Chandigarh: The Punjab Assembly on Monday unanimously passed the Punjab Regulation of Fees of Unaided Educational Institutions (Amendment) Bill, 2026, introduced by Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains. The legislation aims to prevent arbitrary fee increases by private schools and alleviate the financial pressure on parents across the state.
Under the amended law, private unaided schools cannot increase fees by more than 5 per cent in an academic year without obtaining prior approval from the district regulatory body at least 180 days in advance. In such instances, authorities are empowered to conduct a forensic audit of the institution’s financial accounts. The bill also introduces a mandatory refund policy requiring schools that raised fees by more than 15 per cent over the past 36 months to return the excess amount to parents within 90 days. Furthermore, the legislation prohibits schools from forcing parents to buy books or uniforms from specific vendors, mandating that options from at least three publishers or suppliers be provided.
To ensure full transparency, the scope of regulated fees has been broadened beyond tuition to include annual charges, smart-class fees, activity costs, laboratory, and library charges. Schools violating these provisions face financial penalties of up to 5 lakh rupees, an additional fine of 10,000 rupees per day for failing to process excess fee refunds, and potential withdrawal of school recognition for persistent non-compliance.
