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Hong Kong admissions intelPublished 2026-10-15

Not in a Participating Primary? Collect the S1 Form at the EDB from 3 December

The EDB states that during office hours from 3 December 2026 to 18 January 2027, parents must bring originals and copies of three supporting documents to the School Places Allocation Section to obtain the application form.

Gradepath@BeBuddiDigital editor

Key date2027-01-18

Official notice

In section B of the same EDB page, “students not participating in the Secondary School Places Allocation” (including newly arrived children and Primary 6 pupils at non-participating schools) must, during office hours between 3 December 2026 and 18 January 2027, bring the originals and copies of three supplementary documents — the student’s identity document, birth certificate, and proof of graduation from or attendance at the highest primary level — to the School Places Allocation Section; eligible applicants receive the S1 Discretionary Place Application Form and the activation code for the S1 Allocation e-Platform. From 4 to 18 January 2027 they submit the form and required documents to secondary schools directly; parents registered on the e-Platform with iAM Smart+ binding may also submit online. The same page adds that during May to August 2027 parents may apply to the Section for subsidised S1 places allocated by the EDB for the 2027/28 school year, with results for the first batch announced on 6 July 2027, the second batch in late July and the third in mid-August, followed by individual notification. Office hours are listed as Monday to Friday 8:30am–1:00pm and 2:00pm–6:00pm, closed weekends and public holidays.

Gradepath analysis

This section is written for families who do not travel through the standard primary school route — newly arrived children and Primary 6 pupils at non-participating schools. Two traps recur. First, this route starts at the EDB School Places Allocation Section, not at the child’s primary school; forms and e-Platform activation codes are only issued from 3 December, considerably later than most families assume, so waiting for the school to tell you means starting behind. Second, the EDB asks for originals and copies of three documents; missing one means another trip, and the Section only serves 8:30am–6:00pm on weekdays with a 1–2pm break, closed at weekends — a mistake costs a full working day. There is also a lesser-known back door: even if both allocation stages are missed, the EDB accepts applications from May to August 2027 for government-allocated subsidised S1 places, with results in three batches on 6 July, late July and mid-August. Securing a place as late as mid-August is therefore possible, but these are leftover places allocated after central allocation, so choice is far narrower than in January.

Gradepath@BeBuddi action step

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Official source：教育局中學學位分配辦法 ↗

Dates, quotas and admission arrangements follow official and school announcements; the analysis here is general information and is not individual admissions or professional advice.

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