Children have the right to go to school

The August back-to-school sales remind us that summer will soon come to an end. And while children in Ontario have the right to attend school even if they or their parents do not have immigration status in Canada, many students and parents do not know about this right. They may also be afraid to approach a school.

This edition of On the Radar describes the laws that apply and suggests how community advocates can help.

What the law says

Children must attend school

In Ontario, the Education Act says that children must attend school. The only way that a child can be excused from attending school is for one of the reasons set out in the Act, for example, because they are sick.

And a child who is 6 years old before the first day of school in September must go to school.

Schools must admit children

It is against the law, as set out in Section 49.1 of the Education Act, for a school to refuse to admit a child who is under 18 years of age only because the child or the child's parent or guardian is in Canada without immigration status.

The Ministry of Education has told school boards across the province that they cannot refuse to admit children only because their parents do not have immigration papers.

What federal immigration law says

While provinces have the power to make laws about education, the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act also confirms children's right to go to school by stating, for example, that a child under 18 years of age who is claiming refugee status in Canada, or who has no status in Canada, does not need a study permit to go to school.

Canada's international commitment

Canada has signed the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which means that Canada has agreed to make primary and secondary education available to all children in Canada.

How community advocates can help

Students and parents may not know about their rights. They may also be afraid to go to their local school to register.

As a community advocate, there are many ways you can help:
  • Find out what school boards in your community are doing to welcome all children to their schools.
  • Tell people without status about their children's right to education.
  • Help children in non-status situations register for school.
  • Put up posters where newcomers gather and include local contact information about where parents can get help registering their children in school.
  • Coordinate with other agencies in your community that work with people who do not have status, for example, by sharing information about efforts to register children in local schools.
What will work best may be different across the province. Sometimes, it might help to make a phone call to a school on behalf of a parent. Other times, parents will need to have an advocate who understands the law go with them when they are registering their child.

Getting legal help

If you know a child who has already tried but not been able to get into school, you might want to contact a lawyer or a community legal clinic.

You can find the community legal clinic nearest you by visiting the Legal Aid Ontario website.

Justice for Children and Youth is a specialty legal clinic that deals with legal issues that affect children and young people under the age of 18. There is more information on their website.
This email alert gives general legal information. It is not a substitute for getting legal advice about a particular situation.
August 2012

On the Radar is a monthly email alert from CLEO that highlights timely legal information. To receive future On the Radar alerts, please

Related CLEO Resources:

Helping parents without immigration status get their children into school (HTML)
Le droit à l'éducation : un droit légalement reconnu à chaque enfant (PDF)

Other Resources:

Policy/Program Memorandum No. 136 to the Education Act
How to find a school board
Settlement Workers in Schools The Settlement Workers in Schools program places settlement workers from community agencies in elementary and secondary schools that have high numbers of newcomer students, and workers help parents and young people with settlement needs.

You can view and order CLEO publications at www.cleo.on.ca

Information on a wide range of legal topics from hundreds of organizations, including Immigration and Refugee Law and Education Law, as well as key legal and community services across the province.


CLEO (Community Legal Education Ontario / Éducation juridique communautaire Ontario)
119 Spadina Ave., Suite 600, Toronto, Ontario, Canada  M5V 2L1
Phone: 416-408-4420 Email: cleo@cleo.on.ca 


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