UGC Issues ‘Fee Refund’ Relief For Cancellation, Migration By 1st Year Students

New Delhi: The University Grants Commission (UGC) has decided to refund the full amount of fee collected from the first-year undergraduate and postgraduate students in case they have withdrawn their admissions or migrated till November 30, 2020.

The decision to refund the full amount has been taken as a “special case” for this session after considering the financial hardships the parents have faced due to the COVID-19 lockdown, NDTV Education reported.

The UGC, however, added that if students cancel or withdraw their admissions from December 1 to December 31, the entire fee collected will be refunded after a deduction of not more than Rs 1,000 as processing fee.

“In order to avoid financial hardship being faced by the parents due to lockdown and related factors, a full refund of fees be made on account of all cancellation of admissions/ migration of students, up to 30.11.2020, for this very session as a special case. To be crystal clear, the entire fees including all charges are refunded in totality (zero cancellation charges) on account of cancellation/ migration up to 30.11.2020. Thereafter, on cancellation/withdrawal of admissions up to 31.12,2020, the entire fee collected from a student will be refunded in full after deduction of not more than Rs 1,000 as processing fee,” UGC said in a statement.

“The Commission has been receiving several references in the form of RTI applications/ complaints/ public grievances/ court cases in respect of non-refund of fee… Most of these complaints have come from the students who have taken admission in private or self-financing universities and deemed to be universities and later opted out for one or the other reasons,” the statement added.

It further stated that any institution/ university found refusing to refund the fee by giving its own interpretation of the guidelines shall be liable for punitive actions.