries

Here are some pet immigration companies. You can compare the prices and service plans before deciding which one to use. (We are not affiliated with any of these companies and can’t vouch for the quality of their work.)

Petcific https://www.petcific.com.hk/

PetHoliday https://petholidays.hk/

Ferndale https://www.ferndalekennels.com/zh/

Pet Mover http://www.petmovershk.com/

Export a Pet https://www.export-a-pet.com/zh-hant

Pets are part of the family. Please arrange pet immigration in advance so that you can start a new life in the UK with your owner.

＊Please note that if you plan to rent a house for the first time in the UK, please confirm with the landlord/rental agent that pets are allowed in the house. Some owners indicate that pets are not allowed.

 

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How to move the personal Stuff to UK

What do you need to do before moving to the UK?

Once you confirm to relocate to a new country, besides the whole family member moving to the UK, you also need to move your stuff to your new home.

Here are some hints to moving your stuff to the UK:

  1. You need to consider which one needs to send to the UK, and which one should be given up (give to friends, donate to charity, or send to the dump)
  2. If you want to send the appliance to the UK, please make sure the voltage is suitable in the UK.
  3. Do you need to move the furniture, or particularly large objects, such as Piano, bicycle, mattress?
  4. Before packing the carton, make sure you can mark down the content, carton number, and where should put the carton, in the living room, or bedroom? It would help you to unpack the carton after moving to a new home.
  5. Make sure the carton is full stuff, it would be damaged if the carton only half stuff.
  6. For all fragile stuff, make sure to protect it carefully.
  7. If you need to ship lots of books, need to ensure each carton didn’t overweight.

Normally, the personal stuff ship to the UK by sea need around 2 months. So, make sure your daily items or important personal belonging come with you. Or, you need to purchase a new one in the UK. After deciding what items you would like to ship to the UK, you need to pick an international relocation company. You can ask them to quote a rough price for you, quotation are based on how many cartons, any furniture / large items.

Before book the international relocation service, please check:

  1. Any handling fee
  2. Any document fee
  3. Is the quote including packing material?
  4. Is the quote including door to door service?
  5. Any extra cost for moving up the stairs?
  6. The extra cost for storage if can’t be delivered to the UK new home immediately.

Mostly, the final cost is based on the final total volume, plus any handling fee/document fee / extra service charge, please check the quote detail if any additional charge.

Here are some international relocation companies for your reference, you can compare the quote and terms before making a decision.

When the moving company removes all the belongings, the moving company should prepare the shipping information and hand it to you together with the packing list. As the UK has an import tax, personal items can be shipped to the UK tax-free during the first year of immigrating to the UK. To avoid the import tax, you must apply for a Transfer of Residence number before the stuff arrives in the UK. After a successful application, the authorities will issue a Tor No to the applicant. Once received the ToR No, please contact your relocation company, and they could arrange the clearance of your stuff, and arrange the shipment to your new home.

For how to apply for Transfer of Residence, please refer to the following British government website.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/application-for-transfer-of-residence-tor-relief-tor01

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How to exchange non-UK driving licence for UK driving licence?

How to exchange a non-UK driving licence for a UK driving licence?

There are conditions to exchanging a non-UK driver’s licence for a Full UK driver’s licence:

  • Must hold a driving licence from a country accepted by the UK
  • Be a British resident
  • Have a UK address
  • Have lived in the UK for at least 185 days

The DVLA only accepts driving licences from the following countries/regions:

1) Driver’s licences issued by EU countries and three other countries in the European Economic Area are accepted. Drivers from the following countries/regions can exchange their driver’s licence for a British licence:

Andorra / Austria / Belgium / Bulgaria / Czech Republic / Denmark / Estonia / Finland / France / Germany / Greece / Hungary / Iceland / Ireland / Italy / Latvia / Liechtenstein / Lithuania / Luxembourg / Malta / Netherlands / Norway / Poland / Portugal / Republic of Cyprus / Romania / Slovakia / Slovenia / Spain / Sweden

If your licence was issued from a country in the EU or EEA, then you’re officially allowed to drive in the UK on your original licence until you’re 70 and your licence expires. If you’re aged 68 or over when you officially become a resident in Great Britain, you’ll be allowed to drive for 3 years. Once this time has passed, you will need to exchange your licence.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/driving-in-the-eu-after-brexit-driving-licence-exchange

2) Designated countries
The UK has driving licence agreements with a variety of ‘designated countries’. If you hold a driving licence from one of the countries below, you’ll be allowed to exchange it for a UK driving licence without taking any further tests.

Australia / Barbados / British Virgin Islands / Canada / Falkland Islands / Faroe Islands / Hong Kong / Japan / Monaco /New Zealand / Republic of Korea / Singapore / South Africa / Switzerland / Zimbabwe

If an applicant participates and passes the test in one of the above countries or in a member state of the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA), they can exchange their driver’s licence for a full British driver’s licence.

The process to exchange a non-UK driving licence to a British driving licence:

  • Fill in the DVLA D1 form (You can get a DVLA D1 form from the Post Office)
  • Paste a photo on the DVLA D1 form
  • Prepare a cheque
  • Send all the required documents back to DVLA

Don’t forget that you will need to send your original non-UK driving licence to DVLA too and it will NOT be returned to you.

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