Schooling Abroad: International, Local or Japanese School?

Families moving abroad from Japan usually choose between three kinds of school: an international school, a local public school, or a Japanese school (Nihonjin Gakko 日本人学校). Each shapes the child’s language, the family budget and the route back into Japanese education, and because Japan’s duty of school attendance does not follow the child abroad, the choice rests with the parents. This guide compares the three paths and the official rules that decide whether a child can later re-enter Japanese schools and universities.

Overview & Eligibility Framework

Why Japan’s Compulsory Education Rules Do Not Follow You Abroad

The Ministry of Education (MEXT) says Article 26 of the Constitution works territorially. In its overseas education Q&A, MEXT describes Article 26 as a provision that “operates territorially” (属地的に働く規定) and says it “does not directly apply” to Japanese children living abroad.¹ Support for those children is given instead as a “policy consideration” (政策上の配慮) in the spirit of the Constitution, so that they can receive education close to compulsory education at low cost.¹

The statutory duty of school attendance stops at the border too. MEXT’s school enrolment Q&A states that the duty under Article 17 of the School Education Act (Gakko Kyoiku Ho 学校教育法) is imposed on Japanese nationals living in Japan and does not apply to Japanese nationals living abroad.² The duty applies again from the moment the family returns, and guardians of dual nationals bear it as well.²

What happens to Child Allowance after the move is covered in the guides to expat assignments and to the moving-out notification.

What the Government Does Provide: MEXT Support and the 2022 Act

MEXT lists its support for Japanese children abroad in its Q&A: free compulsory-education textbooks, teachers dispatched to overseas educational facilities, teaching-material subsidies and support for schools in Japan that receive returnees.¹ The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) subsidises school building rent and the fees of locally hired instructors.¹

Most of this support targets elementary and junior high divisions. MEXT says support for the kindergarten and high school stages “is difficult at present” (現状では難しい).¹ Two exceptions now exist: a MEXT-subsidised teaching-materials scheme has covered high school divisions since FY2024, and support equivalent to Japan’s high school tuition aid goes to high school students at six full-time facilities abroad, for which the FY2026 budget abolishes the income cap and raises the ceiling to ¥457,200 (as of October 2026).³⁴⁵

The 2022 Act put overseas schooling on a statutory footing. The Act on the Promotion of Education at Overseas Educational Facilities (在外教育施設における教育の振興に関する法律, Act No. 73 of 2022) was promulgated and took effect on 17 June 2022, setting basic principles and state responsibilities; a basic policy under it followed in April 2023.⁶

Free Japanese textbooks are distributed through a foundation. Japan Overseas Educational Services (海外子女教育振興財団, JOES), a public interest incorporated foundation rather than a government body, distributes them at MEXT’s request and runs a MEXT-subsidised correspondence course.¹⁷

Who This Guide Covers (and What Is Covered Elsewhere)

This guide covers school choice for children aged roughly 3 to 18 and the Japanese rules that apply when they come back. Japanese supplementary schools around the world, dual citizenship for Japanese children, Japanese embassies and Tabi-Reg, study abroad planning and scholarships for university-level study, and expat assignments versus local hire each have their own guides, and the destination guides cover country school systems.

The Three Educational Pathways: International, Local Public, and Nihonjin Gakko

How the Three Models Differ at a Glance

Japanese schools are full-time facilities that aim to provide education equivalent to Japan’s elementary and junior high schools, and in a few cases high school.⁸ They are generally founded by the local Japanese association, run by a committee of association, company and parent representatives, and follow the domestic Course of Study (Gakushu Shido Yoryo 学習指導要領).⁸ A separate group, private overseas facilities (私立在外教育施設), are full-time schools set up abroad by Japanese school corporations.⁸

International schools are not certified by Japan, so their graduates gain Japanese recognition only through the university entrance routes described below.⁹ Local public schools are governed by the destination’s law, and access often depends on the child’s immigration status.¹⁰¹¹ MEXT describes part-time supplementary schools as serving children who attend these local or international schools.⁸

Decision Matrix

Criterion	International school	Local public school	Nihonjin Gakko
Language of instruction	Depends on curriculum; IB Diploma in principle English, French or Spanish, some subjects in Japanese¹²	Destination’s language	Japanese⁸
Curriculum owner	IB, Cambridge International, College Board or a national system¹²¹³¹⁴	Destination education authority	MEXT Course of Study⁸
Typical age range	IB programmes span ages 3 to 19¹²; varies by school	Destination’s school stages	Mostly elementary and junior high; high school at a few facilities¹⁵⁸
Japanese recognition	12-year rule, accreditation route or designated qualification (Article 150)¹⁶⁹	9-year rule (Article 95) or 12-year rule (Article 150)¹⁶	Certified course (Article 95 item 2, Article 150 item 2)¹⁶
Fee basis	Fee-paying; varies by school	Free or fee-paying depending on destination and visa¹⁰¹⁷¹⁸	Fees set by each school; MEXT teachers and MOFA rent subsidies¹
Admission	Set by each school	Destination rules, such as Singapore’s AEIS test¹⁹	Set by each school; some admit non-Japanese children⁸²⁰
Language support	Varies by school	Varies by destination and school²¹	Many teach English or the local language⁸
Return to Japanese elementary or junior high	Placement by age²²²	Placement by age²²²	Placement by age²²²

International School Curricula: IB vs. British vs. American

International Baccalaureate: PYP, MYP, DP and CP

The International Baccalaureate (IB) offers four programmes. According to MEXT’s IB Education Promotion Consortium, the Primary Years Programme (PYP) covers ages 3 to 12, the Middle Years Programme (MYP) 11 to 16, and the Diploma Programme (DP) and Career-related Programme (CP) 16 to 19.¹² The DP is a two-year curriculum ending in final examinations, taught in principle in English, French or Spanish, with some subjects available in Japanese through the Dual Language Diploma Programme (DLDP).¹²

Japan recognises the IB Diploma by ministerial notice. Holders are designated by MEXT Notice No. 47 of 1948 (昭和23年文部省告示第47号) as qualified for university entrance under Article 150 item 4 of the School Education Act Enforcement Regulations (学校教育法施行規則).¹⁶⁹ A 2019 amendment removed the earlier condition that holders be 18 or older.²³

British Curriculum: IGCSE and A Levels

Cambridge International’s own programme description presents the IGCSE as a qualification for 14 to 16 year olds, with standards aligned to England’s GCSE.¹³ Its A Level page explains that some subjects can be started as an AS Level and extended to a full A Level.²⁴

GCE A Level and International A Level holders are also designated under Notice No. 47. GCE A Level was added in 2016 with an age-18 condition, which was removed in 2019.⁹²³ MEXT sets no national minimum number of A Level subjects; required subjects and grades are a question for each university.²⁵

American Curriculum: High School Diploma and AP

College Board’s own description presents Advanced Placement (AP) as college-level courses and exams taken in high school, with scores that may earn US college credit or placement.¹⁴ AP is not one of the MEXT-designated qualifications.⁹

A US high school diploma counts through the 12-year rule. Article 150 item 1 recognises anyone who completed a 12-year course of school education in a foreign country.¹⁶ MEXT reads this as completing the 12th year of a country’s formal school education and tells applicants to check with the relevant embassy whether a given course counts.⁹

Accreditation and Recognition: What Japan Actually Checks

Japan checks years of schooling, certification or a designated qualification, not a school’s reputation. MEXT also recognises graduates of a 12-year course at a school accredited by WASC, CIS, ACSI, NEASC, Cognia or COBIS, and advises asking those bodies whether a particular school is accredited.⁹²⁶ Since a 2016 amendment, this accreditation route covers accredited international schools abroad, not only those in Japan.²⁷²³

Countries with fewer than 12 years of schooling need an extra step. A graduate of an 11-year system qualifies after also completing a MEXT-designated preparatory course (Junbi Kyoiku Katei 準備教育課程) or another course MEXT has designated.⁹ As a fallback, a university may admit applicants aged 18 or over through individual review under Article 150 item 7, valid only for that university.¹⁶²⁷

flowchart TD
    A["Child returns to Japan for high school or university"] --> B{"Which stage?"}
    B -->|"High school"| C{"9 years of schooling abroad?"}
    C -->|"Yes"| D["Article 95 item 1: qualified"]
    C -->|"No"| E{"Certified junior high course abroad?"}
    E -->|"Yes"| F["Article 95 item 2: qualified"]
    E -->|"No"| G["Ask the high school about individual recognition (Article 95 item 5)"]
    B -->|"University"| H{"12 years of formal schooling abroad?"}
    H -->|"Yes"| I["Article 150 item 1: qualified"]
    H -->|"No"| J{"Certified high school course, designated qualification or accredited school?"}
    J -->|"Yes"| K["Article 150 item 2 or item 4: qualified"]
    J -->|"No"| L["Preparatory course, or university individual review at 18 (Article 150 item 7)"]
    D --> M["Then check the school's own returnee selection rules"]
    F --> M
    I --> M
    K --> M

Local Public Schooling: Immersion, Access Rules and Costs

Who Can Enrol: Access Depends on the Parent’s Visa

Access to local public schools depends on immigration status, not only on where you live. The examples below are illustrative (as of October 2026); country detail belongs in the destination guides.

United States: Under 8 USC 1184(m), F-1 student status cannot be granted for study at a public elementary school, and public secondary study is limited to 12 months in total with reimbursement of the full unsubsidised per-capita cost.¹⁰ The Department of Homeland Security’s Study in the States site adds that a minor F-2 dependant of an F-1 student may attend public K-12 school without extra permission (as of October 2026).²⁸ These limits apply when the child is the F-1 student; for other statuses, ask the school district.

United Kingdom (England): The Child Student visa is for ages 4 to 17 studying at an independent school (fee £558 from outside the UK, plus the healthcare surcharge, as of October 2026).²⁹ The Department for Education says children can usually attend school as dependants of a parent who has settled status or is in the UK on a work or student visa, while Child Student visa holders cannot lawfully study at a state-funded school.¹¹ State-funded schools must not check immigration status as a precondition for admission; that check is the parents’ responsibility.¹¹

Singapore: International students enter Ministry of Education (MOE) schools through the Admissions Exercise for International Students (AEIS) test for Primary 2 to 5 and Secondary 1 to 3, starting in January, and MOE states that admission is not guaranteed (as of October 2026).¹⁹ For two named schools that MOE describes as having fees similar to mainstream secondary schools, it lists a maximum monthly school fee of S$2,211.80 for non-ASEAN international students, against S$25 for citizens, for 2026 and 2027 (as of October 2026).¹⁷ Japan is not an ASEAN member, so Japanese children admitted as international students pay the non-ASEAN rate.

Australia (New South Wales): The NSW Department of Education says most temporary resident students pay an application fee and a tuition fee that depends on the visa subclass, with some subclasses exempt (as of October 2026).¹⁸ A 2024 NSW Government announcement waived tuition for children of subclass 482 visa holders in regional NSW from Term 1 2025, fees it said had previously cost some visa holders up to A$7,400 a year.³⁰ Current fee amounts could not be verified for this guide.

Language Support in Local Schools (EAL / ESL)

Support for children learning the school language varies by destination and school. As one official example, the Ontario Ministry of Education notes that most English language learners develop oral proficiency quickly in a supportive environment, but those with everyday fluency “will nevertheless require instructional scaffolding to meet curriculum expectations”.²¹ Ask each school how it assesses new arrivals and what English as an Additional Language (EAL) or ESL support it provides.

Grade Placement and School-Year Differences

Japan’s elementary school year runs from 1 April to 31 March (Enforcement Regulations Article 59), while Singapore’s AEIS entrants, for example, start in January.¹⁶¹⁹ Placement abroad follows each destination’s own age rules, so a child can end up in a different year group from Japanese peers of the same age.

On return, Japanese public schools place children by age. MEXT says returning children are placed “in principle according to their age” (原則として、その年齢に応じ), with temporary placement in a lower grade possible while the child adapts.² Foreign children may also be placed in a lower grade temporarily or formally.²²

Nihonjin Gakko: MEXT-Certified Japanese Schooling Abroad

What a Nihonjin Gakko Is and Where They Exist

The first Japanese school opened in Bangkok in 1956.⁸ As of 1 April 2026, MEXT counted 90 Japanese schools in 47 countries and 1 region, 40 of them in Asia, plus 6 private overseas facilities in 4 countries (as of October 2026).¹⁵

Enrolment is concentrated in Asia. On 15 April 2025, 15,680 compulsory-stage children on long-term stays attended Japanese schools, 12,414 (79.2%) of them in Asia (as of October 2026).³¹

Curriculum Continuity, Japanese Textbooks and Dispatched Teachers

Japanese schools follow the domestic Course of Study and use domestic textbooks.⁸ Many also teach local studies, run exchanges with local schools and offer English or local-language lessons with native-speaker instructors.⁸ In FY2025, MEXT dispatched 1,319 teachers to Japanese and supplementary schools (reference date 15 April 2025, as of October 2026).³¹

Limits: Compulsory Stage Only, Admission Rules and Fees

Most Japanese schools stop at junior high. MEXT’s list of certified or designated facilities of 1 April 2026 includes high school courses at Rikkyo School in England, Teikyo School United Kingdom, Kumon Leysin in Switzerland (スイス公文学園), Waseda Shibuya Singapore and Keio Academy of New York, and the Shanghai Japanese School has run a high school division since 2011 (as of October 2026).¹⁵⁸ These are the six facilities covered by the high school tuition support described above.⁵

Fees and admission rules are set by each school. MEXT’s Q&A does not state a fee level, and MEXT notes that some schools run “international classes” (国際学級) that accept foreign children.¹⁸ As a dated example, the Hanoi Japanese School’s own admission page (dated November 2022) requires Japanese nationality in principle but admits non-nationals with at least 2 years of prior Japanese-medium schooling who can follow lessons in Japanese, at a higher entrance fee.²⁰

Completing a certified junior high course qualifies a child to apply to Japanese high schools under Article 95 item 2, and MEXT states that graduates of a certified high school division qualify for university entrance.¹⁵⁸¹⁶

Navigating the Language Transition: Conversational vs. Academic Language

Why Everyday Fluency Comes Before Classroom Language

MEXT distinguishes two kinds of language ability. Its guide on receiving foreign pupils (外国人児童生徒受入れの手引, revised March 2019) describes conversational ability (生活言語能力) as everyday one-to-one talk, and academic language ability (学習言語能力) as the language used to obtain, analyse and report information in lessons.³² Conversational language is partly picked up in daily life, but academic language, MEXT says, needs planned support.³²

MEXT gives no timeframe for either, and no official source found gives one for conversational fluency. The one official figure found comes from Canada: the Ontario Ministry of Education says research shows it takes five to seven years for most English language learners to catch up with English-speaking peers in using English for academic purposes.²¹ That figure describes English learners in Ontario schools, not every child or language, and a child who chats easily with classmates may still need support with classroom language.

Keeping Japanese Alive: The Other Half of the Transition

The language transition runs both ways. MEXT’s FY2025 survey (reference date 1 May 2025, public schools only) counted 11,446 Japanese-national pupils needing Japanese instruction, a group that includes returnees as well as, for example, children of international families (as of October 2026).³³ MEXT’s Course of Study also asks schools to support the adaptation of children returning from abroad.³³

Supplementary schools exist for this combination and are covered in the guide to Japanese supplementary schools around the world.³⁴⁸ Learning methods for the new language before departure are covered in the guide to foreign language preparation.

Financial Planning: Tuition, Capital Levies and Other Fees

How International School Fees Are Structured

International school fee schedules can include several components. Ask for the full published schedule and check each item:

Application or assessment fee, and enrolment or entrance fee.
Annual tuition.
Capital levy, building fund, debenture or nomination rights.
Transport, meals, uniforms, trips and external examination entries (such as IB or IGCSE).

Hong Kong shows how one regulator treats capital charges. Its Education Bureau (EDB) treats capital levies, debentures and nomination rights fees as “other charges”, and under regulation 61(1) of the Education Regulations a private school may not collect money beyond its certified fees without prior approval.³⁵ Approvals are normally valid for six school years, and private school fee revisions also need EDB approval.³⁵

Who Pays: Employer Packages vs. Self-Funded Families

Employer school allowances are company policy; assignees should confirm in writing what the package covers, and the guide to expat assignments versus local hire compares packages. Self-funded families pay directly, so billing currency, payment schedule and refund rules matter as much as headline tuition; the gift-tax point on relatives funding education is covered in the scholarships guide.

Budgeting Checklist Before You Sign

Get the fee schedule for this and next school year in writing.
Check which fees are refundable if the assignment ends early or the visa is refused.
Ask whether deposits are credited against tuition, which currency is billed, and whether any capital levy or debenture is returned when the child leaves.

Future Re-entry Planning: Returning to Japanese Schools and Universities

Returning to Elementary or Junior High School

Japanese-national children are enrolled through the resident register. After the moving-in notification, the board of education compiles the school-age register (Gakureibo 学齢簿) from the resident register and notifies the family of the designated school and transfer date.¹² Foreign-national children “can obtain admission permission from the municipal board of education” where they live.¹

Children without a resident record can still attend. A child who actually lives in a municipality can enter a public school with the board’s permission.¹ Short trial enrolment (Taiken Nyugaku 体験入学) during a temporary stay is decided case by case by the board or school, depending on its capacity.¹

High School Entrance: Qualification and Returnee Quotas

Two separate layers decide high school entry. Article 95 sets who may apply at all: nine years of schooling abroad (item 1), a certified junior high course abroad (item 2), MEXT designation (item 3) or individual recognition by the high school (item 5).¹⁶ Returnee selection is a second layer set by each prefecture and school, following a 1988 Ministry of Education notice on expanding returnee admission opportunities at high schools.¹³⁶

Prefectural practice varies widely. MEXT’s FY2025 survey found 22 prefectures with special quotas for returnees, 18 that reduce test subjects, 4 that hold no academic test and 32 that use other measures such as furigana, dictionaries, extra time or a separate room (as of October 2026).³³

Tokyo shows how detailed the conditions can be. For April 2027 entry, the Tokyo Metropolitan Board of Education’s returnee selection at four metropolitan high schools requires Japanese nationality, residence in Tokyo with a guardian, and time abroad accompanying a guardian (as of October 2026).³⁷ It also links the length of continuous time abroad to the time since return, with some deemed extensions for recent returnees:³⁷

Continuous time abroad	Must enter within
2 years to under 3 years	1 year of the end of the stay
3 years to under 4 years	2 years of the end of the stay
4 years or more	3 years of the end of the stay

Applicants sit Japanese (including an essay), mathematics and English plus an interview, with online applications from 18 December 2026 to 4 February 2027 and the test on 15 February 2027 (as of October 2026).³⁷

University Entrance: Article 150 and Returnee Selection

Article 150 decides eligibility before any returnee quota applies. A child qualifies through 12 years of schooling abroad (item 1), a certified overseas high school course (item 2), MEXT designation (item 4), which includes the designated qualifications and the accredited-school route, or a university’s individual review at age 18 (item 7).¹⁶⁹ The qualifications designated under MEXT Notice No. 47 of 1948 are the IB Diploma, Abitur, French Baccalauréat, GCE A Level, International A Level and European Baccalaureate.⁹

MEXT encourages lighter exams for returnees but leaves the conditions to universities. Its admission guidelines for 2027 entry say differences in overseas education justify exempting returnees from academic tests or lightening the burden, and free returnee exams from the general calendar (as of October 2026).³⁸ The guidelines do not define who counts as a returnee, so each university sets its own conditions.³⁸

Two university-specific guides show common patterns (as of October 2026). Kyushu University’s 2026 entry guide limits returnee selection to Japanese nationals and Japanese permanent residents who lived abroad with a guardian, and generally requires recent completion of 12 years of schooling with at least 2 consecutive foreign years including the final year, or a designated qualification or accredited-school course obtained abroad recently.²⁵ Gakushuin University’s 2027 guide accepts Japanese nationals and permanent or special permanent residents, with conditions such as 2 or more consecutive grades abroad including the final grade.³⁹

Years at a Japanese-curriculum school abroad may not count. Kyushu’s guide states that time at overseas schools following Japan’s School Education Act does not count as foreign schooling, and asks graduates of international or American schools to enquire early.²⁵

Step-by-Step Administrative Procedure & Timeline

These milestones are planning guidance, not legal deadlines; application dates vary by school.

T-12 to T-6 months: choose the pathway

Match the pathway to the expected length of stay and the likely stage of return.
Check which visa the child will hold and what it allows in local public schools.
Contact shortlisted schools about applications, assessments and waitlists.

T-6 to T-3 months: records and textbooks

Ask the current Japanese school what records it can issue, such as report cards or an enrolment certificate.
For Japanese-national children of compulsory school age, obtain the school’s textbook supply certificate (転学児童生徒教科用図書給与証明書) and apply to JOES, which accepts applications from 2 months before departure (as of October 2026).⁴⁰⁷

T-3 months to departure: deregistration

File the moving-out notification and complete school withdrawal; see the guide to the moving-out notification.

Arrival: enrolment

Complete enrolment, placement tests and any language assessment.
Japanese nationals should register their overseas residence with the embassy or consulate; see the guide to Japanese embassies and Tabi-Reg.

1 to 2 years before returning: re-entry check

Confirm the child’s qualification under Article 95 or Article 150.¹⁶
Read the target school’s or university’s current returnee guide and check the years-abroad and time-since-return windows.³⁷²⁵

Japanese Citizens vs. Foreign Residents: Critical Distinctions

Point	Japanese-national children	Foreign-national children
Duty of school attendance in Japan	Applies again on return, including to dual nationals²	Does not apply; boards should still track and guide them²²
Enrolment on return	Through the resident register¹	By permission of the municipal board¹
Free Japanese textbooks abroad	Eligible (dual nationals included)⁴⁰	Not eligible in principle⁴⁰⁷
Tokyo returnee high school selection	Eligible if conditions met³⁷	Not eligible; separate track for students needing Japanese instruction³⁷
University returnee routes	Eligible if conditions met²⁵³⁹	Permanent residents accepted in some guides²⁵³⁹

Japanese-National Children

MEXT support is designed for Japanese children abroad. Free textbooks require Japanese nationality, include dual nationals and exclude children who plan to settle permanently abroad (as of October 2026).⁴⁰⁷ The nationality choice itself is covered in the guide to dual citizenship for Japanese children.

Foreign-National Children of Residents of Japan

Foreign children are not subject to Japan’s duty of school attendance. MEXT’s guideline, revised on 28 August 2026, cites School Education Act Article 16 and related provisions for this point, but asks boards of education to keep an equivalent register and send families enrolment guidance.²²

Returnee routes are narrower for foreign nationals. Tokyo’s separate track for students needing Japanese instruction is open regardless of nationality to those who completed nine years of schooling abroad or have been in Japan in principle 3 years or less (as of October 2026).³⁷ Both university guides cited above accept permanent residents, as does the FY2026 high school tuition support abroad (as of October 2026).²⁵³⁹⁵

Whether the family can come back on the same status of residence depends on re-entry permits, covered in the guide to departure rules for Japanese citizens and foreign residents.

Common Pitfalls & Regulatory Compliance Risks

Assuming local public school is free for everyone: US F-1 limits, the UK Child Student visa, Singapore fees and NSW visa-based fees show otherwise.¹⁰²⁹¹⁷¹⁸
Assuming a Nihonjin Gakko runs to age 18: most stop at junior high.¹¹⁵⁵
Treating returnee quotas as guaranteed: time-since-return and years-abroad rules can rule a child out.³⁷²⁵³⁹
Skipping the Article 150 check: an 11-year system needs an extra course, and AP is not a designated qualification.⁹
Confusing conversational fluency with academic readiness.³²²¹
Relying on unsourced fee ranges instead of the school’s own schedule and levy terms.³⁵

References & Official Sources

MEXT (文部科学省), CLARINET “Q&A” (Q1 to Q12), accessed October 2026, https://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/shotou/clarinet/004/005.htm ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶
MEXT, 就学事務Q&A 7「外国から帰国した学齢児童生徒の就学手続について」, accessed October 2026, https://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/shotou/shugaku/detail/1422243.htm ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸
MEXT, 海外で学ぶ日本の子供たち（2026年度版）施策の紹介 (teaching-materials subsidy, “2024年度から高等部も補助対象”; high school support), May 2026, https://www.mext.go.jp/content/20260515-mxt_kyokoku-100002004_4.pdf ↩
Japan Overseas Educational Services (public interest foundation), 在外教育施設教材等整備（文部科学省補助）, accessed October 2026, https://www.joes.or.jp/zaigai/seibi ↩
MEXT, 在外教育施設の高校生への就学支援 (FY2026 budget sheet: six facilities, income cap abolished, ceiling ¥457,200, permanent and special permanent residents added), April 2026, https://www.mext.go.jp/content/20260408-mxt_shuukyo03-100002595_6.pdf ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴
e-Gov, 在外教育施設における教育の振興に関する法律 (令和4年法律第73号), Articles 1 and 2, law ID 504AC1000000073, https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/504AC1000000073 ; MEXT, 在外教育施設における教育の振興に関する法律・基本方針について, https://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/shotou/clarinet/mext_01928.html ↩
Japan Overseas Educational Services (公益財団法人海外子女教育振興財団, a public interest foundation; not a government body), 日本の教科書の無償配付, accessed October 2026, https://www.joes.or.jp/kojin/kyokasho ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴
MEXT, 在外教育施設の概要 (figures as of 15 April 2024), accessed October 2026, https://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/shotou/clarinet/002/002.htm ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶
MEXT, 大学入学資格について (2024年6月時点), accessed October 2026, https://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/koutou/shikaku/07111314.htm ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹
United States Code, 8 U.S.C. 1184(m) “Nonimmigrant elementary and secondary school students”, official text: https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title8-section1184&num=0&edition=prelim (text read via the Cornell LII mirror, https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/8/1184) ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴
GOV.UK (Department for Education), Schools admissions: applications from overseas children (last updated 28 March 2024), https://www.gov.uk/guidance/schools-admissions-applications-from-overseas-children ↩ ↩² ↩³
MEXT IB Education Promotion Consortium (文部科学省IB教育推進コンソーシアム), IBについて (programme age bands, DLDP), accessed October 2026, https://ibconsortium.mext.go.jp/about-ib/ ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵
Cambridge International Education (programme body, own description), Cambridge IGCSE, accessed October 2026, https://www.cambridgeinternational.org/programmes-and-qualifications/cambridge-upper-secondary/cambridge-igcse/ ↩ ↩²
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