TSC Swap Requirements
The core TSC swap requirements are an active TSC account, a genuine reason for transfer selected from the portal’s categories, and — for a mutual swap specifically — a matching subject combination and school category with another teacher. Your institution profile and length of stay are checked automatically by the system rather than something you need to prove separately, but the accuracy of your reason and preferred destination is on you.
What’s required to apply
To submit a transfer or swap request, you need to be logged in to your teacher account — see TSC swap portal login if you haven’t got that far. Beyond having an active account, the portal itself walks you through what’s needed in four fields: your Profile and LOS (both locked, auto-filled from your record), your Reason, and your Transfer To destination. There’s no separate document upload or PDF form to prepare in advance — see TSC swap application form: is there a PDF? if you’ve been told otherwise.
Accepted reason categories
When you apply, you’ll choose a reason from a dropdown rather than writing free text. Commonly used categories include:
| Reason category | Typical use |
|---|---|
| Aging parents | Relocating closer to elderly parents who need care |
| Spousal reasons | Relocating to be with a spouse posted elsewhere |
| Medical grounds | Health circumstances requiring a different station |
| Other | Any circumstance not covered by the categories above |
Pick the category that genuinely reflects your situation. Your Head of Institution and Secretariat reviewers see this reason, and it factors into how your request is prioritized against others.
What’s different for a mutual swap
A straight transfer only needs your preferred county or sub-county. A mutual swap has one additional requirement: your subject combination and school category need to match another teacher who’s also looking to move, since the system uses these to generate swap opportunities for you to consent to. You don’t need to find that person yourself — the matching happens automatically once your request is submitted, as covered in our step-by-step application guide.
Requirements for secondary school teachers
There’s no separate application process for secondary school teachers, but matching is filtered by school category, so a Senior Secondary teacher is only shown Senior Secondary opportunities, and a Junior Secondary School (JSS) teacher only sees JSS opportunities. If your subject combination is uncommon in your target county, it may take longer for a matching swap to appear — a straight transfer request doesn’t have this limitation.
FAQ: TSC Swap Requirements
What are the requirements for a TSC swap?
You need an active TSC account, a valid reason for transfer, and, for a mutual swap, a matching subject combination and school category with another teacher. Your Profile and Length of Stay are checked automatically by the system.
Do I need a specific number of years at my current station to apply?
Your years in your current sub-county and school (LOS) are recorded and displayed automatically as part of your request, and factor into how it’s reviewed, but the field itself is filled in by the system rather than entered by you.
What reasons are accepted for a TSC transfer or swap?
Common accepted categories include aging parents, spousal reasons, medical grounds, and other, selected from a dropdown when you apply. Choose the category that genuinely reflects your circumstances.
Do secondary school teachers have different swap requirements?
The application requirements are the same, but swap matching is filtered by school category and subject combination, so a Senior Secondary Biology/Chemistry teacher is only shown other Senior Secondary opportunities in a matching combination.
