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Last Updated: 28 Oct 2024

School Placement Exercise for Returning Singaporeans-Secondary (SPERS-Sec)

2. How to apply

Eligibility criteria

Your child is eligible to participate if they:

  • Are a Singapore Citizen or Permanent Resident returning from living and studying overseas.
  • Do not have a place in a local school.
  • Are applying for admission to Secondary 1, 2 or 3 in the following academic year.

If your child has a secondary school place reserved under the Leave of Absence scheme, you should contact the school directly for readmission. Your child should not participate in SPERS-Sec.

Permissible age ranges

You can apply for your child to sit for the SPERS-Sec tests at the level appropriate for their age cohort, based on these permissible age ranges (as at 1 Jan of the year of admission):

  • Secondary 1: 12 to 16+ years old.
  • Secondary 2: 13 to 17+ years old.
  • Secondary 3: 14 to 18+ years old.

Learn about how to determine the secondary school level for your child.

When to apply

You can apply for SPERS-Sec from 10am on Wednesday, 10 July 2024 to 1pm on Tuesday, 23 July 2024 (Singapore time).

The tests are conducted within a day and will be held on the following dates:

  • Secondary 1: Tuesday, 3 September 2024
  • Secondary 2 and Secondary 3: Wednesday, 4 September 2024

How to apply

You can apply for SPERS-Sec through the following steps:

  1. Create an account in the Candidates Portal (CP) from Wednesday, 10 July 2024. Please refer to the user guide (784KB) on account creation in CP.
  2. Upon successful account creation in CP, you may then submit an online application from 10am on Wednesday, 10 July 2024 to 1pm on Tuesday, 23 July 2024 (Singapore time) in the portal and select one of the following payment modes to complete the application:
    • Debit or credit card
    • PayNow
  3. You should regularly check the status of your application in CP. Upon successful submission of your application, you will see your application status reflecting "Pending". It will take at least 4 weeks from the day you register before the status will be updated to "Registered", if your document submission is in order and your child is assessed to be eligible for SPERS-Sec. Incomplete submissions will result in a longer wait time.
  4. An email from the Singapore Examinations & Assessment Board (SEAB) will be triggered by CP informing you to retrieve your child's entry proof from the CP once your application has been approved.     
Enquiries on the status of your registration will not receive any replies as applicants should refer to the notifications and banners in CP for updates on your application status. 

For technical support, raise a case using the online form in CP under Non-national exams. You may email SEAB at SEAB_SPERS_SPE@seab.gov.sg for urgent cases only. 

How much is it

Singapore Citizens

The test fee for your first application is waived. However, a $12 administrative fee is still applicable.

Note: SPERS-Sec fees for subsequent applications is $125. SPERS-Sec is not compulsory and admission to your preferred school is not guaranteed. We do not encourage you to apply for SPERS-Sec more than once.

Permanent Residents

The test fee is $140.
Fees are non-refundable.

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