Primary school principals are fighting a government plan to stop them enrolling international students.
They say the proposal to restrict enrolment before year nine does not make sense and comes just as foreign families are lining up to enrol their children next year after the borders reopen.
A government consultation document says the enrolments are unfair on schools that do not enrol them, add to pressure on the housing market, and could distract schools from focusing on Kiwi kids.
Education correspondent John Gerritsen reports.