University tuition fees in Hong Kong will rise by HK$2,400 (US$307) in 2025 and another HK$2,500 in each of the following two years after a near three-decade freeze, authorities have said, leading to an ultimate increase of 17.6 per cent.
The government on Thursday defended the annual increase of 5.5 per cent on average as “very modest”.
It also underscored the need for the move given the cost recovery rate had slipped from 18 per cent in the 1990s to a low level of an estimated 12.5 per cent in the 2024-25 academic year.
According to the announcement, the tuition fees for publicly funded programmes subsidised by the University Grants Committee (UGC) will be increased from HK$42,100 to HK$44,500 in 2025-26, and further raised to HK$47,000 and HK$49,500 in the 2026-27 and 2027-28 academic years.
While the annual increase stood at between 5.43 and 5.70 per cent, the overall tuition fees would mark a 17.6 per cent hike from the current level after the three years.
More to follow …
