site.btaEducation Committee Approves Bill to Cut Tuition Fees for Paid University Programmes by 40%

Bulgaria’s Parliamentary Committee on Education and Science decided Wednesday to reduce tuition fees for students in paid university programmes by 40% through an amendment to the Higher Education Act.

The bill was submitted on June 27 by Committee Chair Andrey Chorbanov, along with GERB and BSP-United Left MPs. The amendments specifically concern tuition fees for students enrolled in paid education programmes at universities.

The proposed changes state that tuition fees for paid education cannot be lower than 60% of the state-funded cost of education in the respective professional field, plus the regular state tuition fee. Currently, the law requires 100% of the education cost to be covered. The 40% difference will correspond to a proportional reduction in the amounts students pay.

The amendments are pending approval in a plenary session of Parliament and are anticipated to take effect in the 2025/2026 academic year.

Deputy Education and Science Minister Nikolay Vitanov said that the Education Ministry supports the proposal, as it aligns with the position of the Council of Rectors.

Continue the Change-Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) Co-Floor Leader Nikolay Denkov explained that CC-DB proposes lowering the minimum tuition fee to 60%, in line with the Council of Rectors’ recommendation. Additionally, first-year students should be provided with clarity regarding future educational costs.

"We aim to protect the interests of public universities, as the State has long permitted private institutions to determine their own tuition fees, while excluding public universities from this provision," Vazrazhdane MP Ivaylo Papov added.

"The time has come to fundamentally rethink the funding model of higher education in the country. The current system has too many flaws," Chair of the Council of Rectors Miglena Temelkova said. She expressed hope that the proposed legislative changes will receive support, noting that they are backed by 23 public universities.

MPs voted on first reading on legislative changes earlier in July. On the same day, students protested over the increased tuition fees for paid education programmes at higher education institutions.