Information for Principals and School Administrators

• Do I need to seek approval to enrol an exchange student?
• Am I obliged to accept an exchange student?
• How do I know if the organisation that is facilitating the exchange is bona fide?
• What is the process of accepting and enrolling exchange students?
• What is an AASES form?
• Do exchange students pay fees?
• The exchange student has a ‘Temporary Visa -Subclass 571’, aren’t they regarded as fee paying students?
• Are exchange students eligible for free travel passes?
• What do I do if I have an issue with any part of the student exchange program?

No external approval is required to accept an exchange student. The NSW Department of Education and Training supports the secondary student exchange program and values the cultural education and global learning that exchange programs bring to individual students and their school communities.

No. The decision to accept or decline an exchange student resides at the principal’s discretion. Principals may take into consideration school based issues such as the availability of student places, appropriate timing of the program, the support required and resources available to ensure that a satisfactory program can be offered before accepting an exchange student. Once an acceptance form has been signed principals are obliged to follow through with all associated responsibilities attached to the student exchange program.

A complete list of registered NSW exchange organisations and secondary schools is available on this website. Only these organisations and schools that are registered with the NSW Department of Education and Training are able to conduct bona fide student exchange programs in NSW. Consult this list if you are not sure or require more information about the nature of the organisation.

The registered organisation facilitating the exchange program will make direct contact with the school and negotiate to obtain written permission from the principal to enrol the exchange student well in advance of the commencement of the program.

Following this acceptance, organisations will forward all further information about the student’s program. If there is any additional information required or is necessary to obtain prior to enrolment, contact should be made directly with the facilitating exchange organisation.

By the commencement of the exchange student's school program the facilitating organisation must have sent to the school principal a copy of the student’s AASES (Acceptance Advice of Secondary Exchange Student) form (see explanation below). Upon presentation at the school the student can be enrolled under the authority of the completed AASES form. This form must be sighted and referred to during the enrolment process.

AASES stands for ‘Acceptance Advice of Secondary Exchange Student’. The AASES form is the official student exchange visa/immigration document distributed by the NSW Department of Education and Training. It is the equivalent to an ‘Authority to Enrol’ form for exchange students.

The AASES form is used for the processing of a student exchange visa and for the enrolment of exchange students in NSW schools. Without an AASES form a student cannot be considered an official or bona fide exchange student, and therefore should not be enrolled under this category.

Immediately following the enrolment of an exchange student, the principal must complete and sign Section D of the form. A copy of the completed AASES form must then be kept with the student’s file and a completed and signed copy returned directly to the exchange organisation.

Official exchange students do not pay fees. The Commonwealth Government and state / territory governments fund places for exchange students. The NSW Government accepts reciprocity in lieu of fees for exchange students in government schools. Non-government schools enrolling exchange students are entitled to include such students in the census return so that Commonwealth and State per capita grants are provided. A non-government school that chooses to charge fees must take these grants into account as a reduction from full costs.

International students, temporary visitor students and exchange students all come under the ‘Temporary Visa - Subclass 571’ category but the conditions of the visas categories are very different. Official exchange students are non-fee paying students whereas international students are liable for a schedule of school fees as detailed by the International Students Centre.

Under NSW guidelines exchange students are entitled to free student travel passes if they meet the requirements applicable to NSW school students. Applications to travel companies should clearly state that the student is on an exchange program. Attaching a copy of the AASES form is usually a good idea to ensure a smooth transaction.

If a principal, staff member or person directly involved with the exchange student, and/or the associated program has a serious problem or issue arising from the nature of the exchange that cannot be dealt with at the school level, direct contact should be first made with the facilitating organisation. If a satisfactory resolution cannot be reached, contact should then be made with the Executive Officer, International Secondary Student Exchange (see contact details).