Apart from free lessons, what educational content still charges money?

(Dan Tri) - In addition to the regular classes paid for by the State budget, educational activities according to needs are carried out with socialized resources, and parents agree to contribute according to reality.

Teachers and students of Tran Hung Dao Primary School, Ho Chi Minh City (Photo: Huyen Nguyen).

Free tuition and no extra fees

From the 2025-2026 school year, tuition and extra-curricular fees are two fees that schools are not allowed to collect from students.

Recently, the Politburo decided to exempt all tuition fees for students from kindergarten to high school nationwide, starting from the beginning of the new school year 2025-2026.

This is a meaningful policy, good news for millions of families, especially those in difficult circumstances, helping to significantly reduce the financial burden at the beginning of each school year.

At the same time, Circular 29/2024 of the Ministry of Education and Training, which took effect from February this year, stipulates that schools are not allowed to organize extra classes on a large scale and are not allowed to collect tuition fees from students and parents. The organization of extra classes only applies to 3 groups: weak students, good students and final year students.

Thus, from September this year, tuition and extra-curricular fees are no longer included in the list of revenues.

Socialization of educational activities session 2

In addition to the regular classes that have been exempted, in practice, parents still pay for some classes or educational activities at school.

According to the instructions of the Ministry of Education and Training, when the school organizes 2 sessions/day, the teaching time for sessions 1 and 2 in the week is flexible in arrangement; session 1 is not fixed in the morning and session 2 is in the afternoon.

In the first session, the school organizes teaching of the General Education Program content of subjects and educational activities issued with Circular No. 32/2018/TT-BGDDT dated December 26, 2018 of the Minister of Education and Training. These contents are completely exempted from tuition fees.

In the second session, schools organize consolidation activities for students to complete the learning content (primary school students), organize review and tutoring for students who have not met the requirements of the General Education Program; foster excellent students; organize review for students to take the 10th grade entrance exam; review for the high school graduation exam.

Other activities such as: Education on culture, arts, STEM/STEAM education, reading culture education, school culture, moral education, life skills education, financial education, education on knowledge of traffic safety and order; education on digital skills, artificial intelligence (AI), foreign languages, sports, activities to learn about nature, society, culture, history, local traditions and other educational content according to regulations, meeting the needs, interests, talents of students, ...

A second session activity for students in Ho Chi Minh City is a collaboration between schools and businesses, with a fee (Photo: Huyen Nguyen).

The above activities are organized in a diverse, rich, suitable and effective manner with teaching methods such as group study, self-study, clubs; combined in/out of class; direct, online or coordinated; coordination between school teachers and experts from social organizations, universities, businesses;...

Thus, in addition to the exempted content (including extra tutoring for weak students, excellent students and senior students), the remaining activities of session 2 will be socialized.

The implementation of session 2 must ensure the voluntary participation of students, the consent of parents and be consistent with the implementation conditions of the school. The collection, expenditure, management and use of contributions from parents must comply with current regulations.

Other contributions

According to regulations, in addition to tuition fees, parents still need to contribute a number of prescribed amounts, including: uniforms, student health insurance, boarding meals, boarding care, class funds, school supplies for preschool children, drinking water and a number of direct services to serve the learning and living needs of students.

These payments are made publicly, transparently and for the right purpose, ensuring the principles of voluntariness and agreement.

Particularly, primary school students in Hanoi, starting from the 2025-2026 school year, will be supported with meals at school with a support cost of 20,000 VND/day/student (urban) and 30,000 VND/day/student in difficult mountainous communes.

Social activities need to receive parental consent (Illustration: Huyen Nguyen).

In addition, schools can mobilize parents to contribute according to Circular 16/2018/TT-BGDDT on funding for educational institutions, however, they must not force or equalize.

The detailed list of revenues of each locality will be according to the regulations approved by the People's Council of the provinces.

10 things you should never collect

According to Circular 55/2011 of the Ministry of Education and Training on the activities of the Parents' Representative Board, schools and representative boards are not allowed to collect the following 10 items: Collections that do not ensure voluntary nature; fees for protecting facilities and security; fees for keeping students' vehicles; fees for cleaning classrooms and schools; and bonuses for cadres, teachers and employees.

Parents also do not have to pay for the purchase of equipment, machinery, and teaching aids for the school; support for management and teaching organization; repair, upgrade, and construction of school buildings; contributions for activities not directly serving students; and any other revenues contrary to the provisions of law.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giao-duc/ngoai-cac-tiet-hoc-duoc-mien-phi-noi-dung-giao-duc-nao-van-thu-tien-20250913235043779.htm