Parents challenge private schools over annual charges

Parents of children enrolled in private schools in Rawalpindi and Islamabad have urged the authorities to take action against schools allegedly charging annual fees under various heads at the start of every new academic session.

According to parents, several private schools in the twin cities continue to levy admission, security and miscellaneous charges each year, despite regulations framed by the Private Educational Institutions Regulatory Authority (PEIRA). The charges arrive on top of monthly tuition fees, and parents say they place an additional burden on families.

Parents said schools routinely demanded lump sums ranging from Rs20,000 to Rs50,000 when students were promoted to the next class. The charges were imposed under different names, including annual charges, re-admission fees and promotion fees, allegedly in violation of the applicable rules.

A payment that returns every March

Muhammad Asif, a parent whose two children attend a private school in G-11, Islamabad, said the school issued fee vouchers every March that included admission charges, despite both children being existing students.

“We pay Rs30,000 per child as annual charges. When we ask the administration, they say it is a system fee. It is not affordable for a middle-class family,” he said.

Asif also said his children’s school increased annual charges by 40 percent this year without any justification. He said complaints had been submitted to PEIRA, but no action had been taken yet.

Another parent, Sadia, said she paid Rs75,000 for her two children at the start of the new academic session, even though both had studied at the same school for three years. For a family paying monthly tuition as well, that single payment lands as a second bill.

The March timing matters. A new session starts, vouchers arrive, and parents must pay before the school year gets under way. Existing students face the same demand as new admissions.

Results and roll slips allegedly withheld

Parents have also alleged that some schools withhold examination results and roll number slips over unpaid annual charges. That claim raises the stakes beyond money. A withheld result or roll slip can block a child’s next step, even where tuition fees are paid up to date.

The allegation is made by parents, not established by a regulator’s finding. Still, it explains why parents have framed the issue as a complaint to the regulator rather than a private dispute with one school.

Parents have urged PEIRA to conduct a comprehensive audit of school fee structures. They want refunds of fees collected in violation of the rules, a transparent fee policy and a complaint mechanism that produces action.

What PEIRA regulates

PEIRA regulates private educational institutions in the Islamabad Capital Territory. Its regulations set the framework within which schools in the capital can charge fees. Parents argue that annual admission-style charges for continuing students fall outside that framework.

Schools often describe such charges as covering systems, facilities or annual services. No school response appears in the reporting, so no single school’s justification can be tested here. The regulator’s view, once given, will matter more than either side’s description.

The distinction between a one-time admission fee and a recurring annual charge sits at the heart of the dispute. An admission fee, paid once when a child joins, is a different proposition from a charge that returns each year for a child who never left.

Why this hits middle-class families hardest

Rs30,000 per child, or Rs75,000 for two children, is a large sum for a middle-class household paying monthly tuition on top. Spread across two or three children, the annual charge can rival several months of tuition.

That burden arrives at the same point in the year for every family. Unlike a rise spread across monthly bills, a lump sum demands cash at once.

The parents’ demand is therefore practical rather than abstract. They want an audit to establish which charges are lawful, refunds where charges were collected unlawfully, and a clear fee policy so that families know in advance what they must pay and why.

Until PEIRA responds, parents are left with the voucher and a complaint already filed. The next step belongs to the regulator: which charges stand, which must stop, and what happens to money already collected.

How much do parents say schools charge each year?

Which regulator oversees private schools in Islamabad?

What do parents want PEIRA to do?

• The Express Tribune, “Schools under fire over annual charges” (28 October 2026): https://tribune.com.pk/story/2637315/schools-under-fire-over-annual-charges
• APP via TezKhabar, “Parents demand an audit of private schools’ fee structures” (25 October 2026): https://en.tezkhabar.tv/parents-demand-an-audit-of-private-schools-fee-structures-stern-action-against-charging-illegal-annual-fund/
• Bloom Pakistan, “Parents Demand Action Against Schools Charging Illegal Annual Fees” (26 October 2026): https://bloompakistan.com/parents-demand-action-against-schools-charging-illegal-annual-fees/