Big CBSE announcement for Indian expat students in UAE on APAAR, Aadhaar

Dubai: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) in India has issued a fresh circular announcing that schools situated outside India will not be required to implement the APAAR ID, a new mandatory requirement for students registering for the Grade 10 and 12 board exams, 

The latest circular directly impacts Indian students studying in schools abroad, including thousands in the UAE.

The clarification comes just a week after Gulf News reported growing concerns among Indian expat parents in the UAE over schools demanding Aadhaar details to generate APAAR (Automated Permanent Academic Account Registry) IDs.

“Schools situated abroad are exempted from APAAR because of various administrative reasons and laws in these countries,” CBSE announced.

The move is expected to bring relief to thousands of Non-Resident Indian (NRI) families in the Gulf countries and other regions.

"It is a big relief for students here. We were positive that CBSE would consider the situation of affiliated schools abroad," said Dr Nasreen Banu, Gulf Asian English School in Sharjah, who was one of the principals who spoke about the concerns of students in the UAE.

Bala Reddy Ambati, principal, Habitat School, Al-Jurf, Ajman said the CBSE’s decision to exempt overseas schools from APAAR is a smart move.

"Most of our schools serve students from many countries with different rules. For example, our school has students from 40 nationalities, so it would be unrealistic to fit all of them into an India-specific system. This choice avoids extra administrative challenges and allows for easier registration of students for the board exams. It also shows that CBSE understands the international aspect of its affiliated schools overseas," said Ambati who is also the CBSE City Coordinator for Ajman and Umm Al Quwain.

AS reported by Gulf News on August 21, parents and students were concerned after some schools in the UAE began asking for Aadhaar numbers, which are required to create the APAAR ID that will be mandatory for students appearing for board exams from 2026 onwards,

Parents had voiced concerns since most Indian expat children do not possess Aadhaar, as the 12-digit unique identity number is issued based on biometrics and demographic data, which require Indian expats to visit an Aadhaar enrolment centre in India. Foreign students studying in CBSE schools in the UAE cannot obtain Aadhaar, as it is issued only to Indian citizens.

While some schools had already prepared their students well in advance with the required documentation by asking families to enrol children for Aadhaar during the summer vacation, many others were left uncertain since most of their students do not have Aadhaar.

Dr Ram Shankar, Director of the CBSE Regional Office and Centre of Excellence in Dubai, clarified that CBSE had told Gulf News that the board would “maintain the status quo” for foreign schools and was expected to “very soon issue the necessary instructions and advisory, and whatever support is required.”

In the same circular, CBSE also announced two separate schedules for submission of the List of Candidates (LOC) depending on the mode of fee payment. Schools have been asked to carefully check both schedules listed in Annexure A(i) and A(ii) to avoid last-minute issues.

The circular makes it clear that the last date for both LOC submission and fee payment will be the same. CBSE has further cautioned that if fees are paid after the scheduled deadline, a late fee will automatically apply.