School Fees & Exemptions
School fees are one of the most misunderstood areas of school governance — and the source of some of the most stressful confrontations between parents and schools. The law is actually quite protective of learners, but few parents (and not all governing bodies) know how it works.
This guide covers the rules that matter most: that no child may be turned away for unpaid fees, who qualifies for exemption, how to apply, and how a governing body sets fees in the first place.
No Child May Be Refused For Unpaid Fees
Start with the single most important rule, because it is the one most often broken:
A public school may not refuse to admit a learner, suspend a learner, refuse a report, or deny access to school activities because a parent has not paid school fees.
Non-payment of fees is a matter between the school and the parent — never the child. A school may pursue an unpaid, non-exempt parent through a legal process, but it may not victimise, exclude, or embarrass the learner. If a school is threatening a child over fees, it is acting outside the law.
No-Fee Schools Versus Fee-Charging Schools
Not every school charges fees. Schools in the poorer quintiles (broadly quintiles 1 to 3) are declared no-fee schools and are funded by the state instead of by parents. Parents at these schools pay nothing and do not need to apply for exemption.
Fee-charging schools set their own fees through the governing body and the parent body (see below). If your school charges fees, the exemption system exists to protect parents who genuinely cannot afford them.
Who Qualifies For A Fee Exemption
At a fee-charging school, a parent may apply for a full, partial, or conditional exemption. Two things determine the outcome:
Automatic full exemption. Certain parents qualify automatically — for example, those who receive a social grant for the child, foster parents, and orphans or children in child-headed households. These parents should not be paying fees at all.
The income test. For everyone else, exemption is based on the school fees as a proportion of the family's combined annual income. Broadly, if annual fees are a large enough share of income, the parent qualifies for a full exemption; between the thresholds, a sliding scale gives a partial exemption. The governing body applies the formula set out in the national fee-exemption regulations — it is not a discretionary favour.
How To Apply For An Exemption
The process is designed to be accessible:
- The school must tell you. A fee-charging school is required to inform parents, in writing, of the right to apply for exemption and how to do so — including at the point of admission.
- Submit an application to the governing body with the required supporting information (proof of income and circumstances).
- The SGB must respond within the period set by the regulations. A parent who is unhappy with the outcome has a right of appeal to the Head of Department.
Do not simply stop paying — apply. An exemption is a legal entitlement when you qualify, not a concession.
How School Fees Are Set And Raised
Governing bodies do not set fees on their own. Fees can only be charged if a majority of parents present at a properly convened annual meeting vote for them, and that meeting also sets the amount and the exemption arrangements. The governing body proposes a budget; the parent body adopts it.
This is why the annual budget meeting matters: it is the moment fees are democratically agreed. A fee "increase" announced without that parent vote is not properly authorised.
What A School May And May Not Do To Recover Fees
A school may take reasonable legal steps to recover outstanding fees from a parent who is legally liable and has not been granted exemption. A school may not target the learner, and it may not pursue a parent who qualifies for exemption or who was never properly informed of the right to apply. Aggressive collection tactics against parents have repeatedly been curbed by the courts.
The SGB's Role In Fees
For the governing body, fees are a governance responsibility with real legal exposure: setting them through the correct parent process, administering exemptions fairly and on time, budgeting honestly, and keeping clean financial records for the annual financial statements. Get the process right and fees are routine; get it wrong and they become disputes and audit findings.
Quorum helps governing bodies keep the fee cycle on track — the annual budget and financial-statement deadlines in your governance calendar, and a finance and exemptions policy drafted against SASA and the exemption regulations, so the process is defensible from the start.