Why must four separate procedures be distinguished in the transition to high school?
Education level, graduation, examination and enrolment
Equivalence is the relating of education received in a foreign education system, or in an international school within the scope, to the grade and programme in Türkiye. The central examination, on the other hand, produces a score for schools that admit students by examination. Placement links the student with a school under the relevant conditions. The legal bases and documents of these procedures are different.[1] [3] [4]
| Stage to be examined | Question to be answered | Element that is not sufficient on its own |
|---|---|---|
| Education level | To which grade is the education completed by the child equivalent? | The child being the same age as peers |
| Completion of lower secondary school | Has the previous stage required for the transition to high school been completed? | Having merely attended classes |
| LGS application and score | Have the application conditions and procedure of that year’s examination been satisfied? | Holding an equivalence application number |
| Placement and enrolment | Have the enrolment, score, programme and application conditions of the target school been met? | Having sat the examination or paid a fee |
The table shows that a separate decision and document must be sought for each procedure. For example, the fact that the family holds only an examination result document does not answer to which grades the two past school years are equivalent. Conversely, where a valid equivalence document exists but the school system has not been updated, the application of the existing decision should be investigated before a new assessment of the education is sought.
The importance of framing the request correctly
Instead of being content to say in the application “we want our child to be admitted to high school”, the application should state which earlier procedure is missing. The request may be the assessment of the education documents, the correction of the equivalence decision, the entry of the existing equivalence result in e-Okul, or acceptance of the application through a specific placement route. This distinction reduces the risk of the administration referring the family to the wrong unit and of the same documents circulating between different institutions.
First determine the student’s enrolment history and the legal status of the school
A student with a former-grade entry in e-Okul
Is the child’s entry showing in the 6th grade still active, passive or pending because of a transfer; have the following years been kept under a different identity number; does the problem in the system arise from a data transfer? Without investigating these questions, neither the conclusion that “two years were not attended at all” nor the conclusion that “two years can be added directly” can be reached.
For the review, the date of first enrolment, school changes, changes of citizenship or identity number, and the education documents of each year should be placed in a single chronology. Where Turkish citizenship was acquired later, records kept under the former foreign identity number may also need to be searched. Showing that the two records belong to the same child does not remove the need to document the success of the education separately.
Having no record at all is not the same as appearing in a former grade
The 2026 level assessment guide expressly lists persons who cannot submit an education document obtained in Türkiye and who are of compulsory primary education age without an e-Okul record. The situation of a student with a record in a former grade cannot automatically be treated as included in this wording. The other application conditions and the nature of the actual record must be assessed by the equivalence centre.[2]
A school applying a foreign programme in Türkiye and a school abroad
Education being given in a foreign language does not mean that the institution is physically located abroad. Saying that a school in Türkiye applies a French, German or other country’s programme does not produce the same equivalence result for every student and every document. The scope of the institution’s permit and its status on the dates when the student was educated matter.[1]
The LGS application route through the consulate, arranged for students of schools abroad that are not registered in e-Okul, cannot be applied to every foreign-programme school in Türkiye. Which category the application falls into is determined by correctly explaining the place of education and the nature of the document.[3]
The institutions and documents left outside the scope by Article 12 of the Equivalence Regulation must also be taken into account.[1] An institution’s statement that it is recognised in a foreign country does not remove the need for the necessary legal review of its activity in Türkiye. It is therefore useful for the family to request from the school not only a transcript but also records explaining the period of education and the programme. The request for protection of student rights can be framed separately from the question of whether the institution operates in compliance with legislation; while the review concerning the institution is pending, an assessment of the child’s current education situation should also be requested separately.
The 2026 application for transfer from an intermediate grade to a Turkish school
The limit of 31 December 2026, 17.00 in the announcement of 17 August 2026 is the period for this special transfer application. The practice does not make the activity of the unlicensed school lawful.[12] A child still in 8th-grade education and a graduation equivalence request based on a completion document must be examined separately. The announcement alone does not provide automatic enrolment in the 9th grade, the validity of a diploma, or admission without a score to a high school that requires an LGS score. The grade and graduation result must be clarified in the file; the details are in the equivalence application guide.
Establishing the enrolment history and proving the missing years of education are dealt with separately in this series in the review of a missing e-Okul record.
The difference between studying in the 8th grade and having completed lower secondary school
Which result the document shows must be read
A report card, attendance certificate or transcript may state the student’s grade name; however, that document does not always show that the relevant grade was successfully completed or that the right to move to a higher stage was acquired. In the official MEB explanation, a separate transition document is envisaged for report cards from which promotion to a higher grade cannot be understood.[7]
For this reason, the letter requested from the school should not consist merely of the words “he or she is our student”. It should make clear which academic year the letter covers, the programme the student attended, the grade completed, the achievement status and the right to move to the next grade. This is a suggestion for a document request that explains the application file; it does not mean that each document will be accepted for equivalence on its own.
Equivalence to the 9th grade and the Turkish lower secondary school diploma
The Equivalence Regulation provides, for equivalence to the 9th grade, for a primary education diploma or a document showing that this stage has been completed. An equivalence document determines the place of the foreign document within the education system in Türkiye; it cannot be concluded that in every case a retroactive diploma will additionally be issued by a Turkish school.[1]
The statement “at 8th-grade level” in a document held by the family should not be evaluated in the same way as the result “may continue to the 9th grade”. In the application, it should be clarified with the equivalence centre that issued the document to which grade the right to continue has been recognised. Ambiguity in wording should be resolved before it turns into the loss of a new year, at a time when the child’s whole education history is not in dispute.
Evidential value of school payments and actual attendance
Payment records, timetables, student e-mails, examination work and correspondence with teachers may be useful to explain the relationship with the school and the actual education. However, the function of these documents and records must be framed correctly: they should not be presented as an official diploma replacing the institution’s authority, the validity of the programme and the achievement in the grade. They form a supporting evidence file for obtaining a missing document or investigating a record error.
The student should not be kept away from education while the equivalence procedure is pending
The purpose and limit of temporary attendance
Article 4/5 of the Equivalence Regulation provides for the temporary attendance of a student who arrives without an education document during the school year, on the basis of the parent’s written declaration, and for the documents to be brought within three months. Temporary attendance is not the same as a final equivalence result. It must also be clarified through which grade and enrolment status the process is being conducted.[1]
For the parent, the most important practical step is to keep the written basis of the temporary admission and the period for completing the documents. There may be a difference between the child actually being allowed into the class and the creation of student status in the system. The application should ask how attendance will be monitored and in which record course and achievement information will be kept.
Obtaining the documents and continuing education must be monitored together
If the student continues classes at the new school while documents are awaited from the former school, the two processes should be followed separately. The institution that will issue the document, the date of the request, the reply given and the deficiencies are recorded. For the new school, actual attendance, assessments and the student’s current situation are monitored. In this way, an attempt is made to prevent a new period without documents arising later on the ground that “the file was pending”.
The reason why a document cannot be obtained must also be made concrete. The closure of the school, loss of the document, inability to access the archive, the document never having been issued and the institution falling outside the scope of equivalence are different problems. The MEB school equivalence guide details the review of documents and institutions.
What function does level assessment serve in the transition to high school?
The possibility of applying depends on the concrete conditions
The 2026 guide contains application groups that also cover persons who attend temporarily and cannot submit their education documents within three months. In addition, Article 11.5 contains a provision under which, on the written application of the parent or guardian of candidates who must sit the e-Exam for intermediate grades, equivalence to the 5th or 9th grade may be granted without an examination. This provision is not an unconditional 9th-grade enrolment for every student without documents.[2]
Assessment for the 9th grade and a high school that admits students by examination
Determining that a student can continue at 9th-grade level does not mean placing the student without a score in a school that requires an LGS score. Level assessment concerns past education and grade level; the central examination concerns the score used in applying for the quotas of particular schools. The names and purposes of the two examinations must not be confused.[2] [4]
Instead of merely saying in the application “we want to sit the examination”, it should be asked under which provision the student is being assessed and which continuation or graduation result the examination result will produce. In this way the family does not run the risk of completing a procedure at the wrong level and failing to obtain the high school application right it expected. The scope and success conditions of the examination are examined in the article on level assessment.
Which records should be checked when applying to the LGS?
The student status on which the application is based
The 2026 LGS guide required, for students of official and private lower secondary schools, education in the 8th grade in the relevant school year. For students of schools abroad that are not registered in e-Okul, a separate procedure was arranged through equivalence and external representations. Deficiencies, contradictions or errors in the electronic information and the application not being approved by the school are among the grounds for invalidity.[3]
For this reason, the receipt showing that the equivalence file has been submitted and the confirmation document showing that the LGS application has been completed should be kept separately. The first document shows that the assessment of the education has been started; the second shows that the examination application has reached a certain stage. The family should check at the same time that the application appears in the system and that the school has approved it.
Application from abroad and a student in Türkiye
In an application from abroad, the equivalence, identity and application documents and the procedure for sending them are important. If the student returns to Türkiye or moves to another school, the application category and the examination venue must be checked again. That a form used in the previous year has the same name does not show that that year’s application has been completed.
In the file of a student attending a foreign-programme school in Türkiye, on the other hand, the first question is not an application to an external representation. First, the registration regime in which the school and the student fall must be determined. An application that misstates the place of education may, instead of resolving the first problem, create a new dispute over documents and declarations.
Foreign language test and course exemption records must be checked
Under Articles 5.8–5.10 of the 2026 LGS Guide, the foreign language test depends on the compulsory foreign language course registered in e-Okul. After a transfer or a change of class section, this field must be examined separately. The language of instruction of the previous school does not allow a free choice of test. The exemption from religious culture and ethics knowledge based on legislation is entered in e-Okul; the foreign language exemption of the relevant special education groups is entered in MEBBİS-RAM (the MEB personnel and guidance and research centre system) with the necessary notification.[3] It may be requested that these records be verified in the request for equivalence correction as well.
Sitting the examination does not make the right of enrolment certain
Participation in the LGS does not replace the successful completion of lower secondary school or the enrolment conditions of the target school. At the preference and placement stage, graduation and the school’s admission conditions are examined separately.[4] Therefore, even if the student has been admitted to the examination, ambiguities in past grade records and in the equivalence document must be resolved.
Central placement, local placement and private school enrolment
The score is not the only data in central placement
In the 2026 practice, central placement is carried out according to examination score precedence and preferences; where scores are tied, school achievement and the other criteria of the guide gain importance. In local placement, factors such as the residence address, school achievement and absenteeism are assessed.[5]
For this reason, the missing-record problem should not be limited to the question “which grade am I in?”. If the achievement or absenteeism data for past years is wrong, the student’s placement assessment may be affected even after the grade level is corrected. In the correction request, it should be stated, alongside the grade, which score and attendance information must also be examined.
It should not be assumed that a grade in a foreign document is directly equal to a score in Türkiye. The grading scale, the explanation in the document and the assessment of the competent authority must be seen together. A table prepared by the family’s own calculation can be a helpful working tool that facilitates comparison; it must not be put in the place of the official score record. Obtaining a current system printout after each correction helps to see whether other data remains missing while the grade information is being corrected.
How should missing 6th, 7th and 8th grade marks be examined?
In the 2026 central placement, where examination scores are tied, the school achievement score, then the year-end achievement scores of the 8th, 7th and 6th grades, and the other criteria of the guide are applied in order. In local placement as well, the year-end scores of the 8th, 7th and 6th grades matter in the case of a tie in the assessment of address, school achievement and unexcused absenteeism.[5] That the equivalence result is correct does not by itself show that the marks have also been entered correctly in the placement system.
| Education year | Source of the document and mark | Competent procedure and system check |
|---|---|---|
| 6th grade or equivalent foreign education year | Report card/transcript, programme and the grading scale in the document | The grade matching applied, the basis of any conversion and the score entered in the system |
| 7th grade or equivalent foreign education year | Document for the relevant year, achievement and grade-promotion information | The assessing unit, the date of the decision/letter and the recorded score |
| 8th grade or equivalent completion year | Stage completion document, year-end or graduation score | Confirmation of the graduation status and of the value used in placement |
This table organises the review of the file; it does not create a mark conversion formula. For missing years, using a zero automatically, the last year’s score or a single hypothetical average is not recommended. The basis of the calculation used for the student concerned, the competent assessment and the system value for each year should be requested in writing. In returns from abroad within the scope of Article 27/1 of the Secondary Education Institutions Regulation, the entry in e-Okul of the year-end scores for the grades studied abroad and of the grade associated with equivalence is also followed separately.[6]
Article 14.4 of the STS Guide regulates that the average of examination achievement scores is shown in the equivalence document as the year-end score for intermediate grades and as the graduation score in the case of graduates.[2] This provision must not be interpreted to mean that the same score will be copied to all past grades. It must be clarified which values are used in the school achievement calculation and, where there is a missing year, which rule has been applied.
Not sitting the LGS does not close all high school options
The local placement and the relevant boarding school options of students who do not sit the central examination continue within the framework of the enrolment conditions. In the 2026 system, the local preference stage also matters for students who have an examination score.[4] [5] The conclusion that “he or she missed the examination application and can no longer go to any high school” cannot be reached without examining these distinctions.
However, the existence of an alternative school route does not mean that a right to examination or preference that has been unlawfully obstructed must be given up. The option under which the student can continue education and the request for correction of the earlier procedure can be assessed together. The effect of the chosen solution on pending applications and claims must be examined in the particular file.
Address, enrolment area and preference confirmation must be checked together
In the 2026 practice, preferences are made first from the local placement screen; until this stage is completed, the preference screen for schools that admit students by central examination and for boarding schools does not open. There is a condition that the first three local preferences be chosen from the enrolment area. On the screen, green shows the enrolment area, blue the neighbouring enrolment area and red other enrolment areas.[5] These are the rules for the 2026 period; the preference procedure for the following year must be verified from its own guide.
Before the preferences, the family should check the address and enrolment area used in the system and, if there is a documented error, request correction from the relevant unit. The school code, order and confirmation status of the preferences should be compared with the confirmed printout; whether the last change was made before or after the confirmation should be monitored. This check prevents a separate error in the address or preference record from being overlooked after the equivalence problem has been solved. A false declaration of address must not be used as a method of solution.
Pre-registration at a private school may affect other preferences
The 2026 preference guide also regulates the effect on the preference screen of candidate registration and pre-registration at private secondary education institutions. It is therefore not sufficient to look only at the final enrolment contract; it should be found out which procedure has been carried out in the system.[4]
The family should separately ask what the consequence in the education system is of a document signed for the purpose of “reserving our place”. If the family will continue with another school preference, when and through which system procedure the cancellation of the registration will take place should be clarified in writing. The discussion about a fee refund and the student’s enrolment status are different matters; resolving one does not automatically resolve the other.
How are the placement result and the active school record verified?
Article 1.4/c–ç of the 2026 Preference Guide regulates that placement registrations other than those for open high schools and schools that admit students by aptitude examination are made by the system and that the school of registration is shown in the result.[4] If a missing document is raised later, the family should submit together the placement result, the active e-Okul record and the reason for the document requested by the school. It should be explained in writing whether the procedure is the completion of papers or a dispute over graduation or the enrolment condition. Automatic registration is not a separate decision that all past documents have been verified.
Students coming from abroad and the duty of the transfer commission
The right provision according to citizenship and place of education
Article 27 of the Secondary Education Institutions Regulation governs students of Republic of Türkiye nationality who come from abroad, and Article 29 governs the enrolment of students of foreign nationality. Equivalence and programme compatibility are important. The relevant provisions distinguish between students with and without a central examination score; for those with a score, there are special provisions on placement in a school for which the score is sufficient, without the requirement of a quota.[6]
These special provisions cannot be extended to all students wishing to move from any school in Türkiye to another. It must be determined whether the student is really in the relevant group coming from abroad. A change of citizenship likewise does not by itself change the place where the education was received.
Students who graduated in previous years
Article 23/2-f of the Regulation provides the commission route for students who completed the 8th grade in previous years, have no registration in any secondary education institution and meet the enrolment conditions.[6] For this reason, the fact that the general preference period of a given year has passed is not sufficient ground for closing the file with no application route available.
In the application to the commission, the student’s current education situation and the procedure sought must be clear. First-time high school enrolment, placement because of failure to be placed, transfer from the current high school and return-from-abroad applications require separate assessments. Rather than sending a general complaint to the commission, the appropriate type of procedure should be stated.
How is the application route determined after the school year has started?
Under Article 23/1 of the Regulation, the term of duty of the student placement and transfer commission continues until the end of the following school year.[6] The passing of the summer placement dates should therefore not be interpreted to mean that the application of every student who comes to Türkiye during the school year is to be postponed to the following summer. The enrolment or transfer route appropriate to the student’s status should be determined.
| The student’s situation | Provisions to be examined | Matter to be explained in the application |
|---|---|---|
| Turkish citizen student coming from abroad | Article 27 of the Regulation; relevant commission and transfer provisions | Education abroad, equivalence, previous school, central score and programme compatibility |
| Foreign-national student coming from abroad | Article 29 of the Regulation; enrolment and admission conditions and commission procedure | Identity/status documents, equivalence, programme and score situation |
| Ordinary change of school by a student enrolled in Türkiye | Articles 37–38 of the Regulation and the provisions for the relevant school type | Current enrolment, application period, school conditions and, where necessary, quota |
For ordinary transfers, Article 38/4-a provides for a weekly processing arrangement in certain periods and a monthly one at other times; the three weeks before the end of a term and the period for term/grade skipping in the system are provided for separately. The monthly assessment arrangement of the ordinary transfer in November must not be substituted for the commission provisions specific to arrival from abroad. The attendance and absence provisions under Article 27/3 of the Regulation also apply.[6]
A student leaving a foreign-programme school in Türkiye is not regarded as a student coming from abroad merely because the programme is foreign. The place where the education was actually received, the institution and the student’s status must be correctly explained in the file; which enrolment or transfer provision applies is to be determined on that information.
Is the right of a student previously placed through a central examination score protected?
Article 8/3 of the Equivalence Regulation preserves the examination score right of a student who, after being placed in a school through a central examination score, goes abroad to continue education. On return while the education is continuing, the equivalence procedure is carried out and the relevant secondary education enrolment and transfer provisions are applied.[1]
In this case, the former examination result document, the placement record, the information on the school before leaving for abroad and the education documents from abroad must be submitted together. The provision cannot be used as a general score-preservation rule for everyone who sat the examination but was not placed in the manner described. For which school and under what conditions the protected score will be used in a transfer is assessed separately; unconditional admission to a particular school cannot be concluded.
Preparatory class and previous education in a foreign language
Proficiency examination for moving to the 9th grade without a preparatory year
Having studied in a foreign language does not by itself provide exemption from the preparatory class. Under Article 60/3 of the Secondary Education Institutions Regulation, the parent of a student who wishes to move to the 9th grade of the same school without attending the preparatory class applies in writing to the school administration 5 days before the proficiency examination. In the examination held in the first week of the school year, at least 70 points in each of the first foreign language and Preparatory Class Turkish Language and Literature courses is required.[6]
Foreign school report cards, language proficiency or information on the previous programme may be added to the file; it must be explained for which education or enrolment assessment they are relied on. Equivalence of previous education and the preparatory proficiency examination are not the same procedure. If a transfer is to be made during the year, the special transfer provisions of the school and of the grade to be entered also apply separately.
Transition period between preparatory and non-preparatory 9th grade
Article 38/6 of the Regulation allows transition between the preparatory class and the 9th grade of a school with no preparatory class, where the transfer conditions are met, without a proficiency examination until the last working day of October of the school year; after this month, transition between the said grades cannot be made. Transitions between schools with preparatory classes themselves, and from grades 9–12 of a school without preparatory classes to the same grades of a school with preparatory classes, are subject to the separate conditions in Article 38/6–7.[6]
For this reason, a general request to “skip the preparatory year” is not sufficient. The student’s current grade, the school and grade to which transfer is wanted, the score, the programme and the application date must be stated together. In particular, when applying after October, the time limits and examination conditions of the different kinds of transition must not be carried over from one to another.
Age, interruption of education and the student’s special needs
The age requirement must be read together with its exception
Article 21 of the Secondary Education Institutions Regulation, while regulating the general enrolment age, includes an exception for students who have not interrupted their education.[6] Whether a gap in the documents is really an interruption of education is therefore important. If the child continued education but the record was not transferred, the education chronology and the appearance in the system must be assessed together.
A definitive conclusion must not be reached merely from the date of birth. Likewise, a claim of actual attendance without documents must not be treated as an automatic age exception. The start and end dates of the education years, institutional letters and existing records enable this distinction to be made.
Custody, special education and language needs
The applicant’s authority as holder of custody or guardianship must be determined at the outset. For documents issued in a foreign language and for foreign court decisions, it must also be learned which verification is required for which procedure. A dispute within the family over the authority to sign must be prevented from creating an unexpected obstacle to the child’s education application.[6]
If there is a special education need, appropriate assessment and examination accommodations should also be added to the application. The 2026 level assessment guide contains provisions on cooperation with the RAM (guidance and research centre).[2] A student’s need for Turkish-language support must not be equated with a special education need; the request for appropriate support should be framed without needlessly labelling the student.
LGS accommodations and special education placement in secondary education must be kept apart
Under Articles 5.7, 7.7 and 8 of the 2026 LGS Guide, the accommodation for a regular (formal education) student is tracked through the school’s EK-2 notification and the MEBBİS-RAM record; the RAM’s record confirmation is sent to the school and appears on the accommodation entry document. The mere existence of a report in the STS file does not show that the LGS accommodation has also been processed. Extra time or reader support is determined according to the relevant requirement group of the guide.[3]
In placement, Article 1.4/d of the 2026 Preference Guide, for students who have completed the primary education programme and will continue through inclusion/integration, requires, in addition to a valid Disability Health Board Report or ÇÖZGER (the special needs assessment report), a Special Education Evaluation Board Report directed to the secondary education stage. Commission placement is arranged for the relevant local schools.[4] An examination accommodation report does not prove that the previous stage has been completed or that admission to the desired high school is unconditional. The time limits of the 2026 procedures must not be carried over to the following year’s application.
The 2026 implementation calendar and the 2027 LGS examination date
What time-limit risks does the 2026 placement period show?
The 2026 central examination applications were taken between 23 March and 10 April, and the examination was held on 13 June.[3] For the preference and commission stages, the July 2026 preference guide must be relied on. The dates in the supplementary calendar of the previously published examination guide are not the same as the later preference calendar.[4] [5]
| Stage in the 2026 practice | Relevant period | Matter to be followed in the file |
|---|---|---|
| LGS application | 23 March–10 April 2026 | Accuracy of the record information and school approval |
| Preferences | 13–27 July 2026 | Graduation, preference and the school record in the system |
| First and second transfer preferences | 5–7 and 10–12 August 2026 | Options after the first placement |
| Commission application for those not placed | 17–26 August 2026 | Vacant quota and the appropriate type of application |
| Completion of commission placements | 28 August 2026 | Checking the placement result and the enrolment |
As of the date of review of this article, these dates are data of a past period. For the application of a future year, the current guide and any amendment announcement must be examined. An equivalence application does not by itself extend the general examination or preference calendar. When the application file is being prepared, the education year, the examination year and the grade completed by the student should be shown on the same chart.
The 2027 examination day must be distinguished from the application and preference calendar
In the MEB announcement of 30 October 2026, it was stated that the central examination within the scope of the LGS for the 2026–2027 academic year will be held on Sunday, 13 June 2027.[11] This date is the current examination information to be relied on in following the enrolment and equivalence file of a student preparing for 2027.
The application, school approval, preference, placement and transfer days, on the other hand, must be recorded separately from their own announcements. The periods of 23 March–10 April or 13–27 July of the previous year cannot be used as application dates for 2027. In the file tracking chart, having beside each date the name and year of the source announcement and the date of any amendment prevents the old calendar from being carried over to the new application.
How should an application file be prepared when time is short?
Explaining the student’s situation on a single page
It is useful to place at the start of the file a short chronology showing the student’s current status: in which years the student studied where, in which grade the student appears in the system, the documents held, the procedure expected and the approaching final date. This work does not take the place of the legal application; it enables the authority that will decide to see the problem correctly.
| Subject of application | Information to be submitted first | Result to be clarified |
|---|---|---|
| Missing or wrong e-Okul record | Record printout, school letters, annual education documents | Which data will be corrected, and on what basis |
| Unclear equivalence result | Equivalence document and the documents assessed | The grade or stage that may be continued |
| Obstacle to the LGS application | Error screen, application date and the school’s reply | Acceptance of the application, or a reasoned refusal |
| Placement problem | Score, graduation, preference and enrolment information | The placement or transfer route to be applied |
| Inability to access a document | Requests made to the school and the replies received | Alternative verification or an appropriate assessment |
Writing the requests separately and in a traceable way
Instead of merely asking for “redress of our grievance”, the parent should state the missing procedure. The assessment of the document, the correction of the record, acceptance of the application in the system and an explanation of the measure that can be applied so that the student is not kept away from education may be separate requests. The submission date and the document number of each application should be kept.
An oral meeting is useful; but it must be understood from the written record which authority refused what. To the answer “the system does not allow it”, it should be asked whether the obstacle is technical, arises from a missing document or arises from legislation. A technical failure and a legal condition of acceptance must not be assessed on the same ground.
The annexes to the application should be numbered, and the year or procedure each annex relates to should be shown. If there has been a change of identity, the link between the old and new records is explained separately. When the current result is obtained, the family should not be content with receiving only the favourable letter; it should be seen that the active enrolment status of the school, the grade and the student is correctly reflected in the system. This last check is important to prevent a corrected equivalence document from remaining in the file without being applied.
The waiting period for a reply must not be confused with the limitation period for an action
Law No. 3071 regulates the giving of a reasoned reply on the outcome or course of an application.[10] One should not wait passively on this basis throughout an approaching examination date. In particular, in disputes over central and common examinations, the special ten-day litigation period under Article 20/B of the Administrative Procedure Law (İYUK) and the non-application of Article 11 must be taken into account. Not every enrolment or equivalence dispute is subject to the same procedure; the nature of the act and the date on which it was learned must be determined separately.[9]
How should a claim of the right to education be made concrete?
Article 42 of the Constitution guarantees the right to education; this guarantee does not mean that the required level of education and the admission conditions of schools will not be examined at all.[8] The legal application should show both the consequence of the child being kept away from education and how the missing procedure can be remedied.
The risk of the student losing a year, the application dates, the examination or preference stage that will be missed, the existing documents and the administration’s reply should be submitted together. Instead of a general account of grievance, it should be explained which wrong record is obstructing which educational opportunity. This method enables the application to be framed not merely as a good-faith request but as a review of the lawfulness of a specific act.
In the case of an administrative refusal, equivalence to the wrong grade or inaction, the scope of judicial protection is assessed separately. The filing of an action does not by itself stop the application calendar. The effects of delay and the interim protection that may be applied must be made concrete; the appropriate legal route must be chosen by examining the application conditions and the evidence in the file together. The details are explained in the article on objections to equivalence decisions and litigation routes.
Conclusion
The solution to an enrolment problem in the transition to high school is to bring together the documents that make the child’s past education visible and the correct administrative procedure. Equivalence, graduation, the LGS application and placement must be followed separately; an existing record that is wrong must not be confused with a complete absence of record. The 2026 level assessment rules contain concrete application possibilities, but they do not produce automatic grade-skipping or admission to a particular high school for all students.
The most effective preparation is to gather the school’s status, the education chronology, the identity and record history, the documents and the approaching calendar in the same file. In this way, both the options for the student to continue education can be determined and a sound basis can be built for the legal review of a refusal or delay.
Frequently Asked Questions
My child actually studied in the 8th grade but appears in the 6th grade in e-Okul. Can he or she enrol directly in high school?
A definitive result cannot be given on a claim of actual attendance alone. The education and achievement documents of the two years, the status of the school and the nature of the existing record must be examined. If the problem is data transfer, a record correction; if it is the assessment of foreign education, equivalence; and if the conditions are met, level assessment may come into question. It must be clarified that the previous stage has been completed for the transition to high school.[1] [4]
Does having sat the LGS prove that I have completed lower secondary school?
No. Applying for the examination, taking part in the examination and placement are different stages. In placement, the completion of lower secondary school and the enrolment conditions of the target school are assessed separately. Having an examination score does not by itself correct a wrong grade record or an unclear equivalence result.[3] [4]
Can a student continue attending school while the equivalence application is pending?
Under the conditions of Article 4/5 of the Equivalence Regulation, temporary attendance by a student arriving without an education document is regulated on the basis of the parent’s written declaration. The documents are required to be submitted within three months. The enrolment status under which the temporary attendance is conducted and how the final equivalence result will be followed must be determined in writing.[1]
Can a student with no e-Okul record at all apply for level assessment?
The 2026 guide covers persons who cannot submit an education document obtained in Türkiye and who are of compulsory primary education age with no e-Okul record. The application conditions are assessed by the equivalence centre. A person with a record in a former grade must not be assumed to fall automatically into the same group.[2]
Is equivalence to the 9th grade without an examination possible for every student?
No. Article 11.5 of the 2026 guide contains an assessment dependent on the written application of the parent or guardian for candidates who must sit the e-Exam for intermediate grades. This provision is not a general amnesty that eliminates all record problems, nor a right of admission to a high school that admits students by examination without an LGS score.[2]
Can an LGS application be made through the consulate for a school applying a foreign programme in Türkiye?
The special route in the guide is for those educated at schools abroad that are not registered in e-Okul. A school in Türkiye applying a foreign language or foreign programme does not by itself create this application category. The place of education and the status of the institution must be correctly determined.[3]
Can a student who does not sit the LGS not be placed in any high school?
No. Schools that admit students by central examination are separate from local placement and other admission routes. For a student who does not sit the examination, other options are assessed in line with the enrolment conditions and the annual guide. However, these options do not by themselves remedy a deficiency in equivalence or graduation.[4] [5]
Does mere pre-registration at a private school affect the choice of a state school?
It may. The 2026 guide regulates the relationship of candidate registration and pre-registration procedures with the preference screen as well. One should not rely on the name of the procedure; the student’s status in the system and, where necessary, whether the cancellation of the registration has been completed should be checked.[4]
If the grade in the equivalence document differs from the grade in the school system, where should the application be made?
First the source of the difference must be determined. If the equivalence document is correct but has not been applied in the system, application is requested from the school and the relevant national education unit. If the equivalence assessment itself is wrong, an application to the equivalence centre is required. Where there are two different problems on the same papers, the requests must be framed separately.[1] [6]
If a student has reached the age of 18, is formal high school enrolment definitely impossible?
No unconditional result can be reached. The general age rule in the Regulation must be read together with the exception for students who have not interrupted their education. The continuity of education and the real nature of the periods that appear to lack documents must be investigated. The other enrolment conditions also apply separately.[6]
Once the general preference period has passed, do all application routes end?
The same result does not arise in every file. The transfer and commission routes and the conditions arranged for students who completed the 8th grade in previous years must be examined. However, a later application possibility does not automatically restore a central examination or preference right that was missed.[4] [6]
Does applying to CİMER or the MEB stop the litigation period?
The name of the application does not by itself have such a consequence. In the special procedure relating to central and common examinations, the ten-day litigation period and the fact that an administrative application does not stop this period must be specifically considered. A single time-limit calculation must not be made without separately determining the legal nature of equivalence, enrolment and placement procedures.[9]
Can I use the 2026 dates for next year’s LGS application?
No. The examination, preference, transfer and commission calendar of each year must be checked separately. Even within the same year, changes may be made by a later guide. The 2026 dates in this article are explanatory data of a past period; they are not an announcement of the application or placement calendar for 2027.[3] [4] [5]
On what date will the central examination within the scope of the 2027 LGS be held?
According to the official announcement of the MEB dated 30 October 2026, the examination will be held on Sunday, 13 June 2027. The application, preference and transfer dates must be followed separately from the examination day. The date ranges in the 2026 guide cannot be used for the 2027 application; the official guide of the relevant year and any later amendment announcements are the basis.[11]
Must a student who comes from abroad during the school year wait for the summer?
No such result can be drawn for every student. Article 23/1 of the Regulation provides that the commission’s term of duty runs until the end of the following school year. For a Turkish-citizen student, Article 27 applies, and for a foreign student, Article 29 and the relevant enrolment conditions are examined. The monthly or weekly processing calendar of an ordinary transfer must not be confused with the route specific to arrival from abroad.[6]
I went abroad after being placed with an LGS score; is my score protected?
Article 8/3 of the Equivalence Regulation protects the score right of a student who, after being placed in a school through a central examination score, goes abroad to continue education. While the education continues, equivalence and the relevant enrolment/transfer procedures are carried out on return. The earlier examination and placement documents must be submitted; the provision must not be interpreted as a right of unconditional enrolment in the desired school.[1]
Does education in French, German or another language automatically give exemption from the preparatory class?
No. For the move to the 9th grade without attending preparatory class under Article 60/3 of the Regulation, the parent’s application and a proficiency examination are required. For the examination in the first week, the application is made 5 days beforehand; at least 70 points are required separately in the first foreign language and in Preparatory Class Turkish Language and Literature. The other relevant provisions are examined separately for a move by transfer.[6]
Can a student move from a preparatory class to the 9th grade of a school without a preparatory class at any time during the year?
This transition route under Article 38/6 of the Regulation can be used, where the transfer conditions are met, until the last working day of October of the school year. After October, transition between the said grades cannot be made. The special conditions for other transfers, such as those between schools with preparatory classes or between the same grade levels, must be assessed separately.[6]
Can the STS score be written in place of missing 6th and 7th grade marks?
Article 14.4 of the STS Guide regulates what score the achievement average will be shown as in the equivalence document; it contains no rule that the same score is to be written for each past grade. The document for each year, the grading scale, the competent assessment and the system value must be checked. The basis of the calculation applied for the missing year should be separately requested; the family must not create an official mark record on its own assumption.[2] [5] [6]
Does the RAM assessment obtained for the STS automatically provide the LGS accommodation?
No. For the LGS, the school’s EK-2 notification, the MEBBİS-RAM record and the accommodation in the examination entry document must be verified separately. The recording processes of the two procedures are separate.[2] [3]
Does the school appearing in the placement result resolve all document problems?
No. The automatic registration within the scope of the guide and the accuracy of past education documents are separate matters. If a deficiency is notified later, the active record, the equivalence result and the nature of the requested document must be examined together.[4]
Sources and legal bases
- Ministry of National Education Equivalence Regulation (Millî Eğitim Bakanlığı Denklik Yönetmeliği), 9 July 2024, Official Gazette No. 32597, in particular Articles 1, 4–6, 8/3 and 11–15. PDF copy published by the MEB.
- TTKB, Equivalence Level Assessment e-Exam Application and Implementation Guide 2026, in particular Articles 1.1, 4, 11.5, 13–15.
- MEB, Central Examination Application and Implementation Guide for Secondary Education Institutions Admitting Students by Examination 2026, in particular the application conditions, application procedures, the examination accommodations in Articles 5.7–5.12, 7.7 and 8, and the duties of school principals.
- MEB, Transition to Secondary Education Preference and Placement Guide 2026, in particular the calendar, the first part and the enrolment and special education placement in Article 1.4/c–d.
- MEB, 2026 Transition to Secondary Education Preference and Placement Guide Published, 10 July 2026.
- Ministry of National Education Secondary Education Institutions Regulation (Millî Eğitim Bakanlığı Ortaöğretim Kurumları Yönetmeliği), consolidated text on the official public website, in particular Articles 21, 23, 27, 29, 34, 38 and 60; first published 7 September 2013, Official Gazette No. 28758.
- MEB e-Denklik System, Frequently Asked Questions, in particular the explanations on education documents and on documenting grade promotion. For examination provisions the current 2026 guide has been relied on.
- Constitution of the Republic of Türkiye, official legislation page of the Constitutional Court, in particular Article 42.
- TBMM, Article 96 of Law No. 6552 and Article 20/B added to the İYUK; for application, also Article 15.2 of the 2026 Equivalence Level Assessment Guide. The general provisions on actions and applications must be assessed separately according to the nature of the particular act.
- Law No. 3071 on the Exercise of the Right of Petition (3071 sayılı Dilekçe Hakkının Kullanılmasına Dair Kanun), official MEB publication, in particular Article 7.
- MEB, Date of the Central Examination within the Scope of the LGS Announced, 30 October 2026; date of the 2027 LGS central examination: 13 June 2027.
- MEB, Equivalence Opportunity for Transfer from Unlicensed Foreign Schools to Turkish Schools, 17 August 2026; transfer application from an intermediate grade, the final application time and the limit of the practice.