The Education Bureau (EDB) has announced that 39 Direct Subsidy Scheme (DSS) schools, representing half of the city's DSS sector, have been approved to increase their tuition fees for the 2025/26 academic year. The average fee hike stands at 4.64%, slightly lower than the previous year.
Key Highlights of the Fee Adjustments
Among the schools raising fees, 20 will see their Form 1 tuition increase by 5% or more. The most significant increase comes from Tai Po Sam Yuk Secondary School, which raised its fees by nearly 15% from $10,800 to $12,400. The school's principal, Chan Hon-yuen, stated the increase was necessary to cover teacher salary growth and inflation, while emphasizing that the school's fees remain at a mid-to-low level compared to other DSS schools.
Increases at Traditional Elite Schools
Several prominent DSS schools are also among those with notable fee increases:
- St. Paul's Co-educational College, Diocesan Boys' School, and Heep Yunn School all raised their Form 1 fees by 5.8%. St. Paul's Co-ed's new annual fee is now $84,300.
- Diocesan Girls' School (DGS) will increase its fees by 5% to $42,000. This marks a rare second consecutive year of fee hikes for the school, which it attributed to rising campus maintenance costs (exacerbated by frequent typhoons) and the need to invest in new technology.
- The city's most expensive DSS school, Creative Secondary School, will see a 3% increase, bringing its Form 1 tuition to $96,250.
Subsidy Cuts and Future Outlook
Chan Tik-on, Chairman of the DSS Schools Council, noted that these fee hikes may not fully reflect the impact of the government's recent 2% reduction in DSS subsidies. He explained that most schools had already submitted their fee applications before the subsidy cut was finalized, suggesting that further adjustments could be possible in the future.
Government Oversight and Support for Families
The EDB requires all schools applying for fee increases to provide clear justification and proof of parent consultation. A key stipulation is that schools must allocate at least 10% of their total tuition fee income to scholarships and fee remission schemes. This policy aims to ensure that students from less privileged economic backgrounds are not denied access to DSS schools.
The trend of rising fees is not limited to DSS schools. The EDB also approved increases for 70 private schools (averaging 4.62%) and 63 international schools (averaging 4.6%).