Tuition Fee and Financial Assistance Arrangement

Tuition Fee

The Diploma of Applied Education (DAE) programme is run by participating institutions on a self-financing basis.

Tuition fees for the full-time programme for 2025/26 academic year are as follows –

For the tuition fees of the part-time programme, please contact the respective institutions direct for details.

Financial Assistance Arrangement

1. Tuition Fee Reimbursement
   
   Both full-time and part-time eligible DAE students will receive reimbursement of 30% of the tuition fees paid for each satisfactorily completed course, subject to their having attained an overall pass in the course and achieved 80% attendance or above for the course as confirmed by the institutions ¹. Nevertheless, the courses must be essential for the completion of the DAE Programme, and under the programme a student can only receive tuition fee reimbursement for a maximum of 8 courses. As the reimbursement is course-based, students who cannot satisfactorily complete individual courses are still eligible for tuition fee reimbursement for the other courses in respect of which they have satisfactorily completed. Needy students meeting the assessment and attendance criteria and being assessed to be eligible for full level or half level of assistance under the means test administered by the Student Finance Office (SFO) of the Working Family and Student Financial Assistance Agency (WFSFAA) are eligible for 100% or 50% reimbursement of the tuition fees paid for each satisfactorily completed course.
   
   

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   1			Students who have previously benefited from the Financial Assistance Scheme for Designated Evening Adult Education Courses (FAEAEC) are still eligible for tuition fee reimbursement under the DAE Programme. If students have already obtained tuition fee reimbursement under the DAE Programme before they enrol on evening secondary courses provided by an approved course provider under the FAEAEC, they are not eligible for tuition fee reimbursement under the FAEAEC unless they have refunded the HKSAR Government all the reimbursement obtained under the DAE Programme. Besides, if students enrol on both the DAE Programme and the evening secondary courses provided by an approved course provider under the FAEAEC in the same academic year, they are required to choose between receiving tuition fee reimbursement under the DAE Programme or the FAEAEC. If a student studies both the Diploma of Applied Education (DAE) programme and Diploma Yi Jin (DYJ) programme, he / she can only receive tuition fee reimbursement for a maximum of 8 courses under the DAE/DYJ programme in total. If a student has been reimbursed the tuition fee of a DYJ course, he/she cannot apply for tuition fee reimbursement for the same course under the DAE programme. For example, if a student has been reimbursed the tuition fee of the Chinese subject of the DYJ programme, he/she cannot apply for tuition fee reimbursement for the Chinese subject under the DAE programme.

2. Extended Non-means-tested Loan Scheme (ENLS)
   
   

   DAE students who have the right of abode in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (Hong Kong); or alternatively, the students or their families who have resided in Hong Kong continuously for three complete years prior to the commencement of the course may apply for a loan under ENLS to pay their tuition fees. Applicants are required to pay an administrative fee for each application and each loan account on an annual basis. Interest is accrued at the prevailing ENLS interest rate upon drawdown of the loan and throughout the study period until the loan is fully repaid (please visit Working Family and Student Financial Assistance Agency (WFSFAA)’s website at   www.wfsfaa.gov.hk/sfo/pdf/common/Form/nls/NLS_interest_and_Admin_fee_chi.pdf
   

   for the current ENLS interest rate.) The ENLS loans borrowed by loan borrowers and the interest accrued upon thereon are repayable in 15 years by 180 equal monthly instalments, or in a shorter repayment period by equal monthly instalments as agreed by the Student Finance Office upon (i) graduation; or (ii) loan borrowers’ cessation of being a student or withdrawal from / suspension / deferment of their studies / their failure to complete the course for whatever reason(s); or (iii) lapse of six years from the first disbursement of loan, whichever is the earliest. For application details, please refer to the ENLS Guidance Notes [ENLS 140] which can be downloaded from the WFSFAA’s website at  www.wfsfaa.gov.hk/tc/sfo/postsecondary/enls/forms.php
   

3. Student Travel Subsidy (STS) Scheme
   
   Full-time DAE students can apply for subsidy under the STS Scheme. Applicants must be Hong Kong residents who are residing more than 10 minutes' walking distance away from their institutions during term time and need to travel to the institutions by public transport. They are also required to pass the means test and they should not be receiving the same type of assistance under the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) Scheme.
   
   
4. Subsidy Scheme for Internet Access Charges
   
   Full-time DAE students may apply for subsidy to meet the Internet access charges for e-learning at home through this scheme. Student-applicants must be Hong Kong residents and must pass the means test, and their families should not be receiving the same type of assistance under the CSSA Scheme. The subsidy is granted on a household basis. Eligible families will receive a flat-rate cash grant, regardless of the number of children in the family.
   
   
5. Flat-rate Academic Expense Grant
   
   Full-time DAE students passing the means test of the SFO may receive the flat-rate academic expense grant which is for relieving these students of the financial burden in meeting their academic expenses. To receive the grant, the student's family should not be receiving the same type of assistance under the CSSA Scheme.

Enquiry about Financial Assistance Arrangement

For enquiries about the financial assistance provided by the Government and the application procedures, please contact the institutions concerned or the SFO direct –

Website: http://www.wfsfaa.gov.hk