RIYADH -- Saudi Arabia's students came back to school on Sunday, starting their new academic year after receiving 17 months of online education.

Only fully vaccinated students aged above 12 can return to school, while elementary and preschool students are not allowed to return for the moment.

Meanwhile, students who are not fully vaccinated or younger than 12 still started the academic year through online platforms.

Deputy Education Minister Saad Bin Saud Al Fahid visited some schools to inspect the precautionary health measures on the first day of the academic year.

"We are closely following up the schools' plans for receiving students and methods to regulate their entry and exit, along with the redistribution of tables at classrooms to ensure social distancing," he said.

Six million fully-jabbed students from more than 25,000 schools in the country resumed their in-person education on Sunday, according to the ministry.

Furthermore, Education Minister Hamad bin Mohammad Al Al-Sheikh revealed earlier that the new academic year would be exceptional by applying new curricula for the global series, and the three-semester plan instead of the previous two-semester one, which is expected to ensure the utmost benefit of the schooling days and education resources.