Decree 238/2025/ND-CP policies on tuition fees exemption, reduction and support

DECREE

Defining the policies on tuition fees, tuition fee exemption, reduction and support, support for study costs, and service charges
in the field of education and training

Pursuant to the Law No. 63/2025/QH15 on Organization of the Government;

Pursuant to the Law No. 72/2025/QH15 on Organization of Local Administration;

Pursuant to the Education Law No. 43/2019/QH15;

Pursuant to the Law on Vocational Education No. 74/2014/QH13;

Pursuant to the Law No. 08/2012/QH13 on Higher Education, which was amended and supplemented by the Law No. 34/2018/QH14;

Pursuant to the Law No. 89/2025/QH15 on the State Budget;

Pursuant to the Law No. 16/2023/QH15 on Price;

Pursuant to the Resolution No. 217/2025/QH15 of the National Assembly on tuition fee exemption and support for children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, learners in general education programs in education institutions under the national education system;

At the proposal of the Minister of Education and Training;

The Government promulgates the Decree defining the policies on tuition fees, tuition fee exemption, reduction and support, support for study costs, and service charges in the field of education and training.

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of regulation

This Decree prescribes tuition fee brackets, regimes of tuition fee collection and management, tuition fee exemption, reduction and support, support for study costs in education institutions under the national education system, and service charges in the field of education and training.

Article 2. Subject of application

1. This Decree applies to children in early childhood education institutions, pupils, students, learners and postgraduates (hereinafter referred to as learners) in education institutions under the national education system under the Education Law, the Law on Higher Education and the Law on Vocational Education; education institutions under the national education system under the Education Law, the Law on Higher Education and the Law on Vocational Education; and relevant organizations and individuals.

2. This Decree shall not apply to learners who have already received support for tuition fees and living expenses in accordance with the Government's regulations on support for tuition fees and cost-of-living expenses for students of teacher training institutions.

Article 3. Interpretation of terms

1. Service charges in the field of education and training refers to the money paid by service users for each service in education, training and vocational education sectors, including tuition fees (by education and training level) and other service charges in the field of education and training (enrolment fees, fees for education quality accreditation service; fees for grant of blank diplomas and certificates; fees for education support and human resource supply services by research and development of strategies, policies, master plans, plans for training of human resources according to social demands; fees for services for surveying, analyzing, and forecasting human resource demand via connecting training institutions with employers to utilize resources for human resource development and training; fees for further training service for teachers and education administrators; fees for consulting service for organizations and individuals for development of plans and master plans for human resource development and development of necessary skills for learners; fees for services serving and supporting education and training activities).

2. Tuition fee means a money amount payable by a learner to cover part or the whole costs of education and training services. Tuition fee rates shall be determined according to the designed roadmap to ensure the coverage of costs of education and training services as prescribed in this Decree.

3. Education quality accreditation under this Decree includes education quality accreditation issued by the Minister of Education and Training (hereinafter referred to as quality accreditation by domestic standards) or according to quality evaluation criteria of foreign educational quality accreditation organizations recognized to operate in Vietnam (hereinafter referred to as quality accreditation by foreign standards).

4. Services serving and supporting education and training activities mean services which are organized to create favorable conditions, enhance the quality and effectiveness of education, meet the comprehensive development needs of learners and the activities of educational institutions, but are not covered by the State budget or have not been constituted in tuition fees. Services serving and supporting educational activities include services such as dining, semi-boarding services; learner transportation service; school healthcare service; psychological counseling, career orientation, career experience services; library service; technology and digital learning services; extracurricular activities, life skills; outside school hours care service (service of care for children outside normal school or preschool hours); other services serving and supporting educational activities.

Article 4. State management of service charges in the field of education and training

1. The Ministry of Education and Training shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Finance and relevant ministries, ministerial-level agencies and localities in, implementing its state management functions regarding tuition fees and other service charges in the field of education and training:

a) Guiding the process of formulating, appraising, and promulgating economic-technical norms

and the method of determining service charges in the field of education and training according to the decentralization of state management in the field of education and training;

b) Deciding the methods of assigning tasks, placing orders, bidding for provision of products and services in the field of education and training falling under the list of public services using state budget from central budget within the decentralized management sector; deciding the price of order of services in the field of education and training falling under the list of public services using central budget according to the decentralized management scope.

2. Ministries and ministerial-level agencies shall, within the scope of their assigned tasks and powers, perform the state management function regarding tuition fees, and other service charges in the field of education and training; promulgate economic-technical norms or cost norms, or coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Training in formulating and promulgating economic-technical norms for specific professional sectors; decide the methods of assigning tasks, placing orders, bidding for provision of products and services in the field of education and training from the central budget source; and decide the price for placing orders for services in the field of education and training falling under the list of public services using the central budget for services within the decentralized management scope.

3. People’s Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities shall:

a) Perform the state management function regarding tuition fees, and other service charges in the field of education and training; promulgate economic-technical norms or cost norms applicable in the field of education and training falling under their local management authority; decide the methods of assigning tasks, placing orders, bidding for provision of products and services in the field of education and training; decide the price for placing orders for services in the field of education and training falling under the list of public services using the budget under the local management authority;

b) Submit to the People's Councils at the same level for decision the tuition fee brackets or levels for public early childhood education and general education, detailed regulations on the list of collection items and collection levels, the mechanism for management of revenues and expenditures for services serving and supporting education and training activities for public educational institutions according to management authority for application at their localities.

4. Heads of education institutions under the national education system shall publicize transparently and explain to society the basis and methods of determining and calculating service charges in the field of education and training which are determined by the institutions and reported to the competent agency according to regulations.

Article 5. Principles of determining service charges in the field of education and training

1. Service charges in the field of education and training in public education institutions shall be determined in accordance with the law on prices and the Government’s regulations on the financial autonomy mechanism for public non-business units.

2. Service charges in the field of education and training in people-founded and private education institutions shall be determined in accordance with the law regulations on prices and adjusted according to an appropriate roadmap corresponding to the quality of education and training services, but shall not exceed 15% for vocational education and higher education, and not exceed 10% for early childhood education and general education.

Article 6. Roadmap for calculating service charges in the field of education and training

1. Roadmap for calculating service charges in the field of education and training shall comply with the Government’s regulations on the financial autonomy mechanism for public non-business units.

2. Tuition fees shall comply with the roadmap of full expense calculation as specified in Article 8, Article 9, Article 10, and Article 11 of this Decree.

3. Based on the socio-economic development policy and the local budget balancing capacity, People's Committees of the provinces or centrally-run cities shall submit to People's Councils at the same level for consideration and decision to permit early childhood education institutions, general education institutions, and the early childhood education institutions and general education institutions in universities, colleges, and research institutes to proactively implement the roadmap for fully calculating costs into the education and training service charges commensurate with the quality of education and training; while concurrently ensure the implementation of mandatory education goals in accordance with the Law on Education and guiding documents.

Chapter II

REGULATIONS ON TUITION FEES

Article 7. Principles of determining tuition fees

1. For public education institutions.

The tuition fee rates shall be determined according to the principle of cost recovery and accumulation as specified by the Law on Prices and a roadmap for fully calculating costs suitable for each education level, the socio-economic conditions of each residential region, the growth rate of the consumer price index, and the annual economic growth rate.

For training programs of public higher education institutions that satisfy training program quality accreditation standards defined by the Ministry of Education and Training or international training program quality accreditation standards or equivalent, higher education institutions may determine tuition fees of such training programs based on economic and technical norms issued by the higher education institutions and must publicize and explain to their learners and the society.

2. For people-founded and private education institutions.

a) People-founded and private education institutions have the right to proactively set tuition fee rates and other service charges in the field of education and training (except for services of which the prices are defined by the State), ensuring cost recovery and accumulation in accordance with the Law on Prices.

b) To implement publicization in accordance with the law regulations and take responsibility for explaining to learners and the society the tuition fee rates and service charges decided by the institutions; to clearly explain the price constituent factors, the roadmap, and the increase rates of tuition fees in subsequent years, which do not exceed 15% for vocational education and higher education, and not exceeding 10% for early childhood education and general education.

Article 8. Tuition fees for childhood education institutions and general education institutions

1. The tuition fee brackets shall be used as the basis for determining the level of tuition fee support for children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, learners in general education programs at people-founded and private education institutions, and the reimbursement amount provided by the State budget to public education institutions when implementation of the policy of tuition fee exemption for children in childhood education institutions, secondary school students, learners in general education programs.

2. Tuition fee brackets from the academic year of 2025-2026 onwards for public early childhood education institutions and general education institutions that do not self-guarantee their regular expenditure:

a) Academic year of 2025 - 2026 (minimum level – tuition ceiling level)

Unit: VND thousand/learner/month

b) From the academic year of 2026-2027 to the academic year of 2035-2036, the ceiling level of tuition fee shall be revised according to socio-economic conditions of localities, growth rate of consumer price index, annual economic growth rate which must not exceed 7.5%/year;

c) From the academic year of 2035-2036 onwards, the ceiling level of tuition fee shall be adjusted according to socio-economic conditions of localities but shall not exceed the growth rate of consumer price index at the time of determination of the tuition fee compared to the one of the same period of the previous year, as announced by the competent State agency.

3. The ceiling level of tuition fee brackets applicable to childhood education institutions and public general education institutions that self-guarantee their regular expenditure entirely: up to 2 times the ceiling level of tuition fee specified in Clause 2 of this Article.

4. The ceiling level of tuition fee brackets applicable to childhood education institutions and public general education institutions that self-guarantee their regular expenditure and investment expenditure: up to 2.5 times the ceiling level of tuition fee specified in Clause 2 of this Article.

5. In case of online learning, People’s Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities shall submit People’s Councils at the same level for defining the specific tuition fees for public education institutions under their management decentralization, based on reasonable actual costs which must not exceed the publicized tuition fee levels of education institutions.

6. Based on the socio-economic development policy and the local budget balancing capacity, People's Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities submit to People's Councils at the same level for consideration and decision on tuition fee brackets or tuition fee rates applicable to public early childhood education institutions and general education institutions (including early childhood education institutions and general education institutions established by universities, colleges, or research institutes according to regulations) based on economic and technical norms or cost norms issued by competent agency, ensuring that the tuition fee rates are commensurate with the quality of educational services; while concurrently ensuring the implementation of mandatory education goals in accordance with the Law on Education and guiding documents.

7. Based on the tuition fee brackets specified in this Article, the People's Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities shall submit to the People's Councils at the same level for decision the tuition fee rates for public education institutions and the level of tuition fee support for children and students in people-founded and private education institutions, provided that they do not exceed the tuition fee rates of the people-founded and private education institutions.

8. The People's Councils of the provinces and centrally-run cites shall decide the arrangement and classification of areas within their locality to determine the tuition fee rates and tuition fee support for children of early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, learners in general education programs in education institutions under their management.

Article 9. Tuition fees for vocational education

1. Tuition fee ceiling levels for training programs in college level and intermediate level in public vocational education institutions that do not self-guarantee their regular expenditure for the academic year of 2025 - 2026 onwards shall be as follows:

a) For academic year of 2025 - 2026 and academic year of 2026 - 2027:

Unit: VND thousand/learner/month

b) From the academic year of 2027-2028 onwards, the ceiling level of tuition fee shall be adjusted according to the affordability of the people and the socio-economic conditions but shall not exceed the growth rate of consumer price index at the time of determination of the tuition fee rates compared to the one of the same period of the previous year, as announced by the competent State agency.

2. For public vocational education institutions that self-guarantee part of their regular expenses: Maximum tuition fee does not exceed 2 times the tuition fee specified at Clause 1 of this Article.

3. For public vocational education institutions that self-guarantee their regular expenditure and investment expenditure: May develop and decide on tuition fee rates according to Law on Vocational Education and other relevant documents.

4. Public vocational education institutions shall, based on the tuition fee ceiling levels defined in Clauses 1, 2, and 3 of this Article and the economic-technical norms or cost norms for each training discipline issued by the vocational education institutions, decide the specific tuition fee for each academic year and training discipline under their management authority.

5. For high-quality training programs and transfer programs from foreign countries in vocational education, vocational education institutions shall, based on the economic-technical norms or cost norms for each training discipline issued by the vocational education institutions, decide the specific tuition fee for each academic year and training discipline under their management authority and shall publicize this information before enrollment.

6. Tuition fees for the forms of in-service training and distant education shall be determined based on reasonable actual costs which must not exceed 150% of tuition fee rates of the respective formal education.

7. For tuition fees of training disciplines available in form of online learning, vocational education institutions shall determine them based on reasonable actual costs which must not exceed tuition of training disciplines available in form of onsite learning.

8. Tuition fees for elementary training level, continuous training level, skill training, and other short-term training programs shall be formulated and provided proactively by vocational education institutions based on the economic-technical characteristics issued by the education institutions, ensuring transparency, clarity, and accountability to learners and the society.

9. Tuition fees for vocational education shall be calculated by modules or credits:

a) Tuition fee of a credit or module is determined based on total tuition fee amount of the entire course by group of training discipline and total number of credits or modules of the entire course according to the following formula:

Total tuition fee amount of the entire course = tuition fee applicable to 1 student/month x 10 months x number of academic years, ensuring that maximum total tuition fee amount by credit of training program equals total year-based tuition fee amount.

b) In case of studying for longer than the intended period of a training program, the credit-based tuition fee amount applied from the expiration date of the intended period shall be re-determined based on actual studying period according to the principle of cost recovery and ensuring public disclosure and transparency to the learners;

c) In case of studying for a second degree, only tuition fee for credits and modules actually taken according to the training program is required.

10. For vocational education institutions under direct management of economic institutions or state enterprises: Heads of vocational education institutions shall, based on the tuition fee ceiling levels mentioned above and the economic-technical norms or cost norms for training disciplines issued by the vocational education institutions, decide the specific tuition fees for each academic year and training discipline under their management authority, which shall not exceed the tuition fee ceiling levels defined in Clause 3 of this Article.

11. Public vocational education institutions may provide tuition fee rates for cases of repeat learning. The maximum tuition fee rates for repeat learning must not exceed the tuition ceiling level of tuition fees under this Decree. In case of organizing separate classes according to the learners’ needs, tuition fee rates shall be agreed upon by the learners and vocational education institutions on the basis of covering all costs.

12. Foreign pupils and students participating in training courses in vocational education institutions shall pay tuition fees according to the rates prescribed by the vocational education institutions or conventions, cooperation agreements signed with foreign parties.

Article 10. Tuition fees for higher education

1. Tuition fee ceiling level for public higher education institutions that do not self-guarantee their regular expenditure for the academic year of 2025 - 2026 onwards shall be as follows:

a) For academic year of 2025 - 2026 and academic year of 2026 - 2027:

Unit: VND thousand/learner/month

b) From the academic year of 2027-2028 onwards, the ceiling level of tuition fee shall be adjusted according to the affordability of the people and the socio-economic conditions but shall not exceed the growth rate of consumer price index at the time of determination of the tuition fee rates compared to the one of the same period of the previous year, as announced by the competent State agency.

2. For public higher education institutions that self-guarantee their regular expenditure entirely: Tuition fee shall equal up to 2 times the ceiling level specified in Clause 1 of this Article for each respective major and each academic year.

3. For Public higher education institutions that self-guarantee their regular expenditure and investment expenditure: Tuition fee shall equal up to 2.5 times the ceiling level specified in Clause 1 of this Article for each respective major and each academic year.

4. For training programs of public higher education institutions that satisfy training program quality accreditation standards defined by the Ministry of Education and Training or international training program quality accreditation standards or equivalent, the higher education institutions shall, based on the economic-technical norms or cost norms of each specific training discipline issued by their education institutions, decide tuition fees of the higher education institutions and must publicize them to their learners and the society.

5. Tuition fee ceiling levels for training for master degree and doctor degree of public higher education institutions shall equal the tuition fee ceiling levels of higher education tuition fee specified in Clause 1, Clause 2 of this Article multiplied by 1.5 for training for master degree and 2.5 for training for doctor degree in each respective major of each academic year depending on level of autonomy.

6. Tuition fee for part-time training and distance education is determined based on reasonable actual costs which must not exceed 150% of tuition fee amount of respective formal education program.

7. In case of online learning, higher education institutions shall determine tuition fees based on reasonable actual costs which must not exceed tuition fees of higher education institutions providing respective majors.

8. Tuition fee rates for continuing education programs and short-term training services suitable for the majors or fields of each education institution in accordance with law regulations shall be calculated and defined by the education institutions according to the economic-technical norms or cost norms issued by the education institutions, ensuring publicity, transparency, and accountability to learners and society.

9. Tuition fee for higher education shall be calculated by credits and modules:

a) Tuition fee of a credit or module is determined based on total tuition fee amount of the entire course by group of training discipline and total number of credits or modules of the entire course according to the following formula:

Total tuition fee of a course = tuition fee rate for 1 student/month x 10 months x number of academic years, ensuring that maximum total tuition fee by credit of training program shall be equal the total academic year-based tuition fee.

b) In case the study duration exceeds the intended period of the training program, the learner’s credit-based tuition fee applied from the time of expiration shall be re-determined based on actual study duration according to the principle of cost recovery and implement publicity and accountability to learners;

c) In case of training for the second bachelor’s diploma, learners shall pay tuition fees according to actual number of credits in training program.

10. Public education institutions shall, based on the above tuition fee ceiling levels specified in this Article and the economic-technical norms or cost norms of majors or training programs issued by the education institutions, decide on the specific tuition fee rates for academic years, majors, and training programs under their management authority.

11. For higher education institutions directly managed by economic organizations or state-owned enterprises: The heads of the education institutions shall, based on the above tuition fee ceiling levels and the economic-technical norms or cost norms of training disciplines issued by the education institutions, decide on the specific tuition fee rates for academic years and training disciplines under their management authority, but not exceeding the tuition fee ceiling levels as specified in Clauses 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 of this Article.

12. Public higher education institutions may provide tuition fee for cases of repeat learning. The maximum tuition fees for repeat learning must not exceed the tuition ceiling levels specified in this Decree, depending on form of institutions. In cases where separate classes are organized according to the needs of learners, the tuition fees shall be based on the agreement between the learners and the public higher education institutions on the principle of full cost recovery.

13. University students, master students, and postgraduates who are foreigners studying in public higher education institutions shall pay tuition fees as prescribed by the higher education institutions or according to conventions and cooperation agreements with foreign parties.

Article 11. Tuition fees for continuing education programs

1. Tuition fees for lower secondary and upper secondary continuing education programs in public education institutions shall be applied at tuition fee rates equivalent to those of public general education institutions of the same education level in the localities as specified by the People's Councils of provinces and centrally-run cities.

The tuition fees serve as the basis for determining the tuition fee support levels for learners of general education programs at people-founded and private education institutions, as well as the state budget’s support levels for offsetting public education institutions upon implementation of tuition fee exemption policies for learners of general education programs.

2. Tuition fees for illiteracy eradication programs: Public education institutions shall define tuition fee rates based on economic-technical norms or cost norms and submit them to the People's Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities for proposal to the People's Councils of the same level for approval in accordance with the training types and actual conditions of localities. Funding for the implementation of illiteracy eradication programs shall be carried out via ordering, task assignment, or bidding with education institutions assigned to implement the illiteracy eradication programs according to the decentralization of state management of education and training.

3. Tuition fees for on-demand educational programs; educational programs to update knowledge, raise skills and transfer technologies; and training and further training programs to raise professional qualifications: Public education institutions shall specify tuition fee rates based on economic-technical norms or cost norms and submit them to the People's Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities for proposal to the People's Councils of the same level for approval in accordance with the training types and actual conditions of localities. Education institutions shall carry out the publicization in accordance with the law regulations and be responsible for accountability to learners and society regarding the tuition fee rates.

Chapter III

REGIMES OF TUITION FEE COLLECTION AND MANAGEMENT

Article 12. Regimes of tuition fee collection

1. Tuition fees shall be collected monthly; subject to the learners' voluntary consent, education institutions may collect tuition fees in a lump sum for an entire semester or an entire academic year. For continuing education institutions, continuing training, and short-term training and further training courses, tuition fees shall be collected based on the actual number of months of study. For early childhood education institutions and general education institutions, tuition fees shall be collected for a maximum of 9 months/year.  For higher education institutions and vocational education institutions, tuition fees shall be collected for a maximum of 10 months/year.

2. In cases emergency situations occur as defined by law regulations, tuition fees shall be collected according to the actual number of study months (including the time of organizing online teaching and learning or arranging time for makeup classes at school); tuition fees shall not be collected during periods when teaching and learning are not organized. The tuition fees shall ensure the principle of the actual number of study months and necessary costs to organize teaching and learning but shall not exceed the total tuition fee amounts calculated according to the maximum number of months of 01 academic year (maximum of 9 months/year for early childhood and general education institutions and a maximum of 10 months/year for higher education and vocational education institutions). The People's Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities shall submit to the People's Councils of the same level to decide on specific support durations and tuition fee support levels for early childhood education and general education in the localities; the heads of higher education institutions and vocational education institutions shall specify the collection duration and tuition fees in cases where emergency situations occur.

3. In cases of credit-based teaching and learning, education institutions may convert to collect tuition fees by credit provided that the total collected amount of tuition fees by credit for the entire course must not exceed the tuition fee level prescribed for the course in cases of collection by academic year.

4. Education institutions shall be responsible for organizing the collection of tuition fees and depositing them into commercial banks or the State Treasury for management and use. In case of tuition fees collected in cash, the units must periodically perform procedures to transfer (deposit) the entire remaining amount of collected tuition fees in cash from the fund into their account at the State Treasury or commercial banks for management in accordance with regulations.

Article 13. Tuition fee management

1. Public education institutions shall manage and use tuition fees in accordance with the Government’s regulations on the financial autonomy mechanism for public non-business units and consolidate them into their annual financial statements as prescribed by law.

2. People-founded and private education institutions shall manage and use tuition fees to guarantee their expenditure, revenue, and take responsibilities for financial management for their activities. The accounting, tax payment, and fulfillment of other financial obligations shall comply with law regulations.

3. Education institutions shall manage tuition fee expenditure and revenues according to the law regulations on accounting, audit, tax, and financial disclosure; comply with inspection and examination requirements of competent finance agencies and education agencies, and take responsibilities before the laws for accuracy and truthfulness of the provided information and data.

4. Before enrolment or admission by consideration, education institutions must publicize tuition fees and training costs for each academic year and education level in cases of early childhood education and general education, the roadmap for tuition fee increases (if any) for each academic year, and the estimation for the entire course in cases of higher education.

5. Education institutions shall be responsible for publicizing in accordance with regulations and implementing accountability regarding training costs, tuition fees, and the roadmap for tuition fee increases for each academic year, education level, and course; publicize quality assurance conditions in accordance with regulations; and publicize policies on tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support, as well as the rates of collection, exemption, and reduction of tuition fees in cases emergency situations occur.

Chapter IV

POLICIES ON TUITION FEE EXEMPTION, REDUCTION AND SUPPORT, SUPPORT FOR STUDY COSTS, PROCEDURES AND PAYMENT METHOD

Section 1

POLICIES ON TUITION FEE EXEMPTION, REDUCTION AND SUPPORT, SUPPORT FOR STUDY COSTS

Article 14. Learners not subject to tuition fee payment

Learners studying in specific majors satisfying the demands of socio-economic development, national defense and security according to Law on Higher Education. The list of specific majors is provided by the Government and the Prime Minister.

Article 15. Learners eligible for tuition exemption

1. Children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, learners in general education programs (learners in the lower secondary continuing education program and the upper secondary continuing education program) in public education institutions under the national education system.

2. Subjects mentioned in the Ordinance on Preferential Treatment of Persons with Meritorious Services to the Revolution who are studying at education institutions under the national education system.

3. Pupils and students in vocational education institutions and higher education institutions who are people with disabilities.

4. Leaners aged from 16 years of age to 22 years of age who are studying for their first bachelor’s diploma and eligible for monthly social allowances according to Clause 1 and Clause 2 Article 5 of the Government’s Decree No. 20/2021/ND-CP dated March 15, 2021, providing social assistance policies for social protection beneficiaries. Learners in intermediate-education level or college level who are helpless orphans according to Law on Vocational Education.

5. Pupils and students enrolled through nomination (including nominated students attending boarding vocational training with a training duration of 3 months or more) according to the Government’s regulations on the nomination regime into higher education institutions and vocational education institutions under the national education system.

6. Students of pre-university schools and pre-university faculties.

7. Pupils and students studying at vocational education institutions and higher education institutions who are ethnic minorities and have a parent or parents or grandparent (if living with grandparents) in poor households or households living just above the poverty line according to the Prime Minister’s regulations.

8. Students majoring in Marxism-Leninism and Ho Chi Minh Thought.

9. Postgraduates at master's and doctoral levels, Specialist I, Specialist II, and resident doctors majoring in psychiatry, anatomical pathology, forensic medicine, forensic psychiatry, infectious diseases and intensive care medicine at public education institutions in the group of majors related to health.

10. Pupils and students from ethnic minority groups with sparse population according to the Government’s regulations on policies for kindergarten children, children in pre-primary education, pupils and students from ethnic minority groups with sparse population in areas with difficult or especially difficult socio-economic conditions according to the current regulations of competent agencies.

11. Learners who are subjects of programs and projects exempt from tuition fees as defined by the Government or the Prime Minister.

12. Graduates of lower secondary education who continue to study at the intermediate level.

13. Learners at intermediate and college levels for training disciplines that are difficult to recruit but for which society has a demand according to the list defined by the Ministry of Education and Training.

14. Learners studying in specific majors/occupations satisfying demands for socio-economic development, national defense and security according to Law on Vocational Education. Specific majors/occupations shall be defined by the Government and the Prime Minister.

Article 16. Subjects eligible for tuition fee reduction and support for tuition fees

1. Subjects eligible for a tuition fee reduction of 70% include:

a) Students studying traditional and specific art majors in public or private higher education institutions and vocational education institutions providing culture and art training, including: Traditional theatre music performer, Hue traditional music performer, Southern amateur music (Don ca tai tu) performer, traditional theatre actor, folk performance arts, Ca tru arts, Bai choi arts, and traditional musical instrument performance.

b) Students studying majors in royal court music, aulacese opera (Cheo, Tuong, Cai luong), dance, and circus; a number of heavy, hazardous, or dangerous disciplines for vocational education according to the list of heavy, hazardous, or dangerous disciplines defined by the central state management agency for vocational education.

c) Pupils and students in vocational education institutions and higher education institutions who are ethnic minority people (other than those in ethnic minority groups with sparse population) who themselves and their father or mother have permanent residence in extreme difficulty-hit villages, area-III communes in ethnic minority and mountainous areas, or extreme difficulty-hit communes in coastal sandbar areas and on islands escape as defined by competent agencies.

2. Subjects eligible for a tuition fee reduction of 50% include: Students in vocational education institutions and higher education institutions whose father or mother suffers from an occupational accident or occupational disease and receives a regular allowance.

3. Subjects eligible for tuition fee support include:

a) Children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, learners in general education programs (learners in the lower secondary continuing education program and the upper secondary continuing education program) in people-founded and private education institutions under the national education system.

b) Postgraduates at master's and doctoral levels, Specialist I, Specialist II, and resident doctors majoring in psychiatry, anatomical pathology, forensic medicine, forensic psychiatry, infectious diseases and intensive care medicine at private education institutions in the group of majors related to health.

Article 17. Subjects eligible for support for study costs

1. Children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, and students in continuing education institutions studying general education programs who are orphans.

2. Children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, and students in continuing education institutions studying general education programs who suffer from disabilities.

3. Children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, and students in continuing education institutions studying general education programs whose parent or parents or grandparents (if living with grandparents) are poor households according to the Prime Minister’s regulations.

4. Children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, and students in continuing education institutions studying general education programs who or whose father or mother or guardian (in cases of living with a guardian) have permanent residence and are studying at education institutions in extreme difficulty-hit villages, area-III communes in ethnic minority and mountainous areas, or extreme difficulty-hit communes in coastal sandbar areas and on islands escape as defined by competent agencies; or studying at education institutions in other localities as specified by the local authorities in cases there are no education institutions in the extreme difficulty-hit villages, area-III communes in ethnic minority and mountainous areas, or extreme difficulty-hit communes in coastal sandbar areas and on islands escape.

Section 2

PROCEDURES FOR IMPLEMENTING POLICIES ON TUITION FEE EXEMPTION, REDUCTION AND SUPPORT, SUPPORT FOR STUDY COSTS, AND PAYMENT METHOD

Article 18. Dossiers, procedures, and order for tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support, and support for study costs

1. Dossiers, procedures, and order for tuition fee exemption in public early childhood education institutions, public general education institutions, and public education institutions implementing general education programs.

Children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, and learners studying general education programs in education institutions are not required to submit an application for tuition fee exemption or support. Within 10 working days from the opening date of the academic year, the principals of their schools are responsible for formulating and approving the list of learners exempt from tuition fees.

2. Dossiers, procedures, and order for tuition fee support in people-founded and private early childhood education institutions, private general education institutions, education institutions implementing private general education programs, and early childhood and general education institutions within universities, colleges, and research institutes.

Children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, and learners studying general education programs in education institutions are not required to submit an application for tuition fee exemption or support. Within 10 working days from the opening date of the academic year, the principals of their schools are responsible for formulating the list of learners entitled to tuition fee support, accompanied by the tuition fee support levels issued by the People's Councils of provinces and centrally-run cities, and sending it to the People's Committees of communes, wards, or special zones under the provincial level, or the provincial-level Departments of Education and Training (according to the decentralization of state management of education and training) for appraisal and approval.

3. Dossiers, procedures, and order for tuition fee exemption and reduction in public vocational education institutions and public higher education institutions.

Within 45 working days from the date of enrollment, a learner entitled to tuition fee exemption or reduction shall submit an application made using the form in Appendix III of this Decree, accompanied by a certified copy or a copy with the original for comparison, or a copy from the master register of documents in the following cases: Certification from the management agency for people with meritorious services, for the subjects specified in Clause 2 Article 15 of this Decree; Certification of disability, for the subjects defined in Clause 3 Article 15 of this Decree; Decision on social allowance or Certification of orphan issued by the People's Committee of commune, ward, or special zone under the provincial level, for the subjects prescribed in Clause 3 and Clause 4 Article 15 of this Decree; Certification of poor household or household living just above the poverty line issued by the People's Committee of commune, ward, or special zone under the provincial level, for the subjects defined in Clause 7 Article 15 of this Decree; Lower secondary education diploma or temporary graduation certificate or academic record confirmation of completion of the lower secondary education program by the principal, for the subjects specified in Clause 12 Article 15 of this Decree; Decision on monthly allowance for a father or mother suffering from an occupational accident or occupational disease issued by the social insurance agency, for the subjects prescribed in Clause 2 Article 16 of this Decree. These shall be sent to the education institution directly, by post, or through the national public service portal (in cases where the learner submitting the dossier after the deadline mentioned above shall be considered to enjoy the policy from the time of dossier submission to the dossier-receiving unit as regulated).

Within 10 working days from the end of the time limit for submitting dossiers for tuition fee exemption or reduction, the head of the vocational education institution or higher education institution shall be responsible for reviewing the dossiers and approving the list of learners entitled to tuition fee exemption or reduction.

4. Dossiers, procedures, and order for tuition fee exemption and reduction in private vocational education institutions and higher education institutions, and vocational education institutions and higher education institutions under economic organizations or state-owned enterprises.

Within 45 working days from the date of enrollment, a learner entitled to tuition fee exemption or reduction shall submit an application made using the form in Appendix IV of this Decree, accompanied by a certified copy or a copy with the original for comparison, or a copy from the master register of documents in the following cases: Certification from the management agency for people with meritorious services, for the subjects specified in Clause 2 Article 15 of this Decree; Certification of disability, for the subjects defined in Clause 3 Article 15 of this Decree; Decision on social allowance or Certification of orphan issued by the People's Committee of commune, ward, or special zone under the provincial level, for the subjects prescribed in Clause 3 and Clause 4 Article 15 of this Decree; Certification of poor household or household living just above the poverty line issued by the People's Committee of commune, ward, or special zone under the provincial level, for the subjects defined in Clause 7 Article 15 of this Decree; Lower secondary education diploma or temporary graduation certificate or academic record confirmation of completion of the lower secondary education program by the principal, for the subjects specified in Clause 12 Article 15 of this Decree; Decision on monthly allowance for a father or mother suffering from an occupational accident or occupational disease issued by the social insurance agency, for the subjects prescribed in Clause 2 Article 16 of this Decree. These shall be sent to the education institution directly, by post, or through the national public service portal (in cases where the learner submitting the dossier after the deadline mentioned above shall be considered to enjoy the policy from the time of dossier submission to the dossier-receiving unit as regulated).

Within 10 working days from the end of the time limit for submitting dossiers for tuition fee exemption or reduction, the head of the vocational education institution or higher education institution shall be responsible for confirming the dossier of request for tuition fee exemption and reduction for the learner, using the form in Appendix V issued together with this Decree; simultaneously formulating the list of learners entitled to tuition fee exemption and reduction, using the form in Appendix VI issued together with this Decree to be sent to the People's Committees of communes, wards, special zones of the localities where the learners are registered for permanent residence for implementation as regulated.

5. Dossiers, procedures, and order for support for study costs in public early childhood education institutions, public general education institutions, and public education institutions implementing general education programs.

Within 45 working days from the opening date of the academic year, parents (or guardians) of children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, and learners in continuing education institutions who are entitled to support for study costs shall submit an application, made using the form in Appendix II issued together with this Decree, accompanied by a certified copy or a copy with the original for comparison, or a copy from the master register of documents in the following cases: Certification of orphan issued by the People's Committees of communes, wards, or special zones under the provincial level, for the subjects defined in Clause 1 Article 17 of this Decree; Certification of disability or Decision on social allowance issued by the People's Committees of communes, wards, or special zones under the provincial level, for the subjects prescribed in Clause 2 Article 17 of this Decree; Certification of poor household issued by the People's Committees of communes, wards, or special zones under the provincial level, for the subjects specified in Clause 3 Article 17 of this Decree. These shall be sent to the education institution directly or by post, or through the national public service portal (in cases where learners submitting dossiers after the time limit mentioned above shall be considered to be enjoy the policy from the time of submission to the dossier-receiving unit as regulated).

Within 10 working days from the end of the time limit for submitting dossiers of request for support for study costs, the principals of their schools shall be responsible for appraising the dossiers and approving the list of learners entitled to support for study costs.

6. Dossiers, procedures, and order for support for study costs in people-founded and private early childhood education institutions, private general education institutions, education institutions implementing private general education programs, and early childhood and general education institutions within universities, colleges, and research institutes.

Within 45 working days from the opening date of the academic year, parents (or guardians) of children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, and learners in continuing education institutions who are entitled to support for study costs shall submit an application, made using the form in Appendix II issued together with this Decree, accompanied by a certified copy or a copy with the original for comparison, or a copy from the master register of documents in the following cases: Certification of orphan issued by the People's Committees of communes, wards, or special zones under the provincial level, for the subjects defined in Clause 1 Article 17 of this Decree; Certification of disability or Decision on social allowance issued by the People's Committees of communes, wards, or special zones under the provincial level, for the subjects prescribed in Clause 2 Article 17 of this Decree; Certification of poor household issued by the People's Committees of communes, wards, or special zones under the provincial level, for the subjects specified in Clause 3 Article 17 of this Decree. These shall be sent to the education institution directly or by post, or through the national public service portal (in cases where learners submitting dossiers after the time limit mentioned above shall be considered to be enjoy the policy from the time of submission to the dossier-receiving unit as regulated).

Within 10 working days from the end of the time limit for submitting dossiers of request for support for study costs, the principals of their schools shall be responsible for formulating the list of learners entitled to support for study costs to be sent to the People's Committees of communes, wards, or special zones under the provincial level, or the provincial-level Departments of Education and Training according to the decentralization of state management of education and training for appraisal and approval.

7. Learners eligible for tuition reduction, exemption, and support for study costs are only required to produce 1 set of dossier for the entire study period. Learners living in poor households or households living just above the poverty line, at the beginning of each semester shall submit a certification of poor household or household living just above the poverty line serving as a basis for consideration of tuition fee reduction or exemption, and support for study costs for the subsequent semester.

Article 19. Mechanisms for tuition fee exemption, reduction and support, and support for study costs

1. The exemption, reduction, and support for tuition fees, as well as support for study costs, shall be implemented throughout the entire study period at the schools.

2. Subsidies for the tuition fee exemption and reduction for learners at public education institutions shall be provided from the state budget, specifically as follows:

a) The State shall provide subsidies for tuition fee exemption for early childhood education institutions, general education institutions, continuing education institutions, and education institutions implementing general education programs to implement tuition fee exemption for learners eligible for the exemption defined in this Decree at the rates prescribed by the People's Councils of provinces and centrally-run cities.

b) The State shall directly provide tuition fee support funds for children in early childhood education institutions and secondary school students within early childhood and general education institutions in universities, colleges, and research institutes; the tuition fee support rates shall be prescribed by the People's Councils of provinces and centrally-run cities according to the tuition fee brackets of the Government but shall not exceed the tuition fees of the education institutions.

c) The State shall provide subsidies for tuition fee exemption and reduction for public vocational education institutions and public higher education institutions to implement tuition fee exemption and reduction policies for learners eligible for tuition fee exemption and reduction according to the tuition fees of the public vocational education institutions and higher education institutions, but not exceeding the tuition fee ceiling levels specified in Clause 1, Article 9 and Clause 1, Article 10 of this Decree corresponding to each academic year, major, and group of majors.

The remaining portion shall be paid by the learners, equal to the difference between the tuition fee ceiling levels specified in Clause 1, Article 9 and Clause 1, Article 10 and the support level from the State, except for the training disciplines defined at Point a and Point b Clause 1 Article 16, where learners must pay the difference between the actual tuition fees of the education institutions and the support levels from the State. The education institutions shall be responsible for covering the difference between the tuition fee ceiling levels defined in Clause 1, Article 9 and Clause 1, Article 10 of this Decree and the actual tuition fees of the education institutions.

3. The State shall directly provide funds for tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support to subjects entitled to tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support studying at people-founded and private education institutions under the national education system as follows:

a) The tuition fee support levels for learners at people-founded and private early childhood education institutions, private general education institutions, and private education institutions implementing general education programs shall be prescribed by the People's Councils of provinces and centrally-run cities according to the tuition fee brackets of the Government but shall not exceed the tuition fee rates of the people-founded and private education institutions.

b) The levels of subsidies provided for tuition fee exemption and reduction for learners at private vocational education institutions and private higher education institutions shall be based on the actual tuition fees of the training institutions for each major or specialization, but shall not exceed the tuition fee ceiling levels of public vocational education institutions and higher education institutions that have not yet ensured their own regular expenditures, corresponding to each major and group of majors specified in Clause 1, Article 9 and Clause 1, Article 10 of this Decree.

4. In case an individual is eligible for tuition reduction, exemption or support, and support for study costs according to this Decree and a higher benefit defined in other effective legal documents at the same time, he/she shall receive the higher benefits under other legal documents.

5. Tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support shall not apply to cases where beneficiaries are receiving salaries or the cost-of-living allowance while attending school, or cases of master students and postgraduates (except for the subjects specified in Clause 9, Clause 11 Article 15 and Point b Clause 3 Article 16 of this Decree).

6. The regime of tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support shall not apply to learners who have already enjoyed this regime at a vocational education institution or higher education institution and are now continuing to study at another vocational education institution or higher education institution at the same education level and training degree. If a learner is eligible for tuition fee exemption or reduction while simultaneously studying at multiple education institutions or multiple faculties or multiple majors within the same education institution, they shall only receive one regime of tuition fee exemption or reduction.

7. The regime of tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support shall not apply to learners following the form of continuing education for on-demand educational  programs, educational programs to update knowledge, raise skills and transfer technologies, or training and further training programs to raise professional qualifications or short-term training and further training; except for cases where learners follow continuing education programs to award diplomas of the national education system.

8. The regime of tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support, and support for study costs shall not apply during the time a learner is disciplined with a suspension or forced withdrawal, or during periods of academic reservation, grade retention, repeating courses, or taking supplementary courses. In cases where a learner must suspend their studies, repeat a course, reserve his/her results, or retain a grade (not more than once) due to illness, accident, or suspension for force majeure reasons, not as a form of discipline or voluntary withdrawal, the head of the education institution shall consider allowing the learner to continue his/her studies as regulated and to continue receiving the support policies specified in this Decree.

9. Subsidies for tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support, as well as support for study costs, shall be provided based on the actual duration of study but not exceeding 9 months per academic year for children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, and learners in continuing education institutions following general education programs; and based on the actual duration of study but not exceeding 10 months per academic year for pupils and students studying at vocational education institutions and higher education institutions. Payments shall be made to learners twice a year at the beginning of each semester of the academic year.

10. The State shall directly pay 150,000 VND/student/month for support for study costs to the subjects specified in Article 17 of this Decree  for the purpose of purchasing books, notebooks, and other learning supplies. The duration of entitlement shall be based on the actual duration of study and shall not exceed 9 months per academic year, with payments made twice a year at the beginning of each semester of the academic year.

11. In cases parents (or guardians) of children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, learners in continuing education institutions following general education programs, pupils and students studying at vocational education institutions and higher education institutions have submitted dossiers under this Decree but have not received the subsidies for tuition fee exemption, reduction, support, or support for study costs within the prescribed time limit, such amounts shall be paid retroactively or deducted in the subsequent payment.

Article 20. Methods of providing subsidies for tuition fee exemption and reduction, and support for study costs for public education institutions

1. Funding for providing subsidies for tuition fee exemption and reduction, and support for study costs for public education institutions shall be provided by the state budget on an annual basis in the form of budget estimate assignment. The allocation of budget estimates to implement the policy of providing subsidies for tuition fee exemption and reduction and support for study costs for public education institutions shall be carried out simultaneously with the annual state budget estimate allocation. When assigning budget estimates to public education institutions, the governing agencies must clearly specify the budget estimate for implementing the policy of providing subsidies for tuition fee exemption and reduction and support for study costs for learners entitled to such policies who are studying at the public education institutions.

2. Public education institutions shall submit a dossier of request for budget estimate withdrawal to the State Treasury where transactions are conducted, including: (i) Decision on budget estimate assignment from the competent agency regarding funding for subsidies for tuition fee exemption and reduction, and support for study costs; (ii) Decision on approval of the list of subjects entitled to the regime of tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support for study costs (including contents of full name, category of subject, total number of subjects entitled to tuition fee exemption and reduction, and support for study costs who are currently studying at the public education institution, the amount of tuition fee to be offset, the requested subsidy amount, and the support level for study costs); (iii) The budget estimate withdrawal form as regulated to withdraw the budget estimate for subsidies.

3. The State Treasury, based on their dossier of request for budget estimate withdrawal, shall perform control and transfer the funding into the tuition fee collection account of the education institutions, ensuring it remains within the scope of the budget estimate assigned by the competent authority.

4. Funding from the state budget for subsidies for tuition fee exemption and reduction payment for public education institutions shall be transferred and accounted into the tuition fee collection account of the education institutions and shall be used autonomously based on the actual number of subjects entitled to the subsidy and current regulations on the financial autonomy regime of public non-business units; in cases where the assigned budget estimate for subsidies for tuition fee exemption and reduction payment for the public education institutions is higher or lower than their actual number of beneficiaries and the subsidy level as regulated by the State, the education institutions shall report to their governing agency for handling in accordance with current regulations.

5. Based on the funding for support for study costs transferred by the State Treasury into the accounts of the education institutions, the education institutions shall be responsible for making payment to the subjects entitled to the support for study costs and finalizing the accounts with the People's Committees of communes, wards, or special zones, or the provincial-level Departments of Education and Training according to the decentralization of state management in the field of education.

Article 21. Payment methods for tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support, and support for study costs for learners in people-founded and private education institutions; education institutions under state-owned enterprises or economic organizations; and early childhood and general education institutions within universities, colleges, and research institutes

1. Payment methods for tuition fee support and support for study costs for children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, and learners of general education programs:

a) Provincial-level Departments of Education and Training or People's Committees of communes, wards, special zones are responsible for directly paying (or authorizing education institutions to make payment) to the father, mother, or guardian of children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, and learners of general education programs currently studying at education institutions in the localities according to the decentralization of state management in education and finalizing the funding for support for study costs.

b) People-founded and private education institutions shall submit dossiers to the provincial-level Departments of Education and Training or the commune-level People's Committees according to the decentralization of state management in education. Such a dossier includes: (i) Decision approving the list of subjects entitled to the regime of tuition fee and study cost support, including contents: full name, category of subject, total number of subjects entitled to tuition fee support and support for study costs currently studying at the education institution, the support level, and the requested funding for tuition fee support and support for study costs; (ii) Confirmation dossiers for subjects entitled to support for study costs.

c) The provincial-level Departments of Education and Training or the commune-level People's Committees according to the decentralization of state management in education shall review and appraise the dossiers provided by the people-founded and private education institutions and prepare a budget estimate withdrawal form to be sent to the State Treasury.

d) The State Treasury shall, based on the dossiers of request for budget estimate withdrawal, control and transfer the funding into the account of the education institutions, ensuring it remains within the scope of the budget estimate assigned by the competent authority.

dd) Based on the funding for tuition fee and study cost support transferred by the State Treasury into the account of the education institutions, the education institutions are responsible for making direct payment into the accounts of their learners or their father, mother, guardian, ensuring the correct beneficiaries, and finalizing the funding with the People's Committees of communes, wards, or special zones, or the provincial-level Departments of Education and Training according to the decentralization of state management in the field of education.

2. Methods of paying for tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support for pupils and students studying at vocational education institutions and higher education institutions:

a) People's Committees of communes, wards, special zones where the learners are registered for permanent residence shall be responsible for direct payment and finalization of funding for tuition fee exemption and reduction to the pupils and students studying at vocational education institutions (except for learners of general education programs applying Clause 1, Article 21 of this Decree) and higher education institutions or their father or mother (or guardian).

b) People-founded and private education institutions, and education institutions under economic organizations, state-owned enterprises, or socio-political organizations shall submit dossiers to the People's Committees of communes, wards, special zones where the learners are registered for permanent residence. Such a dossier includes: (i) The decision approving the list of subjects entitled to tuition fee exemption and reduction (including contents: Full name, amount of tuition fee exemption or reduction, total number of subjects entitled to tuition fee exemption or reduction currently studying at the education institution); (ii) dossiers of confirmation of subjects entitled to tuition fee exemption and reduction.

c) People's Committees of communes, wards, special zones where the learners are registered for permanent residence shall review and appraise the dossiers provided by the education institutions and prepare a budget estimate withdrawal form to be sent to the State Treasury.

d) The State Treasury shall, based on the dossier for budget estimate withdrawal, control and transfer the funding into the accounts of learners entitled to tuition fee exemption and reduction.

Section 3

FORMULATION AND ALLOCATION OF ESTIMATES, FINALIZATION OF FUNDING FOR EXEMPTION, REDUCTION AND SUPPORT OF TUITION FEES, SUPPORT FOR STUDY COSTS

Article 22. Formulation of estimates

On an annual basis, based on the Directive of the Prime Minister on development of socio-economic development plans and state budget estimates for the year of planning, Circular of the Ministry of Finance guiding formulation of state budget estimates for the year of planning; based on estimation of number of individuals eligible for tuition fee exemption, reduction and support, support for study costs; ministries, branches, central agencies, and People’s Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities and budget-estimating units at all levels shall formulate estimates for funding for tuition fee exemption, reduction and support, support for study costs to include in state budget expenditure estimates of ministries, branches and localities sent to the Ministry of Finance at the same time with reports on state budget estimates for the year of planning.

1. Funding for tuition fee exemption and reduction for public education institutions

a) Educational institutions shall, based on the tuition fee levels prescribed by the People's Councils of provinces and centrally-run cities and the number of individuals eligible for tuition exemption in the localities (regardless of the learners’ places of residence), compile lists and formulate funding estimates for tuition exemption subsidies to be sent to the provincial-level Departments of Education and Training or the People's Committees of communes, wards, and special zones under provincial jurisdiction according to the decentralization of state management of education for appraisal and submission to competent authorities for the allocation of funding estimates.

b) Vocational education institutions and higher education institutions shall base on tuition fees corresponding to training disciplines of the education institutions which must not exceed the tuition fee ceiling level under this Decree and number of individuals eligible for tuition reduction and exemption to formulate lists and funding estimates in order to send them to superior estimate agencies for appraisal and submission to finance agency of the same level for presentation to competent authority for allocation of funding estimates.

2. Funding for support for study costs

a) Public education institutions shall, based on the support levels for study costs specified in this Decree and the number of subjects entitled to support for study costs, formulate lists and budget estimates for requested funding for support for study costs to be sent to the provincial-level Departments of Education and Training or People's Committees of communes, wards, special zones according to the decentralization of state management in education for appraisal and submission to competent authorities for the allocation of implementation budget estimates.

b) The provincial-level Departments of Education and Training or People's Committees of communes, wards, special zones according to the decentralization of state management in education shall, based on the support levels for study costs defined in this Decree and the number of subjects entitled to support for study costs at people-founded and private education institutions, formulate lists and budget estimates for subjects entitled to support for study costs to be submitted to competent authorities for the allocation of implementation budget estimates.

3. Funding for tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support for learners at people-founded and private education institutions; vocational education institutions and higher education institutions under state-owned enterprises or economic organizations; and early childhood and general education institutions within universities, colleges, and research institutes

a) The provincial-level Departments of Education and Training or the People's Committees of communes, wards, or special zones according to the decentralization of state management in education shall, based on the tuition fee support levels for people-founded and private early childhood and general education institutions in the localities as prescribed by the People's Councils of provinces and centrally-run cities; the number of children in early childhood education institutions, secondary school students, and learners of general education programs currently studying in the localities (regardless of the learner's place of residence), formulate lists for appraisal, synthesis, and formulation of budget estimates to be submitted to competent authorities for the allocation of implementation budget estimates.

b) People's Committees of communes, wards, or special zones shall, based on the actual tuition fees for each discipline of vocational education institutions and higher education institutions, but not exceeding the tuition fee ceiling levels of public vocational education institutions and higher education institutions that have not yet ensured their own regular expenditures corresponding to each major and group of majors specified in Clause 1, Article 9 and Clause 1, Article 10 of this Decree, and the number of subjects permanently residing in the localities who are entitled to tuition fee exemption and reduction while studying at private vocational education institutions and higher education institutions, or education institutions under state-owned enterprises or economic organizations, to formulate lists for appraisal, synthesis, and formulation of budget estimates to be submitted to competent authorities for the allocation of implementation budget estimates.

4. Based on the reports of the People's Committees of communes, wards, special zones, provincial-level Departments of Education and Training, provincial-level Departments of Finance shall assume the prime responsibility for synthesizing, appraising, and submitting to the People's Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities for approval and allocation of funding.

Article 23. Allocation of estimates

Based on a decision on assignment of state budget estimates of the Prime Minister:

1. People's Councils of provinces and centrally-run cities shall be presented by the People's Committees to decide on the allocation of funding for subsidies for tuition fee exemption, reduction, support, and support for study costs within the local education and training expenditure estimates according to the prescribed regime.

2. Ministries, sectors, and central agencies shall decide on the allocation of funding for subsidies for tuition fee exemption and reduction for the subordinate public education institutions according to the prescribed regime.

Article 24. Management and finalization of funding

1. Agencies and units allocated funding for subsidies of tuition fee exemption, reduction, support, and support for study costs are responsible for managing, using, and finalizing the funding for the purposes and subjects as defined by the Law on State Budget.

2. Data for the finalization of funding for the subsidies for tuition fee exemption, reduction, support, and support for study costs shall be integrated into the annual state budget expenditure finalization reports of the units and comply with the current regulations in the Law on State Budget, guiding documents, and the current state budget index.

Article 25. Funding sources

1. Funding for implementation of the policies on tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support, support for study costs specified in this Decree shall be covered by the state budget under the law on the decentralization of budget management.

2. The central budget shall provide support to localities that have not yet balanced their budgets for implementation of the policies on tuition fee exemption, reduction, and support, and support for study costs defined in this Decree in accordance with the law.

CHAPTER V

SERVICE CHARGES IN THE FIELD OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING WHEN ASSIGNING TASKS, PLACING ORDERS, AND BIDDING

Article 26. General provisions on service charges in the field of education and training when assigning tasks, placing orders, and bidding

1. Conditions, processes, procedures, methods, and authority for task assignment, placing orders, or bidding shall comply with the Decree No. 32/2019/ND-CP dated April 14, 2019, of the Government prescribing the assignment of tasks, placement of orders, or bidding for provision of public products and services covered by state budget funds for regular expenditures and relevant laws.

2. The maximum unit price for ordering services related to early childhood education, general education, higher education, vocational education is defined in Article 27 of this Decree.

Article 27. Ceiling levels of service charges in early childhood education, general education, vocational education, higher education, and continuing education

1. Ceiling levels of service charges for early childhood education, general education, vocational education, higher education, and continuing education  shall not exceed the tuition fee levels defined in Articles 8, 9, 10, and 11 of this Decree, corresponding to each education level, group of majors, program, training degree, academic year, and capacity of financial autonomy.

2. Based on socio-economic development policies, budget balancing capabilities, and high requirements for education and training quality, ministries, sectors, People's Councils, or People's Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities shall decide on the ceiling levels of education and training service charges according to economic-technical norms or cost norms issued by competent authorities, ensuring they are commensurate with the quality of education and training services.

Chapter VI

IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS

Article 28. Organization of implementation

1. The Minister of Education and Training shall, within its ambit of competence, assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with relevant ministries and branches in, guiding implementation of this Decree.

2. Based on socio-economic development policies, annual inflation indices and economic growth rates, People's Councils of provinces and centrally-run cities, public vocational education institutions, and public higher education institutions shall decide on annual tuition fee adjustments, provided that they do not exceed the tuition fee ceiling levels defined in this Decree corresponding to each level of education, group of majors, program, training level, academic year, and level of financial autonomy.

Mechanisms for collection and management of tuition fees of education institutions under the national education system; policies on tuition fee exemption, reduction and support, and support for study costs; principles and methods of determining service charges in the field of education and training shall comply with this Decree.

3. In cases where the agency handling administrative procedures exploits the residential database and the database has complete information and records as required by this Decree, students are not required to submit relevant documents to enjoy tuition exemption policies, support for study costs, and support for tuition fees.

4. Pupils, students, master students, and researchers specialized in tuberculosis, leprosy, psychiatry, forensic medicine, psychiatrically forensic medicine, and pathology in public medical personnel training institutions according to the State’s orders under Clause 14 Article 15 of the Government’s Decree No. 81/2021/ND-CP dated August 27, 2021, on the mechanism of collection and management of tuition fees for education institutions under the national education system and policies on tuition fee exemption and reduction, support for study costs and service charges in the field of education and training shall continue to enjoy the tuition fee exemption policy until graduation as defined.

Article 29. Effect

1. This Decree takes effect on the signing date and replaces the Government’s Decree No. 81/2021/ND-CP dated August 27, 2021, on the mechanism of collection and management of tuition fees for education institutions under the national education system and policies on tuition fee exemption and reduction, support for study costs and service charges in the field of education and training, and the Government’s Decree No. 97/2023/ND-CP dated December 31, 2023, amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 81/2021/ND-CP on the mechanism of collection and management of tuition fees for education institutions under the national education system and policies on tuition fee exemption and reduction, support for study costs and service charges in the field of education and training.

2. Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies, chairpersons of People’s Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities, and related organizations and individuals shall implement this Decree.

* All Appendices are not translated herein.