Three departments: improving kindergarten fee policies, standardizing fee items, clarifying the principles for formulating fee standards, etc.

The Zhitong Finance App learned that on November 23, three departments including the National Development and Reform Commission issued a notice on improving kindergarten fee policies. The notice mentioned that fees for for-profit private kindergartens are subject to market price adjustments; kindergartens shall reasonably determine fee standards based on factors such as operating costs, market supply and demand, etc., and report them to the education administration department at or above the county level. Local education, development reform, and finance departments should strengthen supervision. If necessary, they can carry out cost investigations to guide reasonable charges and curb excessive charges.

The original text is as follows:

Notice of the National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Finance on improving kindergarten fee policies

Revised Price [2025] No. 1644

Provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government, the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps Development and Reform Commission, the Department of Education (Education Commission, Education Bureau), and the Department of Finance (bureau):

In order to implement the “Preschool Education Law of the People's Republic of China”, better promote the popularization, safe and high-quality development of preschool education, effectively reduce the cost of childcare and education for the masses, and promote the improvement of the maternity support policy system, the National Health Commission has now issued the following notice on matters relating to improving the kindergarten fee policy.

I. Standardize charging items

Kindergarten fees include childcare and education fees (hereinafter referred to as tuition fees), accommodation fees, service fees, and surrogate fees. Childcare fees can also be charged for those who set up daycare classes. Among them, tuition fees refer to fees charged by kindergartens to provide preschool education for children in kindergarten; accommodation fees refer to fees charged by boarding kindergartens to provide accommodation services for children staying in kindergarten; childcare fees refer to fees charged by kindergartens to provide childcare services for infants and children aged 2 to 3.

Service charges refer to fees charged by kindergartens to provide services voluntarily chosen by parents in addition to completing normal childcare education; surrogate fees refer to fees paid by kindergartens on behalf of the unit providing the service on the premise that the parents voluntarily wish to study and live in the kindergarten. Service matters directly related to kindergarten childcare and education, as well as projects that clearly stipulate that they are financially guaranteed, shall not be included in service charges or surrogate charges.

II. Classification and improvement of fee management methods

Inclusive kindergartens (including public kindergartens and inclusive private kindergartens) and other non-profit private kindergartens are subject to government guidance prices. Among them, tuition fees and accommodation fees charged by public kindergartens are managed as administrative fees. Specifically, provincial education administration departments put forward opinions on formulating benchmark fee standards and fluctuation ranges, and report them to the provincial development and reform department (the formulation of fees for public kindergartens should also be reported to the provincial finance department at the same time) for approval. With the authorization of the provincial people's government, they can also be set by people's governments at the prefectural level or above; kindergartens determine specific fee standards within the scope of the benchmark fee standard and fluctuation range. Service charges and surrogate charges collected are, in principle, subject to market price adjustments. Where necessary, government guidance prices may be implemented after approval by the provincial people's government.

Fees for for-profit private kindergartens are adjusted by the market. The kindergarten shall reasonably determine the fee standard based on factors such as operating costs, market supply and demand, etc., and report it to the education administration department at or above the county level. Local education, development reform, and finance departments should strengthen supervision. If necessary, they can carry out cost investigations to guide reasonable charges and curb excessive charges.

The method for managing childcare fees collected by different types of kindergartens refers to tuition fees. The fee standard can be determined by referring to the tuition fee standard and reasonably determined according to cost differences, etc., to increase the enthusiasm of kindergartens to run daycare and effectively meet the needs of the public.

3. Clarify the principles for setting fee standards

Each region formulates and adjusts the fee standards for inclusive kindergartens and other non-profit private kindergartens, and shall be reasonably determined on the basis of cost monitoring or investigation, based on costs after deducting government investment, free social donations, etc., taking into account the local level of economic and social development, the affordability of the public, market supply and demand conditions, the nature of institutions, and types of services. Pricing costs mainly include expenses for normal park operation such as wages, allowances, allowances and benefits for faculty and staff, social security expenses, official expenses, operating expenses, repair expenses, site rent, fixed asset depreciation (excluding financial input), etc., and must not include expenses for abnormal park operation such as disaster losses or accidents. When carrying out cost audits or investigations, all regions should, in principle, distinguish between different class types (referring to large classes, middle classes, and small classes, the same below) to scientifically allocate accounting costs.

Service charges are charged according to the principle of compensation costs (deducting government investment, free social donations, etc.). The surrogate fee is charged according to the actual expenditure situation. The difference in price may not be obtained from the proxy fee, and no form of rebate may be collected.

4. Improve the charging policy evaluation and optimization mechanism

Local development and reform departments should work with education, finance, and health departments to strengthen monitoring of kindergarten fees, keep abreast of industry trends, and keep abreast of kindergarten operations. Strengthen the evaluation of charging policies, regularly evaluate fee management methods, fee items, fee standards, etc. through cost surveys, self-evaluation, and entrust third party evaluations, etc., and adjust and optimize relevant policies in a timely manner. In principle, the evaluation period should not exceed 3 years. Provincial development, reform, education, and finance departments should report to the relevant departments of the State Council by the end of October every year on the operation of kindergartens in the region, adjustments to kindergarten fee policies, and adjustment plans for the next year.

5. Establishing a catalogue list system

All regions shall establish a catalogue list of kindergarten service fees and surrogate fees. The education administration department at the prefectural level and above shall put forward opinions based on the actual situation in the region, review by development and reform, and report to the people's government at the same level for approval before publication and implementation. Service fees and surrogate fees shall not be collected from anything other than the catalogue list.

Local education administration departments, together with development and reform departments, should guide kindergartens to establish their own fee catalogue list. The list should include the nature of the institution, fee items, fee standards, service content, fee basis, etc., and be disclosed to the community and parents of children through various forms such as portals, WeChat accounts, enrollment brochures, public notices, admission notices, etc., and the contents of the list should be updated in a timely manner. If the disclosure is not in accordance with the regulations or if the content of the publication is inconsistent with the policy, no fee shall be charged. Education administration departments at prefectural level and above shall centrally publicize and promptly update the list of fees for kindergartens in the region on a unified platform, and subject to social supervision.

6. Strengthen the supervision of charging behavior

Local development, reform, education, and finance departments should guide kindergartens to establish and improve financial, accounting, and asset management systems, completely and accurately record the costs and income of fee projects between different class types, truthfully provide relevant data, and cooperate in cost investigation or supervision work. The relevant fees may be charged monthly, quarterly, or semester, but cannot be pre-charged across semesters. Kindergartens should be instructed to sign agreements with parents, setting out fee standards, fee methods, and refund methods. They must not charge fees other than childcare fees or childcare fees in the name of bridging classes, interest classes, after-school training, and parent-child special classes, etc.; parents of young children must not be charged tuition fees under any name; they must not collect any fees through the Family Committee; and it is strictly prohibited to introduce third party agencies to directly collect fees from parents of young children.

7. Improve supporting measures

All regions should coordinate the formulation of financial subsidies and fee policies, continuously improve the cost sharing mechanism for preschool education, make good connections between fee policies and free policies, and organically combine improving fee policies with improving service quality. Support and guarantee the operation of kindergartens, implement relevant tax exemption policies, and implement kindergartens' water, electricity, gas, and heat according to residents' lifestyle prices. Education administration departments at the county level and above shall organize and complete the certification of inclusive private kindergartens in accordance with the accreditation standards issued by the local authorities, and regularly publish and update the list of various types of kindergartens in the region.

8. Strengthen organizational implementation

Local development, reform, education, and finance departments should strengthen coordination and earnestly implement the above policy requirements. Local development and reform departments should work with education and finance departments to speed up the formulation (revision) of local kindergarten fee management measures and report them to the provincial people's government for approval and implementation; when introducing policies, they should simultaneously strengthen publicity and interpretation, respond promptly to social concerns, and promote the smooth implementation of policies; cooperate closely with relevant departments to strengthen supervision and inspection, and investigate and punish all kinds of illegal fees in accordance with the law.

If the previous relevant regulations are inconsistent with this Notice, this Notice shall prevail. This notice will come into effect on January 1, 2026.

This article was edited from the official website of the National Development and Reform Commission; Zhitong Finance Editor: Chen Xiaoyi.