Delhi Govt Introduces Act To Regulate Private School Fees

The Delhi government has established the Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fee) Act, 2025, which regulates private school fees. Approved by Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena and announced on Wednesday, this Act was passed by the Assembly four months ago.

This Act sets forth rules regarding permissible fee categories, accounting standards, and limits on extra charges while banning capitation fees and any collections beyond legal allowances. Schools must clearly disclose fee components and maintain separate accounts for each category, reported PTI.

Private unaided recognised schools can charge fees only for categories such as registration, admission, tuition, annual charges, and development fees. Registration fees are

capped at Rs 25, admission charges at Rs 200, and caution money at Rs 500, which is refundable with interest. Development fees cannot exceed 10 per cent of the annual tuition fee.

Service charges must be collected on a no-profit, no-loss basis and cannot be imposed on students who do not use the service. Any fee not explicitly sanctioned by the Act is deemed an “unjustified fee demand,” and capitation fees in any form are strictly prohibited.

Schools must follow transparent accounting practices, maintain fixed asset registers, and ensure proper provisioning for employee benefits. Transferring student-collected funds to another legal entity, including the school’s managing society or trust, is prohibited. Surplus funds must be either refunded or adjusted against future fees.

Introduced in the Delhi Assembly as the Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Bill, 2025, the government praised it as a “historic” move to curb arbitrary fee hikes and relieve the financial burden on parents.

Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and Education Minister Ashish Sood presented the bill in September after widespread complaints from parents about fee hikes by several private schools at the beginning of the academic session.

“Today marks a golden day in Delhi’s education system. For the first time in 27 years, a historic bill will be introduced under the leadership of Chief Minister Rekha Gupta,” Sood remarked before its introduction.

The legislation applies to all private unaided schools, including minority institutions and those not built on government-allotted land. It also prevents schools from taking punitive actions against students for unpaid or delayed fees, such as withholding results, removing names, or denying class entry.

A key feature of the Act is the annual School-Level Fee Regulation Committee, which each school must form by July 15 every year. This committee will include five parents selected by lot from the parent-teacher association, with mandatory representation of women and members from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and socially and educationally backward classes.

A representative from the Directorate of Education will also be part of the committee, while the chairperson will be from the school management.

Schools must submit their proposed fee structure to the committee by July 31. The committee can approve or reduce the proposed fees but cannot increase them. Once approved, the fee structure will remain fixed for the next three academic years.

The final fee structure must be displayed on the school notice board in Hindi, English, and the medium of instruction and uploaded on the school’s website, if applicable.

The committee will also specify the categories under which schools can charge fees, ensuring uniformity and transparency in the process.