Supplementing regulations on reimbursement of training costs for international students with state budget scholarships

Decree No. 86/2021/ND-CP does not yet stipulate criteria for exemption from compensation for international students who have not completed their course due to war, natural disasters, epidemics, health problems, or difficult circumstances.

Dai Nam University students practice at school - Photo: DNU

The Ministry of Education and Training has just announced a draft decree amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree No. 86/2021/ND-CP regulating Vietnamese citizens going abroad to study, teach, conduct scientific research and conduct academic exchanges to solicit comments.

According to the Ministry of Education and Training, from the results of the survey and assessment of the implementation of Decree No. 86/2021/ND-CP, it can be seen that in addition to positive results, the Decree still has some problems related to the implementation of enrollment, management of international students with state budget scholarships, simplification of administrative procedures, and the need to supplement regulations on exemption from reimbursement of training costs for international students who do not complete the course due to force majeure.

Accordingly, the draft decree amending and supplementing Decree No. 86/2021/ND-CP is expected to add regulations that international students who are not officials, civil servants, or public employees, and are not granted a diploma or graduation certificate by a training institution, are considered for exemption from reimbursement of training costs, provided they fall into one of the following cases:

Firstly, the place where you are studying is affected by war, natural disasters or epidemics, and does not ensure safety and security for continuing your studies, with confirmation from the Vietnamese representative agency in the host country.

Second, for health reasons, there is a medical record issued by a competent medical authority abroad or in the country (in case of returning home for medical treatment), clearly stating the medical condition that prevents the student from continuing to study abroad.

Third, international students are seriously ill as prescribed, have medical records issued by competent health authorities or have passed away.

The Ministry of Education and Training said that the regulation that international students receiving state budget scholarships must repay the funds once within 120 days from the date of receiving the decision to recover the refunded costs causes economic and health difficulties for international students, because in reality the amount of money spent on foreign training is quite large.

Therefore, the Ministry of Education and Training plans to amend the regulations on the time for refunding compensation costs.

Within 120 days from the date of receipt of notification from the direct management agency or the sending agency, the student eligible for reimbursement or the student's family is responsible for paying the reimbursement fee. The maximum reimbursement period is equal to the training period according to the decision to send the student to study.

Reimbursement costs are paid into the state budget according to the current budget management hierarchy, instead of being paid into the state treasury account as at present.

International students who have completed their study program, are eligible to receive a diploma or graduation certificate but have not returned home, and stay abroad to continue studying at a higher level or do an internship after graduation will not be granted a plane ticket to return home and must have the consent of the sending agency or the direct management agency (in case of having a working agency).

In addition, the ministry plans to amend and supplement related to simplifying administrative procedures; amend and supplement the management of organizations providing study abroad consulting services; amend and supplement the responsibilities of ministries and branches...

See details of the draft decree amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree No. 86/2021/ND-CP here.

NGUYEN BAO

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/bo-sung-quy-dinh-boi-hoan-chi-phi-dao-tao-voi-du-hoc-sinh-hoc-bong-ngan-sach-nha-nuoc-20250709160032965.htm