School Admissions in Lahore: When to Apply, Documents, Tests and Open Days

Admissions in Lahore run on several calendars at once. Punjab's government schools follow a provincial session, large private networks set their own timing, and a few selective schools work more than a year ahead. On 2 November 2026 SchoolNama held 449 Lahore campus records, and none of them carries an admission date we have confirmed with the school; every one tells parents to contact the campus or call the school. SchoolNama's events file holds no Lahore open day, and its notices file holds no Lahore school admission notice. Every date below comes instead from a school page or report we opened on 2 November 2026.

When should parents apply? It depends on the school, but the selective ones move early. Aitchison College's table of important dates for the 2027-28 session says application forms became available in the first week of October 2026, applications from day students close on 30 November 2026 and boarding applications on 31 December 2026. Medical and age testing is listed for March 2027 (tentative), the test for all age groups for the first week of June 2027, with interviews, offer letters and acceptance in June, fees in July and school starting in August 2027. Punjab works to a different year: Daily Pakistan reported on 17 January 2026 that the province's new academic year would begin on 1 April 2026, with free textbooks for newly admitted pupils in government schools from 5 April. We found no published 2027 admission schedule for Lahore's government schools.

Government schools were also told to recruit. ProPakistani reported on 13 March 2026 that Punjab's education officials announced an admissions campaign for the 2026-27 session with a minimum target of a seven percent rise in enrolment, with teachers given admission targets and banners and brochures at school gates. For schools licensed by the Punjab Education Foundation, ProPakistani reported on 13 May 2026 that the foundation extended the deadline for new 2026-27 admissions, allowing licensed schools to complete enrolment until 14 May.

Which Lahore schools have admissions open? Aitchison College is the clearest dated window we found. Its points-of-entry page lists day places at K2 and at E2 (Grade 7), with other Junior School years, M1 (Grade 8) and M2 (Grade 9) shown as boarding only, and its admissions policy says boys who have been schooled in Lahore for more than six months cannot apply for a boarding place. That means most Lahore families are looking at the 30 November 2026 day deadline. The City School's admissions page says registrations are open throughout the year, though registering does not guarantee a seat, and lists Lahore among the cities where it offers A Level. Lahore Grammar School's admission procedure page says forms go in a sealed envelope to the campus for the class: 31 FCC for Pre-Class 1, 30 Main Gulberg for Classes 2 to 6 and 55 Main Gulberg for Classes 7 to 10. Its admission-test page lists test dates only for the 2026-2027 session, the last of them on 7 August 2026, so we found no LGS date for 2027-28.

For boarding families, Lawrence College Ghora Gali, in the Murree hills rather than Lahore, lists Lahore as a possible test centre for its 2027 intake, but only if there are enough applications. Its admission details page says forms must arrive before 12 November 2026, the entry test is on Sunday 15 November 2026 at 10:00, results come in December 2026 and the session begins in the first week of March 2027. It charges a non-refundable processing fee of Rs 5,000, and its main intake is about 50 boys for Class I, aged 5½ to 6½.

Are tests and interviews common? Yes. Every school whose page described a process used a test, an interview or both. Aitchison College says applicants must sit competitive admission tests, and an interview if required, that age criteria are strictly applied with no waivers, that over-age applicants will not be considered, and that test papers and results are not shared. The City School assesses Playgroup and Kindergarten children on reading level, vocabulary, colours and numbers, along with confidence, spoken English and motor skills; from Class I it sets a 30-minute written test in English, Urdu and Mathematics with a 50 percent pass mark, and it schedules interviews with both parents. Lahore Grammar School's 2026-2027 test page set English and Urdu proficiency tests plus Mathematics for Junior and Senior School admissions, lasting three hours for Class 6 and four hours for Classes 7 to 10, with elective tests in sciences, Additional Mathematics or Art for Classes 9 to 11. For preparation, see /news/school-admission-test-preparation.

Ages are checked as well. Aitchison College's 2027-28 age guidelines use birth-date windows running from 1 June to 31 May: a K2 applicant must be born between 1 June 2020 and 31 May 2021, and an E2 (Grade 7) applicant between 1 June 2015 and 31 May 2016. Other schools set their own rules, so check each one. Our guide /news/class-1-admission-age-pakistan explains how cut-offs work, and /news/best-time-to-apply-school-admission-pakistan covers timing more broadly.

Board registration is a separate step for older children. ProPakistani reported on 9 June 2026 that all Punjab boards, including Lahore's, extended Class 9 registration for the 2026-2028 session: forms without a late fee from 25 April to 22 June 2026, and with a Rs 600 late fee per student from 23 June to 7 July 2026. Schools usually handle this, but if your child is joining a new school in Class 9, ask whether the board registration has been done.

What documents will you need? Most schools we read ask for the child's B-Form or birth certificate, photographs and the last school's records. Lahore Grammar School's procedure page asks for the completed registration form, two recent passport-size photographs, a copy of the Smart Card, B-Form, NADRA birth certificate or passport, the printed registration fee bill with proof of payment, the most recent report card and a Covid-19 vaccine certificate. The City School asks for two passport-size photographs, an attested copy of the birth certificate and, for transfers, the last report card plus copies of the provisional and character certificates. Lawrence College asks for a copy of the NADRA Form-B or NICOP, four passport-size photographs, the latest school record and the processing-fee deposit slip, with originals checked at the test. Aitchison College warns that an offer will be withdrawn if an application, transcript, reference or age document is falsified. Our wider checklist is at /news/school-admission-documents-pakistan.

Where can parents find open days? We found no dated open day for the 2027-28 intake on any Lahore school page we read on 2 November 2026, and SchoolNama's events file holds none for the city. The City School's admissions page links to a tour-booking page; for other schools, ask for a visit directly, ideally before the school's registration deadline.

Because seats are limited at many schools, apply to more than one and keep every deadline and test date in one calendar. Build a shortlist on the Lahore city page (/lahore), compare costs in /news/school-fees-in-lahore and /news/low-fee-schools-in-lahore, check the commute with /news/schools-with-transport-in-lahore, and see /news/best-schools-in-lahore, /news/best-o-level-schools-in-lahore or /news/best-matric-schools-in-lahore for a wider view. Then confirm dates with each school directly, since most Lahore schools we read had not published a 2027-28 deadline.