The present paper analyses the establishment of an educational policy that changes the compulsory school term from 8 to 9 years, with children joining school at the age of 6. The study consisted of a qualitative, multiple-case research that investigated the implementation of that policy in the states of Bahia and Mato Grosso do Sul. The research showed that the main progress provided by the policy is the legal assurance that all children completing 6 years will have access to school. Unlike other texts, this one presents an analysis that recognises the impact of the implementation of Law 11,274/2006 on the standards for school access, but it also poses a question to the efficiency of such policy as the panacea for education quality.