Tuition fees at Hong Kong universities will rise by about five to six per cent annually over the next three years after being frozen for more than two decades, the government has announced.
The annual tuition fee for programmes funded by the University Grants Committee (UGC) currently stands at HK$42,100, unchanged since 1997. From next year, there will be an annual increase of about HK$2,500 to bring the figure to HK$49,500 in 2027, the government said on Thursday.
By comparison, British universities charge £9,250 (HK$91,671) in annual tuition fees.
Speaking to reporters after attending an event on Thursday afternoon, Chief Secretary Eric Chan the fee had been frozen for years and the increase was not prompted by the government’s continuing fiscal deficit.
Hong Kong’s public finances have been in the red with deficits of HK$139.8 billion and HK$101.6 billion in 2022 and 2023, respectively. Finance chief Paul Chan estimated a deficit of HK$48.1 billion for the current fiscal year.
Eric Chan said the policy goal was to have the government sponsor 82 per cent of a student’s university tuition fees, but that figure currently stood at 87.5 per cent.
He said the government had taken affordability into account and the increment was “moderate,” adding that students would only have to pay around HK$200 extra per month.
He also said the financial assistance scheme for higher education, which offers grants or loans to students in financial need, remained unchanged.
“We hope our students are not under any pressure pursuing their education,” he said in Cantonese, adding that the government had no plan so far for a further raise after the current adjustment.
‘Prudent manner’
A government spokesperson said the cost of delivering higher education had consistently increased over the years. But the tuition fees adjustments would be handled “in a prudent manner” because higher education “represent[ed] our major investment in Hong Kong’s future.”
The tuition fee for UGC-funded sub-degree programmes will also rise from the current HK$15,040 to HK$17,800 over the same period.
Government funding for local universities is expected to reach around HK$24 billion next year, the spokesperson added, and authorities would review higher education policies ahead of 2028, the start of the next cycle of funding allocation.
Lau Chi-pang, an associate vice president of Lingnan University and a lawmaker, dismissed the impact of the fee rise, saying students could earn the additional fees with “two, three hours of work.”
“From what I know the minimal wage in campus is HK$60 or HK$65… Two or three hours of work would have compensated,” he said in Cantonese on a RTHK programme.
Speaking on the same programme, a Chinese University of Hong Kong student Law Chun-yin said a consecutive fee rise over three years would be a burden to students from underprivileged backgrounds.
“Would it be possible to review the fee rise every two to three years rather than in three consecutive years? Students may feel better that way,” he said.
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