School fees to rise for PR and foreign students in government-funded schools: MOE

SINGAPORE — Non-Singaporeans in government-funded schools will need to pay higher fees over the next three years.

The fee hike, which will kick in progressively on an annual basis from 2024 to 2026, will affect permanent residents (PR) and international students, the Ministry of Education (MOE) said in a release on Wednesday (Oct 18).

Depending on their education level, the monthly school fees for PR students will go up by between $25 and $60 each year, while international students will have their monthly fees go up by between $25 to $140 annually.

The changes will take effect in January on each of the three years.

MOE said the hike is part of a regular review of school fees, and it is announcing the increase ahead of time to help parents plan their finances.

For primary school pupils, monthly fees will rise by $25 annually for PRs and those from Asean countries. For PRs, this will go up from $255 currently to $330 in 2026. For pupils from Asean countries, fees will rise from $520 this year to $595 in 2026.

For pupils from countries outside Asean, monthly school fees for primary school will rise by $50 annually, from $885 currently, to $1,035 in 2026.

Monthly fees for secondary school will go up by $60 each year for PR and Asean students. PR students pay $500 currently, and this will go up to $680 in 2026. Asean students currently pay $910 this year, and will pay $1,090 monthly in 2026.

If students are from outside Asean countries, fees will increase by $140 annually. They now pay $1,770 monthly, but will see this increase to $2,190 in 2026.

As for pre-university school fees, PR and Asean students will see a $60 hike annually. For PRs monthly fees will go up from $580 currently to $760 in 2026.

Asean students now pay $1,110 monthly, but their fees will increase progressively to reach $1,290 in 2026.

Those from outside Asean will face an increase of $140 annually and have their monthly fees go from $2,120 this year to $2,540 in 2026.

School fees remain unchanged for Singaporeans.

Singaporeans do not need to pay for monthly fees for primary school, and pay monthly fees of $5 for secondary school, and $6 for pre-university.

School fees for non-Singaporeans have been increasing steadily over the past few years. In 2021, MOE said fees would rise yearly for non-Singaporeans in 2022 and 2023.

For instance, primary school monthly fees for PRs rose progressively from $180 in 2019 to $230 in 2022.

MOE also announced in July that it would merge the standard and second-tier miscellaneous fees into a single tier from 2024. From January next year, the miscellaneous fees for all nationalities will be set at $13 a month for primary school, $20 a month for secondary school, and $27 a month for pre-university.

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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.