International school consultations cover fees and visas in detail but rarely mention Korean enrolment records. Go abroad without knowing this and problems arise on return — all the more so at compulsory education ages.

The premise of compulsory education

Primary and middle school are compulsory. So not sending a child requires a legal procedure. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act provides for exemption or deferral of the duty to attend.

The procedure runs like this. The guardian applies to the head of the school, and the head decides after review by the compulsory education management committee. Heads of primary and middle schools may decide on exemption or deferral only where there is illness or another unavoidable reason.

In other words it is not that "going abroad is automatically processed" — the reason has to be accepted.

Here is the crux — the limits on self-funded primary study abroad

The most misunderstood point. Self-funded study abroad by a primary school pupil is not recognised in principle.

The recognised cases are limited: a child or grandchild of a parent, grandparent or other person with a duty of support who has been resident abroad for a year or more, who leaves the country in order to live with that person and attends an educational institution abroad, and similar situations.

In addition, where the whole family leaves together — through family emigration, the overseas posting of a parent who is a public official or corporate representative, a parent's overseas employment or an exchange professorship for research — compulsory education is exempted on the same basis as recognised self-funded study abroad.

Going out with the child alone, or with one parent, without meeting these conditions may amount to so-called "unrecognised study abroad". In that case enrolment records and attendance are handled differently, so check with the school and the relevant office of education before departure.

What happens on return

There is a procedure for coming back too. A student returning from abroad can apply to re-enrol at a primary school within the catchment of their address.

One rule is worth knowing in practice. Where a student re-enrols with a year group assigned, or with the year group set according to the result of a subject-by-subject recognition assessment, falling short of two thirds of that school year's teaching days does not affect completion of the year. It is a safeguard so that returning mid-year does not cost a whole year group.

A checklist before departure

• Confirm whether an application for deferral or exemption of compulsory schooling is needed at the current school
• Confirm whether your family's departure meets the conditions for recognised self-funded study abroad
• If not, confirm with the school and office of education how enrolment will be handled
• Obtain proof of enrolment documents from the school abroad every year (needed on return)
• Check the expected return date and the re-enrolment or transfer procedure in advance

Documents are very hard to obtain again later. Collecting them year by year while you are there is the surest approach. The routes available within Korea are set out in the Jeju article in International Schools.

In summary

When considering an international school abroad, Korean enrolment is the thing to check after fees and visas. Primary and middle school are compulsory, so an application for deferral or exemption and a review are needed, and the conditions for recognising self-funded primary study abroad are limited. Always build in a step of putting your own case to the school and the office of education before you leave.