Vietnam public university tuition and regulation

Vietnam is implementing new tuition fee structures for the 2026-2027 academic year following Decree 97/2023. Under these regulations, tuition ceilings for public universities are expected to increase by approximately 190,000 to 350,000 VND per month per student. The amount varies based on the field of study and the level of institutional autonomy, with fully autonomous institutions permitted to charge up to 2.5 times the government ceiling.

In a separate regulatory development, the Government Inspectorate of Vietnam issued a conclusion regarding violations at Vietnam National University Hanoi (VNU) involving its autonomy mechanism between 2021 and 2024. The inspection identified management, training, and financial irregularities, including unauthorized tuition fee collections at three constituent schools. Specifically, the School of Business and Management reportedly charged fees for programs that lacked quality accreditation, with undergraduate fees reaching up to 7 million VND per month, exceeding the regulated limit. The inspection also cited improper rates for second-degree programs and unauthorized academic expansions into master's level health programs.

Further details from the audit reveal that eight member schools failed to fully establish the required scholarship fund, which must equal 8% of collected tuition. While over 332 billion VND should have been allocated, only approximately 237.9 billion VND was recorded, leaving a deficit of over 94 billion VND. Three schools, including the School of Interdisciplinary Studies and Arts, the School of Management and Business, and the University of Technology, were found to have used scholarship funds for incorrect purposes. Additionally, the VNU Director reportedly exceeded their authority by allowing the university to autonomously open training programs in health sciences and surgery, a power reserved for the Minister of Education and Training.