Author
Current practice:
Although Egypt is a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention,[1] it has officially reserved Article 22 on education, which obliges states to grant refugees the same access to education as nationals. Egypt’s reservation states: “The Arab Republic of Egypt reserves the right not to apply Article 22 regarding education in a manner that conflicts with the laws and regulations in force in the Arab Republic of Egypt.”
Despite this legal reservation, actual practice shows cooperation between the Egyptian government and UNHCR and international organizations, through which access to basic education is made available to refugees. Refugees are allowed to enrol in public schools, and some do so due to the use of Arabic (the language of instruction in Egypt). This access is subject to the condition of “availability of vacant places” and the possession of a valid residence permit, which limits access for many.
Barriers facing non- Arabic speaking groups:[2]
Refugees from non-Arab countries (such as Eritreans, Ethiopians, South Sudanese, and other non-Arabic-speaking groups) face fundamental difficulties due to:
Language barriers: Education in Egypt is only in Arabic, without available support classes or educational programmes in other languages.
Bureaucratic procedures:[3] Complications in recognising certificates or obtaining residence permits.
Registration Procedures: To register a child in school in Egypt, parents must go to the education administration to which the desired school is affiliated, bringing the required documents, including a valid residence permit and an accredited school certificate from the child’s previous school before arriving in Egypt. If these documents are not available, the child must take a placement test organized by the Ministry of Education to determine the appropriate grade. The responsibility for registration lies with the parents, not with UNHCR.
Placement tests are a means to evaluate the student’s academic level and are necessary for students who received education outside Egypt and wish to enrol in Egyptian public schools. These tests are conducted free of charge at the student affairs section of the relevant education administration, after presenting a valid residence permit. Once the test is passed, the student receives a recognition letter stating their academic year, facilitating their school registration.
Regarding certificate recognition, any educational certificate held by the child must not be older than two years and must be submitted to the educational authorities, who will evaluate and determine its equivalency to Egyptian certificates. In cases where refugees and asylum seekers face difficulties registering their children due to a lack of residence permits, they may follow alternative procedures. This begins by obtaining a stamped letter from the school confirming that there is a place for the student, having it stamped by the educational department, and then taking it to the Passports and Immigration Authority in Abbasiya to obtain a number indicating the expected date of residence permit issuance. After that, a copy of the UNHCR registration card and the school letter are submitted to the Ministry of Education to obtain an exemption until the residence permit is issued.
Children with no previous education may enrol in the first grade of primary school up to the age of nine, in either public or private schools. If the child is over nine years old, they must complete a literacy course before enrolling in school. After passing the course, the student is registered in the first preparatory year through the home education system (“manazil”) and continues their education through this system unless their age allows for regular school attendance, in which case they may enrol in a public school depending on availability.
To register students through the home education system, parents must go to the student affairs department at the relevant education administration and submit the required documents, including the last educational certificate obtained by the student or proof of having passed a certain level, in addition to the UNHCR registration card and two personal photographs. The student is then referred to the school closest to their residence, registered for distance learning, and takes mid-year and final exams at the school.
Al-Azhar education in Egypt is one of the available educational tracks for students of various nationalities, including refugees and migrants. It is supervised by Al-Azhar according to Law No. 103 of 1961 on the reorganization of Al-Azhar and its institutions. Al-Azhar education consists of three stages: primary (six years), preparatory (three years), and secondary (three years), after which students may enrol in Al-Azhar University. Al-Azhar Institutes Sector allows the admission of non-Egyptian students according to decisions issued by the Supreme Council of Al-Azhar. Some refugees, such as Syrians and Palestinians, receive special admission privileges.
UNHCR provides financial assistance to asylum seekers and refugees registered in public, private and community schools in Egypt. Eligibility criteria for these education grants are set annually and announced in June of each year. UNHCR also supports children with special needs by assessing their needs and providing appropriate support, which may include helping to find a suitable school or providing additional education grants.
University education:
University education in Egypt for refugees and migrants is governed by a set of laws and ministerial decisions that define the conditions for admission and the legal treatment of non-Egyptian students. Law No. 49 of 1972 on university organization, particularly Articles 3 and 89, regulates the admission of non-Egyptian students to Egyptian universities. Refugees and migrants are subject to the same rules applied to international students, which are set by the General Department for International Students at the Ministry of Higher Education. The ministry also determines exceptions to university fees based on nationality and type of high school diploma, with these exceptions renewed annually.
Refugees and migrants also have the opportunity to enrol at Al-Azhar University, which includes many faculties in religious and scientific disciplines, in accordance with Law No. 103 of 1961 on the organization of Al-Azhar and the regulations of the International Students Department at Al-Azhar University. International students are admitted based on decisions by the Supreme Council of Al-Azhar. Refugees from countries with educational agreements with Egypt, such as Syria and Palestine, benefit from reduced tuition fees according to decisions issued by Al-Azhar. Some students also benefit from scholarships provided by Al-Azhar in cooperation with the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in line with Egypt’s obligations under the 1951 Refugee Convention, which guarantees access to higher education for refugees on equal footing with other international students.
In July 2023, following the Cabinet’s approval of the draft Foreign Refugees Asylum Law on 7 June, the Central Administration for International Students in Egypt issued a decision raising the university registration fees for international students to 2,000 USD. For the first time since their arrival in Egypt, Syrians were not exempted.[4]
In September of the same year, the Ministry of Education issued a decision setting tuition fees for international students in public schools, and again Syrians were not exempted, contrary to previous practice.[5]
In July 2024, the Egyptian government also cancelled the exemption of Syrian children residing in Egypt from residency fees and required them to pay retroactive settlement fees for previous years, without any official announcement or circular from the Passports and Immigration Department.[6] Previously, the government had exempted Syrian children under 16 from residence fees and late penalties. Residence was only required when registering for school. The government began charging Syrians a late fine of 5,000 EGP per year for each child not previously registered, applied retroactively. Parents were surprised to find themselves required to pay up to 30,000 EGP for a child’s first residence permit in order to enrol them in school.[7]
In August 2024, registration in public schools became limited to holders of UNHCR refugee cards, provided the card carried a valid residence permit for both the student and their parents. However, 90% of Syrians in Egypt do not hold refugee cards. UNHCR has only registered 150,000 Syrians according to its reports, while Egyptian government estimates speak of 1.5 million Syrians living in Egypt. Regardless of the exact figures, the sudden decision just weeks before the start of the school year disrupted thousands of Syrian families, forcing them to resort to private education and its high costs.[8]
Alternatives to public schools:
Migrants in Egypt created an alternative path for their children’s education known as community schools, which offer an alternative model created by refugee and migrant communities in response to the difficulties they face enrolling in official Egyptian schools. Community schools rely on individual efforts and, in some cases, limited support from humanitarian relief organizations. They provide migrant children with the opportunity to continue their education based on curricula from their home countries. With the growing number of Sudanese, Syrian, and Yemeni refugees in Egypt, these schools have expanded to meet the needs of thousands of students who have fled to Egypt.
Despite their key role in providing education, these schools suffer from legal instability. For years, they operated without formal licences, relying on informal understandings with local district authorities and embassies. However, the Egyptian government has launched large-scale security campaigns to shut down schools that do not meet legal requirements,[9] resulting in the closure of more than 300 Sudanese schools.[10] This move came as part of a broader effort to regularise these schools and require them to obtain the necessary licences from the Ministries of Education and Foreign Affairs, in addition to commercial and tax registration—compliance that most schools had previously avoided.
Students in these schools face several challenges, including the absence of formal educational oversight, frequent interruptions in schooling due to administrative instability, and high tuition fees paid by families or covered by humanitarian organizations for officially registered refugees. Because some of these schools operate outside formal structures, students may struggle to continue their education or have their certificates recognised, particularly in light of the Sudanese embassy’s requirements for final examinations.
The Egyptian government has allowed community schools to operate for decades with minimal interference, but recent actions reflect a shift toward tighter regulation, raising concerns that this may deprive thousands of children of their right to education, especially given the lack of suitable alternatives in the Egyptian educational system.
The Egyptian government allowed community schools to operate for years with minimal oversight. Recent actions, however, point to a shift toward tighter regulatory control. Many fear this could cut off access to education for thousands of children, particularly in the absence of viable alternatives in the public system.
The timing of the mass closures and the lack of a clear path to regularization have raised concerns among refugees. The closed schools did not receive specific guidance on how to meet the requirements, and some teachers have been arrested, further complicating the situation. Furthermore, the association of these measures with a broader wave of restrictions on migrants and refugees in Egypt has heightened concerns about the future of these schools, especially given the lack of clear educational alternatives for affected children.
Following the outbreak of the Syrian revolution and the arrival of Syrian refugees in Egypt, a large number of Syrian educational centres were established. Many Syrian students enrolled in these centres to continue their education after facing obstacles in public schools. In 2020, the Giza Governorate closed seven such centres, followed by the closure of most Syrian schools.[11]
In October 2024, Egyptian authorities abruptly closed all Yemeni schools serving the Yemeni community.[12] The decision affected 15 schools in various locations and left over 6,000 students without access to education, prompting serious concern among parents and teachers. Authorities cited the lack of official licences, the same reason given for the recent closure of several Sudanese community schools. The closures were also linked to the schools’ use of the Yemeni rather than the Egyptian curriculum, which Yemeni students rely on to complete their education in line with their national system and to facilitate access to Yemeni or international universities that recognise those qualifications.
The implications of these closures also affected legal residency, given that many Yemeni students depend on student residency permits, which require enrolment in officially recognised schools. Shutting down these schools exposes thousands to the risk of losing their legal status, facing possible deportation or being forced to seek costly and uncertain alternatives.
2024 Asylum Law:
Article 20 of the law affirms the right of refugee children to access basic education. As for university education, refugees are treated as foreign nationals, in the sense that they are subject to the same admission requirements and tuition fees applied to international students.
[1] The 1951 Refugee Convention, available here
[2] Analysis of refugees needs on the egyptian education system, here
[3] Human Rights Watch: ‘Egypt: Education Restricted for Refugees Convoluted Residency Requirements, Costs, Discrimination Impede Access to Schools’, available here
[4] Syria TV: ‘Egypt raises tuition fees for foreign students, Syrian refugees are not excepted’, September 2023, available here
[5] Ibid.
[6] Syria TV: ‘New shock for Syrians: Egypt cancels the exemption of children from residency fees’, July 2024, available here
[7] Syria TV: ‘Previously exempted: Egypt burdens Syrians with more fines’, July 2024, available here
[8] Syria TV: ‘Difficulty in enrolling in schools: New procedures in Egypt raise concerns among Syrians’, August 2024, available here
[9] Alhurra: ‘Sudanese community schools in Egypt close, raising concerns for refugee children’s future’, October 2024, available here
[10] Sudanese Teachers Committee: ‘Estimates indicate 300 Sudanese schools in Egypt’, July 2024, available here
[11] News report: ‘Syrian educational centers closed in Egypt’, available here
[12] New report: ‘Egypt shutdown all Yemeni schools in the country’, available here