News
Mainland Exchange Programme for Junior Secondary and Upper Primary Students (2026/27) (I)
Summary
This circular memorandum invites primary and secondary schools (including special schools) to nominate Primary 4 to Secondary 3 students and teaching staff (including principals) to participate in the captioned programme. Relevant information will also be sent to schools via the “Fast Information Transmission System - School Messaging Module” (SMM).
Details
The Education Bureau (EDB) organises “Mainland Exchange Programme for Junior Secondary and Upper Primary Students (2026/27)” (the Programme). In line with the school curriculum, the Programme aims at providing different learning experiences for students to enhance their understanding of the history, culture, technology, economic development, nature conservation, urban and rural developments and custom in the Mainland (including Beijing, Shanghai, Sichuan, Xi'an, Nanjing and Guangdong), thereby enhancing their sense of national identity.
The EDB has commissioned service providers to organise 6 tours outside the Guangdong Province and 14 tours in the Guangdong Province, ranging from one to four days, between November 2026 and August 2027 for Primary 4 to Secondary 3 students. Please refer to Annex 1 (Chinese version only) for details of the Programme and application procedures and Annex 2 (Chinese version only) for the itineraries 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) at both the primary and secondary levels. 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 in the 2026/27 school year. Schools interested to participate in the Programme(s) may view the application procedures from the websites of the respective service providers from 3 November 2026, and complete the application (N2, N3, N4, N5H, N5S, G9 and G12) within the specificed deadline [Please refer to Annex 2 (Chinese version only)] before the planned departure date of the tour.
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.
Enquiry
For enquiries on the enrolment and itineraries, please contact the respective service providers. For general enquiries about the Programme, please contact the Life-wide Learning and Mainland Exchange Section 2 of EDB at 2892 6475, 2892 5727 or 2892 6543. For more information about the Mainland exchange programmes for students, 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. 192/2026. (Download)