News
Thematic Mainland Exchange Programmes for Secondary and Primary School Students (2026/27) (3)
Summary
This circular memorandum invites primary and secondary schools (including special schools) to nominate Primary 4 to Secondary 6 students and teaching staff (including principals) to participate in the captioned programmes. Relevant information will also be sent to schools via the “Fast Information Transmission System - School Messaging Module” (SMM).
Details
The Education Bureau (EDB) organises “Thematic Mainland Exchange Programmes for Primary and Secondary School Students (2026/27) (3)” (the Programmes). In line with the school curriculum, the Programmes aims at providing different learning experiences for students to enhance their understanding of the economy, history, culture, innovative technology, landscape, intangible cultural heritage, natural resources and arts etc. in the Mainland (including Guangdong, Fujian, Wuhan, Shiyan, Beijing), thereby enhancing their sense of national identity.
The EDB has commissioned service providers to organise six tours inside and four tours outside Guangdong Province, ranging from one to five days, for Primary 4 to Secondary 6 students for the 2026/27 school year. Please refer to Annex 1 (Chinese version only) for details of the Programmes and application procedures, and Annex 2 (Chinese version only) for the itineraries of respective tours and examples of their linkages with the curriculum.
Schools should proactively encourage students who have not joined any Mainland exchange programmes to participate in at least one subsidised Mainland exchange programme (MEP) in their primary and secondary stages. In addition, starting from 10 July 2024, non-Chinese citizens who are permanent residents of Hong Kong may apply for the “Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Permanent Residents (Non-Chinese Citizens)” from the China Travel Service Entry Permit Service Hong Kong Limited. Schools should remind eligible students to complete the application procedures soon so that they can use the E-channels at ports of entry for immigration clearance and need not fill in the Arrival Card when entering the Mainland, thus enhancing clearance efficiency. For details, please refer to the respective webpage (https://www.ctshk.com/mep/zh/nrep_notice_mep/).
Schools may apply for more than one tour. Schools intending to nominate students and teaching staff to participate in the Programmes SZIT, LN, SZI, YDNI, GZIT, SZE, FJ and XM may download the application form from the websites of the respective service providers / apply online from 5 October 2026. The completed application form should be returned to the service providers by email or fax/ the online application should be completed within the specified period [Please refer to Annex 2] before the planned departure date of the tour. Schools interested to participate in the Programmes WDC and BJA may download the application form from the “Passing on the Torch” website or Annex 1, and return the completed application form via the EDB “Common Log-On System” before the respective deadline. For details of the application procedures via the EDB “Common Log-On System”, please visit the “School Application” webpage on the “Passing on the Torch” website (https://www.passontorch.org.hk/en/enrol/index.html). Late submissions will not be accepted.
Starting from the 2024/25 school year, schools will receive the latest itinerary information and application details of MEPs for students via the SMM. The EDB will continue to issue individual Circular Memoranda on MEPs and adjust relevant arrangements based on actual circumstances.
Enquiries
For enquiries, please contact the Life-wide Learning and Mainland Exchange Section 2 of the EDB at 2892 6103 (for the trip of SZIT, XM), 2892 5734 (for the trip of LN), 2892 6430 (for the trip of SZI, FJ), 2892 5730 (for the trip of YDNI, SZE, BJA), 2892 5762 (for the trip of GZIT) or 2892 6462 (for the trip of WDC). For more information about MEPs, please visit the “Passing on the Torch” website (https://www.passontorch.org.hk/en/index.html).
For further details of the Scheme, please refer to the Education Bureau Circular Memorandum No. 137/2026. (Download)