Admissions is where FDI vocational schools most easily get sanctioned — not because quotas are imposed top-down, but because of three operating traps: recruiting beyond registered assurance conditions, advertising beyond the truth, and training contracts missing mandatory content. Understanding all three lets a school set its own enrolment freely within the law instead of being bound by needless misunderstandings.
Enrolment quotas: the school sets them within registered conditions
Under Decree 46/2017/ND-CP (as amended by Decree 135/2018/ND-CP), a vocational institution determines its annual enrolment target itself, based on its actual quality assurance conditions: floor area per learner, number and qualifications of teachers, practice equipment, and the occupations and levels registered for its activity. The quota is not a number allocated downward by the state as under the old subsidy mechanism — but neither is it whatever the school wishes to declare: recruiting beyond assurance capacity on those criteria breaches its operating conditions.
In practice, recruiting beyond conditions leads to remediation orders, possible education administrative penalties, and suspension of enrolment for the offending occupation until conditions are met. For an FDI vocational school, enrolment must also stay consistent with the scale in its approved establishment dossier; growth beyond the dossier should be handled by amending the dossier, not by recruiting first and regularising later.
False recruitment advertising: two layers of liability
At the advertising layer, false or misleading advertising about programmes, credentials or employment rates is fined under Decree 87/2026/ND-CP (effective 15 May 2026, replacing Decree 38/2021/ND-CP). Article 50 of that Decree sets fines for misleading advertising, with the top band for false advertising about service quality and effects reaching VND 80–100 million for individuals; and under the convention in Clause 3, Article 6, fines in these chapters are individual levels, with organisations fined double — VND 160–200 million for a school as an organisation — plus remedies such as forced removal of the advertisement and public correction.
At the education layer, the same conduct is also treated as a breach of enrolment and training organisation rules: advertising unregistered training levels, promising credentials beyond authority or guaranteeing employment without basis can lead to cessation orders, education-law penalties and consequences for the school’s activity registration. Note that Decree 87/2026 applies to conduct from 15 May 2026 — the old Decree 38/2021 framework must not be used for campaigns running today.
The training contract with students: indispensable content
The training contract is the central binding document of the school–learner relationship under the Law on Vocational Education 74/2014/QH13. Its core content must include: the occupation and training level; the programme, duration and delivery form; total tuition, the payment schedule and the refund policy where the learner withdraws or the school fails its commitments; graduation conditions and the type of diploma or certificate issued; each party’s rights and obligations; and the dispute resolution mechanism. Missing refund clauses and certification conditions are the two defects causing the most disputes in practice.
Advice for FDI schools: sign the training contract with each learner (or the guardian of a minor) before collecting the first tuition instalment, use one legally reviewed template for the whole intake, and make sure every promise in admissions materials — employment rates, hiring partners, scholarships — appears correspondingly in the contract. The gap between advertising and contract is where both learner complaints and false-advertising exposure arise.
Frequently asked questions
Are vocational schools subject to enrollment quotas?
Not allocated top-down. The institution sets its own target from actual assurance conditions (floor area per learner, teachers, equipment) within its registered occupations and levels under Decree 46/2017/ND-CP as amended by Decree 135/2018/ND-CP. Recruiting beyond assurance conditions is sanctioned, possibly with suspension of enrolment for that occupation; an FDI school must also match its approved establishment dossier scale.
What is the fine for false enrollment advertising?
Under Decree 87/2026/ND-CP (effective 15 May 2026, replacing Decree 38/2021/ND-CP), false or misleading advertising is fined under Article 50, with the top band at VND 80–100 million for individuals; organisations pay double under Clause 3, Article 6 — VND 160–200 million — plus forced removal and correction of the advertisement. The same conduct is also handled on the education side if it advertises unregistered levels or credentials beyond authority.
What must a training contract with students contain?
Under the Law on Vocational Education 74/2014/QH13 the contract must cover at least: the occupation and level; the programme, duration and delivery form; total tuition, payment schedule and refund policy; graduation conditions and the diploma or certificate issued; each party’s rights and obligations; and dispute resolution.
This article has been quality-reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council
