Currently, mental health issues among children and adolescents are increasingly severe, which has posed a significant public health burden. School-based universal mental health screening is recognized as an effective approach for early intervention and treatment of mental health disorders in the population. To understand the current situation of universal mental health screening for students in schools worldwide, the study aims to investigate the current status of school-based universal mental health screening globally. It is found that numerous countries and regions have implemented universal school-based mental health screening practices with several enacting legislative measures to mandate such screenings and multiple national institutions issuing related guidelines. In the future, it is necessary to improve the multi-level intervention network after screening, enhance the ability of mental health services, and optimize the whole process of mental health screening from "identification" to "support".