There are 2 types of transfers that can be requested: In-District (attendance area) Transfers and Out of District Non-Resident Choice Transfers.

In-District (attendance area) Transfers

Each student in the district is required to attend the school designated for the geographic attendance area in which they resides.

A parent or guardian may request that their child be allowed to attend another school in the district. Transfer requests must be submitted, in writing, to the Director of Student Services.

If the Transfer Request is approved, the parent/guardian(s) will be responsible for transportation and must ensure prompt and regular attendance by their child in accordance with compulsory attendance laws and District policies.

Choice Transfers (out of district/non-resident transfer requests)

A Choice Transfer request needs to be made when a student wants to attend a school outside of the school district where the student resides/lives, even if they are already attending the school.

Continue reading for additional information on all transfers

A student's school and resident school district is based on where the student resides/lives. In some circumstances, a family may ask to transfer their student to a school outside of their resident district. This is called a nonresident student transfer. You may also hear it referred to as an out-of-district transfer, interdistrict transfer, choice transfer, variance, waiver, or school choice.

Nonresident students are those who live outside the school district boundaries of the district they are asking to attend.

Whether the student transfer request is accepted or denied is determined by the school district. The process a school district uses to determine transfer requests is established in their policies and procedures.

Both the student's resident district and the nonresident district must approve a transfer prior to the student attending a nonresident district. The resident district releases the student, and the nonresident district admits the student.

Admission of Nonresident Student

A nonresident student is a student that resdies/lives outside of the school district in which they wish to attend, or continues to attend. Applicants for admission to the Mukilteo School District must apply for a Choice Transfer Release Request from the district in which they live, and include a full explanation of conditions warranting consideration for admission and appropriate documentation. The releasing district will submit the request to the Mukilteo School District through the Choice Transfer OSPI electronic submission system. Requests for schools at full capacity, as designated by the Superintendent, will not be considered.

If the Transfer Request is approved, the parent/guardian(s) will be responsible for transportation and must ensure prompt and regular attendance by their child in accordance with compulsory attendance laws and District policies.

A Choice Transfer Request can be submitted through the Choice Transfer Request Portal, the online form submission tool used by most school districts within Washington State. If you are unable to use the portal, please contact your resident district. If Mukilteo School District is your resident district, please contact the Mukilteo Chioce Transfer Coordinator, for grades K-5: Judy Heminger and for grades 6-12: Brenna Fullner.

Release of a Resident Student to a School District other than Mukilteo

A parent/guardian shall request the release of their child by completing a Choice Transfer Request through the Choice Transfer Request Portal, the online form submission tool used by most school districts within Washington State. A Choice Transfer Release Request needs to be made when a student wants to attend a school outside of the school district where the student resides/lives, even if they are already attending the school. For a Choice Transfer Release Request, the parent must submit a request through the Choice Transfer Request Portal, then the resident district will determine whether or not to release the student. If it is determined to release the student, the resident district will submit the request to the requested district. Then it is up to the requested district to determine acceptance or denial to the school requested. As each of these steps are completed, the parent/guardian will receive e-mails to the e-mail address provided in the request.

Parents, on behalf of their student, who seek a transfer from the school designated for the geographic attendance area to another school within the District must complete an In-District Transfer Request form. Transfer request forms are available online on the School District's website.  For a transfer request to be processed, parents must register their student at their resident school pending approval of a transfer request. Parent/guardians are responsible for transportation to/from school should their request be approved and must ensure prompt and regular attendance in accordance with compulsory attendance laws and Board policies.

Requests for transfer will be reviewed and prioritized in the order received by the Student Services Department while considering the capacity of available programs, schools, grade levels or classrooms. Requests for transfers will be accepted the first student day in January for the following school year. For best consideration, transfers for the following school year should be received by March 1. However, transfer requests will be approved/denied up through the 7th school business day of September the following year.

Applications for transfers for the current school year will be accepted through March 31 of each school year. No new transfer requests for the current school year will be accepted after that date unless there is a recent change in the resident student's address.

In-District Transfer Appeal Process

In the event that you disagree with an In-District Transfer Request decision, the parent or guardian of a student may request an appeal in wirting via email to the Executive Director of Elementary Education for grades K-5 or the Executive Director of Secondary Education for grades 6-12.

Out of District/Non-Resident ChoiceTransfer Appeal Process

If your non-resident student transfer request is denied, you have the right to appeal that decision. An appeal means you are requesting a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge with the Washington State Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH).

Many school districts have an internal appeal process in which district staff will again review a student transfer request. Many times, the issue can be resolved between the school district and the nonresident student's parent/guardian.

If parents/guardians choose to first appeal to the school district according to the school district's procedures, they maintain the right to submit an appeal to OAH if the district does not change their denial decision. Parents are not required to first follow a school district's appeal process before submitting an appeal to OAH.

If you choose to submit an appeal to OAH to request a hearing, complete the Notice of Appeal Form. Send only the appeal application form and a copy of the denial letter/email to (a brief cover letter is optional):

Student Transfer Appeal
Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH)
600 University Street, Suite 1500
Seattle, WA 98101-3126

Appeals may also be filed via email: the Office of Administrative Hearings. The notice of appeal form must be sent by secure email. If you do not have a secure email password, send an email to Office of Administrative Hearings without the form attached to request instructions for filing the form by secure email.

Fax: 206-587-5135

Parents should be sure to have their child enrolled in a school while they are waiting to hear the outcome of their appeal.