Tuition subsidies for the children of unemployed workers are to be increased for next semester, the Ministry of Labor said yesterday.
Unemployed workers are to be eligible to receive up to NT$6,000 (US$189) in tuition subsidies for each child in high school and up to NT$20,000 for college students, Department of Employment Welfare and Retirement Director Sun Pi-hsia (孫碧霞) said.
Tuition fees per semester average about NT$30,000 for private high schools and NT$55,000 for private colleges, while public institutions typically charge less.
The announcement represented a small raise in subsidies for high-school students and a twofold increase in collegiate subsidies.
Sun said that subsidies for high-school students remained relatively level because high-school education is set to become free by 2016 with the advent of the 12-year national education program.
Additional financial assistance for children’s tuition is to be granted to unemployed workers who are divorced or widowed, and those whose spouses are seriously injured.
Although an estimated 12,000 high-school and college students meet the requirements, only about one-quarter applied for the subsidies during the past semester, officials said.
Sun said that the subsidies were increased after taking into consideration suggestions on the most urgent needs of the nation’s workforce, adding that the subsidies are expected to reach a total of NT$100 million for the upcoming semester.
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