UK VAT on private schools triggers record decline in Hong Kong students
Hong Kong student numbers at UK private schools hit five-year low, with enrolment down 17 per cent and new admissions plunging 26 per cent
Hong Kong student numbers at UK private schools experienced a record decline after Britain imposed a 20 per cent tax on fees last year, with enrolment falling by 17 per cent and new admissions down by 26 per cent.
A consultant specialising in student recruitment for British private schools said enrolment had returned to levels seen before Hong Kong’s emigration wave, with parents becoming more selective as costs rose.
According to an annual census by the United Kingdom’s Independent Schools Council (ISC), the number of overseas pupils fell by 7 per cent, from 61,750 to 57,214.
Conducted each January, the survey captured the full impact of the value-added tax (VAT) policy, which was introduced midway through the previous academic year.
“Pupil numbers from Hong Kong have also fallen, continuing a downward trend in recent years, with a marked decrease in the latest year,” the ISC said.
The decline in Hong Kong students outpaced the global average and most other regions. Hong Kong recorded the largest drop in absolute numbers and the second-largest percentage decline, behind only Russia.