An international student was arrested for threatening to bring a gun to a North Vancouver school to harm a teacher, police say.

RCMP Cpl. Richard De Jong said the student was arrested at Seycove Secondary on Tuesday after school staff reported it to the RCMP.

Police later found a firearm close to the school property.

The school's principal, Mark James, sent a letter to parents, saying "the student is no longer a student in the North Vancouver School District and is no longer in the country."

RCMP are also investigating a second international student in connection with the same incident.

"That student is currently not attending school while the school district and RCMP work through their processes," the principal said.

James also assured parents that the school site remains safe for classes to continue as usual.

Police are not releasing the name, age, grade or nationality of either students to protect their privacy, but say they are taking the incident very seriously.

"It could have turned out quite differently," De Jong said. "We're still looking into how it was reported, and speaking to a lot of witnesses."