Parents, schools grapple over unpaid fees

Delays or defaults in school fee payments are causing problems to both parents and schools despite a legally-binding parent-school contract (PSC) in Dubai.

Parents complain schools sometimes resort to “insensitive” ways of extracting overdue fees, such as “naming and shaming” the student concerned in class or refusing to take the pupil on the school bus.

Schools, on the other hand, say that they have to write off huge sums of money because many parents delay or refuse to pay fees in full.

Under the rules, schools cannot terminate the admission of a student for non-payment of fees.

Some schools in Dubai said they would like to see a more stringent action-oriented approach from the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA).

The PSC, introduced by the KHDA, seeks to address and balance the interests of schools and parents on a variety of issues, including school fees payments.

According to the PSC, it is the responsibility of parents to pay fees regularly and, in case of non-payment for a long period, the school has the right to withhold results.

A senior spokesperson from the management of an Asian school said they have had to write off millions of dirhams over the years.

“We do withhold the result from the parent, but the result has to be prepared and submitted to the authorities. In the case of parents of very young children up to grade two — who do not require a Transfer Certificate (TC) if they are relocating back to their country — they suddenly take the child out of school towards the end of the academic year and we are left with fees pending for the entire year,” the spokesperson said.

He added that sometimes parents who had defaulted for many months come to the negotiating table asking for heavy discounts towards the end of the academic year. “If a parent owes Dh5,000 for 10 months, they want to pay only half [the amount] and we try to close the issue as we feel we will at least recover a partial amount. I think when parents default for a couple of months, the KHDA should take action.”

A senior representative of another Indian-curriculum school said that nearly 40-45 per cent parents preferred not to pay fees for a better part of the year and kept it pending to the very end.

“Most schools have a fee waiver policy for genuine cases where a parent has a sudden financial loss or is between jobs. We do provide such relief. However, since all we can do is withhold the final results, parents like to push payment to the very end. Results are in any case processed and sent to the relevant education authority and parents are able to obtain the results. In any case, if the child is promoted, he or she will attend the new class in the next academic year.”

On the other hand, some parents feel schools resort to insensitive ways of extracting the fees. Irfan Akram the father of a young girl studying in a Pakistani curriculum school in Dubai said his child was not allowed to board the bus for school.

“Until last year the school fees and bus fees were clubbed and we were paying a lump-sum amount. Suddenly, with a change in management, the new principal called me and said I had bus fees pending for the whole year, although I had paid the entire amount as stated by the school and my child had got her results to. The bus conductor did not allow my child to board citing non-payment of fees. I did have financial difficulty; the school and bus fees had been paid as per the policy of the school, I agreed to pay Dh3,000 in easy instalments for bus fee. But not allowing my child to board was traumatic for my daughter,” he said.

When contacted, Amal Belhasa, Chief of Compliance and Resolution Commission at KHDA, told Gulf News there was scope for schools to not readmit the student in case of repeated history of fee delays.

“The relationship between schools and families is based on clear terms and conditions that have been agreed upon as part of the parent-school contract. This agreement provides a reference to resolve any disputes between the two parties and KHDA upholds the contract if there is no amicable solution between the parties.

“Schools cannot harass students for non-payment of fees and we encourage schools to work with parents to agree on a suitable payment plan. Parents also have a responsibility to meet their financial commitment towards a school and schools have a right to receive fees in return for the education provided on the agreed time in the contract. Schools can withhold final examination results and transfer certificates until fees are paid in full. They can also reject a re-registration request for the next academic year if fees aren’t paid or on repeated history of payment delay.”

Single mum appeals for daughter’s education

A single mother has appealed for assistance regarding school fees for her daughter who has lost out on more than an year of her education.

Bina Shah, a Pakistani expat in Dubai, said she has not been able to enrol her daughter in school after she completed grade nine in 2014 at a British-curriculum school in Dubai.

“I got divorced and couldn’t keep up with rising fees at school when my daughter was supposed to enrol in grade 10. I had had problems paying when she was in grade nine and although all due payments for grade nine were eventually settled, the school refused to re-enrol her for grade 10,” Shah, who works in a bank in Dubai, said.

“A charity gave me a cheque for Dh5,000 but the school refused to take it without additional post-dated cheques from me because Dh5,000 doesn’t cover the first instalment. I cannot commit to future payments that I know I won’t be able to meet on my own.”

Shah, who cannot afford to pay Dh2,000 a month for her daughter’s schooling, said she needs around Dh5,000 initially to supplement the Dh5,000 cheque she still has.

“The charity said they will rewrite the cheque for the school or for another school provided I show proof of an admission offer. But schools usually want at least the first instalment fully paid up before they enrol anyone. And my daughter is now 17, which is in an older age bracket for grade 10 — that causes problems with admissions too. We’re caught in the middle; I don’t know what to do,” she said.

“At least if she could complete grade 10 without losing the coming academic year as well, that would be best for her. Otherwise, I will try to enrol her in a Dubai government-approved training institute for BTech [Bachelor of Technology], but even then I need around Dh2,000 a month, which I cannot afford.”

With inputs by Faisal Masudi, staff reporter

source: GULF NEWS