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The Education Bureau (EDB) today (January 12) announced that the 2012/13 school year Pre-primary Education Voucher Scheme (PEVS) would be open for applications by parents from next Monday (January 16). Parents of children attending classes in kindergartens eligible for voucher redemption in the 2012/13 school year may receive a fee subsidy through the PEVS.
"A student-applicant must be a Hong Kong resident born on or before December 31, 2009, who will attend kindergarten classes at a local non-profit-making kindergarten eligible for the voucher scheme in the 2012/13 school year and does not hold a Certificate of Eligibility for the PEVS. Students who have already been issued with the Certificate of Eligibility for the PEVS need not apply again," an EDB spokesman said.
Starting from January 16, parents may obtain application forms for Assessment of Eligibility for PEVS for the 2012/13 school year together with information leaflets from District Offices, Post Offices, Regional Education Offices of the EDB as well as the Student Financial Assistance Agency (SFAA).
Application forms and other related information can also be downloaded from the EDB website (www.edb.gov.hk/pre-primary_e) and the SFAA website (www.sfaa.gov.hk).
Parents who wish to receive the Certificate of Eligibility for PEVS before the beginning of the 2012/13 school year are advised to send their application forms together with supporting documents by post to the SFAA, Tsim Sha Tsui PO Box 95161, Kowloon, or drop all relevant documents into the drop-in box at the office of the SFAA at 12/F, Cheung Sha Wan Government Offices, 303 Cheung Sha Wan Road, on or before May 31.
In the 2012/13 school year, kindergartens eligible for voucher redemption must be non-profit-making, offer a local curriculum and charge a tuition fee not exceeding $25,200 per student per annum (for half-day classes) or $50,400 per student per annum (for whole-day classes). The fee subsidy is $16,800 per student per annum. The EDB will conduct an annual review of the fee thresholds and the amount of fee subsidy with reference to the year-on-year rate of change in Composite Consumer Price Index.
The list of approved kindergartens joining the PEVS in the 2012/13 school year will be uploaded to the EDB website "New Milestone of Pre-primary Education" by batches for public access. The first batch will be uploaded to the EDB website (www.edb.gov.hk/pre-primary_e) on January 16.
All parents on Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) with children at the age appropriate for pre-primary education, like other parents with pre-primary children, are required to submit applications to the SFAA for PEVS in order to receive the relevant fee subsidy, if they have not been issued with the Certificate of Eligibility for PEVS. If financial assistance on top of the subsidy from the voucher is required, they should approach the Social Welfare Department (SWD) for additional assistance under the CSSA Scheme.
The EDB will launch a series of publicity items ranging from TV and radio APIs to newspaper advertisements, posters and leaflets, to disseminate information on the PEVS to the public.
For details of the PEVS, please visit the homepage of the EDB or call 2891 0088. Enquiries about applications may be directed to the SFAA hotline at 2154 2130. Enquiries about applications for financial assistance for pre-primary education of CSSA children may be directed to the SWD hotline at 2343 2255.
Ends/Thursday, January 12, 2012
Issued at HKT 12:02
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