With public school tuition free up to grade 12, what happens to students in private schools?

(Dan Tri Newspaper) - On February 28, the Politburo agreed with the proposal of the Ministry of Education and Training to waive tuition fees for students in public schools from preschool to the end of general education.

According to current regulations, from September 1, 2025, the government will provide free tuition for all public school students from 5-year-old kindergarten to the end of grade 9.

However, the Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) proposed, and the Politburo agreed, to add tuition fee exemption for preschool children aged 3 months to 4 years and for primary and secondary school students.

Therefore, in the near future, all public preschool, primary, lower secondary, and upper secondary school students will be exempt from tuition fees.

Notably, students at private and semi-private schools will receive tuition fee subsidies equivalent to the tuition fees of public schools, as stipulated by law. The difference in tuition fees between public and private/semi-private schools will be paid by the students' families.

Students of Le Hong Phong High School for the Gifted (Ho Chi Minh City) at the opening ceremony of the 2024-2025 school year (Photo: Nam Anh).

According to statistics, there are currently 23.2 million students nationwide, not including students attending vocational and continuing education centers. Of these, 3.1 million are preschool students under 5 years old, and 1.7 million are 5-year-old preschool students.

At the general education level, there are 8.9 million primary school students, 6.5 million lower secondary school students, and 3 million upper secondary school students.

The estimated cost to implement the policy of waiving tuition fees for students is approximately 30,000 billion VND.

If we subtract the budgets of the provinces and cities that have implemented tuition fee exemptions, such as Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, Yen Bai, Quang Nam, Khanh Hoa, Da Nang, Ba Ria - Vung Tau, Binh Duong, and Long An, the amount the central government has to pay will be less than the figure mentioned above.

In reality, the required budget will depend on the specific tuition fees of each province and city, as decided by the Provincial People's Council based on the minimum and maximum tuition fee rates stipulated by the Government.

The Ministry of Education and Training assesses that the policy of waiving tuition fees for students from preschool to the end of secondary school, if implemented, could affect the career orientation of students after lower secondary school in choosing whether to continue their education at upper secondary school or pursue vocational training.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giao-duc/mien-hoc-phi-cong-lap-den-lop-12-hoc-sinh-truong-dan-lap-ra-sao-20250228184459565.htm