I am aware that public schools are not allowed to ask students' and their parents' immigration status. How about private schools?


I'm trying to enroll my daughter for a private school. The school asks for our immigration status, and we need to submit copies of passports, visa or green cards to proof the status.


Is the school legally allowed to check our immigration status?


Thank you very much in advance!

Any school is allowed to ask for immigration status. How do you expect them to know if a child is being enrolled whose parents do not pay taxes. It is the same in the US or Canada. Although you Don't state which country you are involved in and this is an INTERNATIONAL site.

So yes, you are legally bound to prove your child is entitled to this school.

Is there a problem as to why you can't prove this? So this US or Canada, or the UK?

In the US public schools are not allowed to ask immigration status.

New guidelines ban schools from conducting immigration checks on kids - CNN.com (http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/08/us/schools-immigration-checks/)

Feds: Schools can't shut out undocumented immigrants - Caitlin Emma - POLITICO.com (http://www.politico.com/story/2014/05/feds-schools-cant-shut-out-illegal-immigrants-106489.html)

Here is one more link for you.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/07/education/07immig.html?_r=0

Private schools operate under different guidelines than do public schools. Your links reference public, not private, schools.

Thanks for the post. I did state that US PUBLIC schools are not allowed. Now I'm looking to see if a similar law is binding upon private schools as well. I'm hoping to get a link to see if my daughter's prospective private school is obeying the US law.

Thanks for the post. I did state that US PUBLIC schools are not allowed. Now I'm looking to see if a similar law is binding upon private schools as well. I'm hoping to get a link to see if my daughter's prospective private school is obeying the US law.

Like I said. Private schools are run under different guidelines than public schools. No need to be so rude.


Undocumented immigrant children may enroll in private schools if the immigrants can afford them, but private schools are allowed to set their own admission requirements. Whether they admit undocumented immigrants may vary from school to school.

Why are illegal immigrants allowed to go to public school? (http://www.usimmigrationlawyers.com/legal-advice/immigration-law/illegal-immigrants-public-school.htm)

Thanks for the helpful link.

I didn't mean to be rude or any, but I do apologize if I did sound so. I just wanted to make sure that I knew my link was for Public schools.

Private schools don't HAVE to accept everyone that applies. In fact they routinely reject a lot of applicants for any number of reasons. Including refusal to provide any ainformation asked for. The right to an education doesn't extend to a right to a private school education.

In the US public schools are not allowed to ask immigration status.

New guidelines ban schools from conducting immigration checks on kids - CNN.com (http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/08/us/schools-immigration-checks/)

Feds: Schools can't shut out undocumented immigrants - Caitlin Emma - POLITICO.com (http://www.politico.com/story/2014/05/feds-schools-cant-shut-out-illegal-immigrants-106489.html)

That's not what the links say.

"The legal guidance from the Justice and Education departments allow school districts and states to ask for proof of students' age or that they are residents in the jurisdictions where they attend school. But schools can't require proof of citizenship or block students if parents can't prove their legal residency."

"... Almost immediately after Plyler, the Supreme Court heard Martinez v. Bynum,...

The Court, in an 8-1 decision issued in 1983, found that the equal protection clause had not been violated as the state could restrict tuition-free admission to bona fide residents.... " Plyler v. Doe: Still Guaranteeing Unauthorized Immigrant Children's Right to Attend U.S. Public Schools | migrationpolicy.org (http://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/plyler-v-doe-still-guaranteeing-unauthorized-immigrant-childrens-right-attend-us-public)

Thus public schools can ask for proof of in-state residency.

And, as others have noted, these edicts on the part of SCOTUS and Holder have nothing to do with what private schools can require.