China is expanding free education to preschools nationwide starting this autumn, as part of its pro-natal policy push.

The country’s public kindergartens will waive care and education fees in a phased rollout currently focused on children in their final year of kindergarten, according to a guideline issued by the State Council on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, private kindergartens will lower their fees in accordance with local public kindergarten exemption standards, though they may still charge families for any costs that go beyond those limits.

Authorities said the initiative aims to “effectively reduce the cost of education, improve the quality of basic public education services, and provide education that meets the people’s expectations.”

Fee standards in public kindergartens will be determined by local governments and relevant jurisdictions. Waivers will not cover meals, accommodations, or other miscellaneous fees.

Care and education fees at preschool vary significantly across the country depending on the region and the type of school. In Shanghai, for example, monthly fees at public kindergartens range from 125 yuan ($17) for children in their final year of kindergarten, aged 5 to 6, to 700 yuan at demonstration kindergartens, which serve as a model for teaching and management standards in the region.

Region-specific caps on per-student government subsidies will be set based on the average cost of public kindergartens in each province. These caps will be reviewed and potentially adjusted in the next three years.

Funding responsibilities will be shared between the central and local governments, with the former covering between 50% and 80%, depending on the region’s level of economic development.

The government subsidies will help offset the financial impact on kindergartens, many of which have faced closures in recent years due to financial difficulties worsened by declining student enrollment. According to data from China’s Ministry of Education, more than 20,000 kindergartens shut down nationwide in 2024.

The measure is part of a broader package of pro-natal policies aimed at reversing China’s declining birth rate. Just last week, the central government introduced a nationwide childcare subsidy that offers annual cash transfers of 3,600 yuan ($503) per child under the age of 3. Similar, more aggressive regional initiatives have already been rolled out in places like the northern Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and Hangzhou in eastern China’s Zhejiang province over the past few years.

China’s free preschool policy builds on its existing nine-year compulsory education system, which guarantees tuition-free schooling from grades one through nine.

This year’s government work report, released in March, proposed the gradual implementation of free preschool education, with the public anticipating concrete steps toward the initiative’s rollout in 2025. At the same time, there have also been growing calls to extend free education to the high school level.

Investing in early childhood education brings the highest economic returns, as it strengthens human resources and supports a skilled future workforce, Han Fengqin, director of the Center for Education, Science, Culture and Health Research at the Chinese Academy of Fiscal Sciences, told domestic media.

Han also highlighted the role free preschool education could play in enhancing social equality by reducing disparities in access to early education between urban and rural areas and different social groups.

“It ensures that marginalized populations — such as migrant and disabled children — can access preschool, helps fill systemic gaps, and supports the flow of quality educational resources to undeveloped areas,” she said.

Editor: Tom Arnstein.

(Header image: VCG)