The ISBE Student Transfer Form 33-78 is a one-page form that your child’s current Illinois public school fills out and signs, confirming the student is in good standing and whether their medical records are complete.1Illinois State Board of Education. ISBE Student Transfer Form 33-78 No Illinois public school district is required to admit a transfer student who cannot produce this form from the previous district, so request it from the departing school’s office as soon as you know you’re moving.2Illinois General Assembly. 105 ILCS 5/2-3.13a – School Records; Transferring Students
How to Get the Form
Call or visit the main office at your child’s current school and tell them your child is transferring. The departing district is required by law to provide the completed form.2Illinois General Assembly. 105 ILCS 5/2-3.13a – School Records; Transferring Students The school pulls the student’s records, checks their standing, and gets the principal’s signature. You usually don’t need to download anything yourself.
A blank PDF of Form 33-78 is posted on the Illinois State Board of Education website at isbe.net if you want to see what it looks like before you ask.1Illinois State Board of Education. ISBE Student Transfer Form 33-78 The form itself says it is to be sent directly to the student’s new school, and most schools will transmit it to the receiving district by secure digital transfer or mail. Many will also hand you a copy, which helps if you’re trying to enroll before the two schools have talked.
Form 33-78 is separate from your child’s academic transcript. The statute gives the old school ten days after a transfer to forward an unofficial copy of grades, and ten days after any fines are paid to send the official transcript.2Illinois General Assembly. 105 ILCS 5/2-3.13a – School Records; Transferring Students There is no separate statutory deadline for the transfer form, so the sooner you ask, the better.
What’s on the Form
The form is one page. It records your child’s full legal name, date of birth, and nine-digit student identification number, along with the sending school’s name, district number, the student’s grade level, and last date of attendance.1Illinois State Board of Education. ISBE Student Transfer Form 33-78 That ID number is assigned through ISBE’s Student Information System and follows the student across Illinois public schools.3Illinois State Board of Education. Student Information System (SIS)
Beyond identifying the student, the form has two substantive boxes:
- Whether the student is in good standing, meaning not currently being disciplined by a suspension or expulsion and entitled to attend classes as of the date on the form.
- Whether the student’s medical records are up-to-date and complete as documented in their permanent file.
The principal of the departing school signs the form, either digitally or in original ink.1Illinois State Board of Education. ISBE Student Transfer Form 33-78 There is no signature line for a superintendent or anyone else. Without the principal’s signature, the form is not complete.
What Good Standing Means
Under 105 ILCS 5/2-3.13a, “in good standing” means the student is not currently being disciplined by a suspension or expulsion and is entitled to attend classes.2Illinois General Assembly. 105 ILCS 5/2-3.13a – School Records; Transferring Students If that box is checked yes, the new district can move ahead with enrollment.
If the student is under an active suspension or expulsion, the form says so. Illinois law does not automatically bar an expelled student from enrolling in a new district. A district may adopt a local policy requiring a student suspended or expelled from any public or private school to complete the full term of that discipline in an alternative program before being admitted to regular schools, but this is a local option rather than a statewide rule.4Illinois General Assembly. 105 ILCS 5/10-22.6 – Suspension or Expulsion of Students; School Searches Whether your child can enroll right away depends on the receiving district’s policy.
What the Medical Records Box Means
The principal checks one of two boxes: records are current, or records are not current as documented in the student’s permanent file.1Illinois State Board of Education. ISBE Student Transfer Form 33-78 This usually covers immunization records and health examinations required by Illinois law. Incomplete medical records don’t block the transfer itself, but the new school will likely give you a deadline to bring any missing vaccinations or screenings up to date.
When You Can Enroll Without the Form
Two federal protections override the general rule that the new district can turn you away without Form 33-78.
- The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act requires schools to enroll children and youth experiencing homelessness immediately, even when they cannot produce records normally required for enrollment, including academic records, immunization records, proof of residency, birth certificates, or transfer forms. Enrollment means full participation in classes and school activities starting the same or the following day.5National Center for Homeless Education. From the School Office to the Classroom: Strategies for Enrolling and Supporting Students Experiencing Homelessness
- Illinois has separate placement guidelines for children in the care of the Department of Children and Family Services. Districts still use Form 33-78 for these students, but DCFS involvement triggers additional protections meant to prevent enrollment delays.6Illinois State Board of Education. School Enrollment and Placement Guidelines for Children and Youth in DCFS Care
If either applies to your child, ask the new school to connect you with its McKinney-Vento liaison or DCFS educational liaison. The school cannot hold enrollment while it waits for a transfer form.
Other Documents the New School Will Ask For
Form 33-78 handles the transfer verification. You’ll also need to prove residency in the new district. Illinois districts cannot demand a single specific document; acceptable proof includes a lease, utility bill, property tax statement, mortgage documentation, pay stub, vehicle registration, or a third-party affidavit from a landlord, and the district’s requirements must be flexible enough for any resident to satisfy them.7Illinois State Board of Education. Non-Regulatory Guidance on Registration: Residency and Enrollment
Under the Missing Children Records Act, you also need to provide a certified copy of your child’s birth certificate within 30 days of enrollment. If a birth certificate isn’t available, other reliable proof of identity such as a passport or visa works when supported by a sworn statement explaining why the birth certificate cannot be produced. A school cannot exclude a student for failing to provide a birth certificate, even after the 30-day window.7Illinois State Board of Education. Non-Regulatory Guidance on Registration: Residency and Enrollment
If Your Child Has an IEP
When a student receiving special education services transfers between Illinois districts mid-year, the new district must immediately provide a free appropriate public education, including services comparable to those in the existing Individualized Education Program. The new district then either adopts the existing IEP or develops a new one.8eCFR. 34 CFR 300.323 – When IEPs Must Be in Effect Services cannot stop during the transition.
For an out-of-state transfer, the new Illinois district still has to provide comparable services immediately, but it can run a fresh evaluation and write a new IEP rather than adopt the old one.8eCFR. 34 CFR 300.323 – When IEPs Must Be in Effect Bring copies of the current IEP and any recent evaluations to the new school yourself. Don’t wait for the old district to send them.
What the Old School Can Share Without Your Signature
Under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, schools are allowed to forward a student’s education records, including disciplinary records, to another school where the student seeks or intends to enroll, without first getting parental consent. The condition is that parents must be notified, given a copy if they ask, and offered the chance to challenge the content.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 20 USC 1232g – Family Educational Rights and Privacy The sending school does not need a signed release to transmit records along with Form 33-78. If you want to see what was sent, ask either school for a copy.