Some schools are collecting money and falsely calling it UNEB
As Uganda's national examination registration deadline approaches, the body entrusted with measuring a generation's learning has drawn a firm line between legitimate process and exploitation. UNEB's warning to school administrators is not merely procedural — it is a reminder that the machinery of public education must not become a tool for extracting money from families who can least afford to question authority. With over 1.5 million young people's futures passing through this system, the board is insisting that transparency and accountability are not optional features of governance, but its very foundation.
- Schools that miss the June 30th deadline face surcharges as high as 100 percent of registration fees, turning administrative delay into a direct financial burden on families.
- Some institutions have been fabricating charges and disguising them as official UNEB fees, quietly exploiting parents who trust that what schools demand must be legitimate.
- UNEB is responding with the full weight of the law — school heads face up to ten years in prison, fines of 40 million shillings, and the loss of their examination centre status.
- With 1.5 million candidates already registered and numbers still growing, the scale of this cycle amplifies both the risk of confusion and the potential for abuse.
- The board is building in public accountability through candidate register displays and SMS verification, giving parents the tools to confirm their children have been correctly enrolled.
June 30th is the last day for Ugandan schools to register their examination candidates under normal conditions. After that, late registration carries surcharges ranging from 50 to 100 percent depending on the examination level — translating into tens of thousands of additional shillings per student for PLE, UCE, and UACE candidates alike. UNEB executive director Dan Odongo issued a public statement on June 25th urging school heads to act before the window closes.
Beyond the deadline pressure, Odongo's statement carried a sharper warning. Evidence suggests some schools have been inventing fees and presenting them to parents as official UNEB charges. The board was unambiguous: this is a criminal offence. Under the UNEB Act, school heads found guilty of charging unauthorized fees face fines of up to 40 million shillings, imprisonment of up to ten years, or both. Schools themselves risk losing their examination centre status, and teachers implicated in such schemes face professional de-registration upon conviction. Parents who encounter suspicious demands are directed to report them to the nearest police station.
The stakes are heightened by the sheer size of this year's cohort. Over 1.5 million candidates have registered so far — a 7.3 percent increase on last year — meaning more families are navigating the process and more opportunities exist for confusion to be exploited. Government-sponsored candidates under UPE, USE, and UPOLET programmes face an additional constraint: UNEB will accept no late registrations for them, leaving schools no room for error on their behalf.
Once registration closes, schools will be required to display candidate registers publicly so that students and parents can verify their details. An SMS confirmation service will also be available. For those with questions, UNEB operates a helpline and two toll-free numbers. The board's message is consistent throughout: the rules are clear, the deadlines are fixed, and no institution is above them.
Tuesday, June 30th marks the final day for schools to register their examination candidates with Uganda's National Examinations Board. After that date, a different set of rules takes over—and they cost more.
With just days remaining in the normal registration window, UNEB has issued a sharp reminder to school administrators: get your students registered now, or face the consequences of late submission. The board's executive director, Dan Odongo, released a statement on June 25th urging heads of centres to use the remaining time wisely. The stakes are not trivial. Once the deadline passes, schools that register candidates during the July late period will pay surcharges of 100 percent for Primary Leaving Examinations and 50 percent for both Uganda Certificate of Education and Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education. In concrete terms, that means additional fees of 68,000 shillings for PLE candidates, 246,000 shillings for UCE candidates, and 279,000 shillings for UACE candidates.
But the board's warning extends beyond the simple matter of timing and fees. Odongo issued a direct caution to school heads and directors against inventing charges and falsely attributing them to UNEB. Some schools, it appears, have been collecting money from parents under the guise of official examination registration fees—fees that do not actually exist in UNEB's prescribed schedule. This practice, Odongo made clear, is not merely unethical; it is criminal. Under Section 33 of the UNEB Act, charging unauthorized fees carries a penalty of up to 40 million shillings, imprisonment for up to ten years, or both. Parents or members of the public who encounter such demands are instructed to report them to the nearest police station.
The consequences for offending schools are equally severe. UNEB has the authority to withdraw examination centre status from institutions whose leaders engage in this practice. For teachers involved in such schemes, professional de-registration follows conviction. The message is unambiguous: the board will not tolerate the exploitation of families seeking to register their children for national examinations.
The scale of this year's examination cycle underscores why clarity matters. As of the statement's release, 1,527,867 candidates had registered across all three examination levels—a 7.3 percent increase from the 1,416,448 candidates registered in the previous year. That growth means more families navigating the registration process, more opportunities for confusion, and more potential for unscrupulous actors to profit from that confusion.
Odongo also addressed the situation of government-sponsored candidates sitting for Universal Primary Education, Universal Secondary Education, and Uganda Post-O-Level Education and Training examinations. These students were required to register during the normal period. UNEB will not accept late registrations from them, meaning schools have no flexibility on their behalf. For any candidate whose registration contains errors, schools retain one option: download the amendment form from their school portal, correct the information, and submit it to UNEB before the June 30th deadline closes.
Once registration concludes, schools will be required to display candidate registers in accessible locations, allowing students and parents to verify that their information has been correctly recorded. UNEB will also provide an SMS verification option, though the specific dates for these displays have not yet been announced. For schools or families with questions, UNEB operates a helpline at 041-777-3100, with toll-free numbers available at 0800-211-077 and 0800-111-427. The board has made its position clear: the system is transparent, the deadlines are firm, and the rules apply equally to all.
Citações Notáveis
Heads of centres are advised to make use of the remaining time to ensure that all learners in the respective candidate classes are duly registered so that no learner who is supposed to sit for this year's examinations is left out.— Dan Odongo, UNEB executive director
This is an offence under the UNEB Act, CAP 259, Section 33. It attracts a penalty of Forty Million Shillings or a term of imprisonment not exceeding ten years or both.— Dan Odongo, on charging unauthorized fees
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why does UNEB need to issue this warning now? Hasn't the registration process been the same for years?
The warning isn't really about the process itself—it's about what some schools have started doing. They're charging parents extra money and claiming it's an official UNEB fee. It's a scam, essentially, and it works because parents trust that schools know what they're talking about.
So schools are just making up fees?
Exactly. UNEB has a prescribed list of what registration costs. Schools that want to charge more are inventing new ones and attaching the UNEB name to them. It's fraud, but it's hard for a parent to know that unless they call UNEB directly.
What happens to a school head who gets caught doing this?
They face prison time—up to ten years—or a 40 million shilling fine, or both. And the school loses its examination centre status entirely. It's a nuclear option, but UNEB is making it clear they're serious.
Is this a widespread problem, or just a few bad actors?
The fact that UNEB felt compelled to issue a public warning suggests it's happening enough to matter. They wouldn't spend the energy otherwise. But we don't have numbers on how many schools are doing it.
What about the students? Are they the ones who suffer if a school loses its centre status?
Yes. If a school gets its centre withdrawn, those students suddenly have nowhere to sit for their exams. It's a punishment that falls on the people least responsible for the crime.