By Merlina Hernando-Malipot Students coming from private schools who wish to transfer or enroll at public schools should not be required to submit a “financial clearance,” the Department of Education (DepEd) clarified. DepEd, through Undersecretary Annalyn Sevilla, clarified that a “financial clearance” is “not a mandatory requirement” should a learner from private school chooses to enroll or transfer to a public school. She issued this clarification after the Manila Bulletin sought a reaction regarding a public secondary school in Imus, Cavite listed “financial clearance” as among the requirements for enrollment or confirmation of students’ early registration. “Financial clearance” refers to a document signed by the private school clearing the learner of any financial obligation such as unpaid tuition and other fees. This is among the requirements listed for enrollment/confirmation aside from the Form 138 or the school card, good moral certificate, birth certificate from Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) or formerly National Statistics Office (NSO), and a barangay clearance of the student. Citing information from DepEd’s planning office, Sevilla noted that the financial clearance “is not included in the requirements” and was perhaps “added by the school based on their previous experiences.” She also explained that even during actual enrollment, the financial clearance is not a “mandatory requirement.” Meanwhile, Sevilla said that DepEd Regional Director of Region IV-A, Diosdado San Antonio, already called the attention of the concerned school. “The principal assured me the requirement on financial clearance from private school enrollees will be removed asap ,” she quoted San Antonio as saying. Based on the reports gathered by DepEd during its Oplan Balik Eskwela (OBE) in the previous years, one of the commonly encountered problems reported to them are concerns about “students who transfer from private school to public school.” The annual OBE aims to “address commonly encountered problems at the start of the school year, which will ensure that learners are properly enrolled and will be able to attend school on the first day of classes.” DepEd noted that there have been instances where some students from private schools transfer to public schools due to economic reasons. Since these students still have financial obligations with their previous schools, the private schools do not release their school cards, which is a requirement for enrollment in public schools. As much as possible, the DepEd discourages public schools to turn learners away. Thus, they are directed to admit learners without school cards or any other requirements for a certain period of time. In this duration, learners from private schools are “not officially enrolled” until they turn in their official school cards and other documentary requirements. To avoid any potential confusion during the enrollment period for School Year (SY) 2019-2020 usually scheduled in May, DepEd once again reminded parents and learners to participate in the ongoing Early Registration in all public schools from January 26 to February 22, 2019.