Foreign-invested schools in Vietnam will be allowed to enroll a limited percentage of local students but no kindergarteners, the Ministry of Education and Training said at a conference in Hanoi on Monday.

The conference was held to introduce a government decree on foreign investment in education sector that took effect on November 15, 2012.

According to the decree, these schools are not allowed to accept Vietnamese children under five.

Primary schools can enroll a maximum of 10 percent of Vietnamese students. The threshold is 20 percent for secondary and high schools.

Foreign schools are allowed to issue degrees as per the local education system but the schools have to register with the Ministry of Education and Training or the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs before enrollment.

The decree says foreign investors should invest at least VND30 million (US$1,440) per child for kindergartens and VND50 million per student for schools offering classes from the first to the 12th grade.

The minimum investment requirements are between VND20 million and VND100 million per student for vocational schools and VND150 million ($7,200) per student for colleges and universities.

Deputy Minister of Education and Training Tran Quang Quy noted at the conference that foreign investment in education has increased continuously over the past several years, especially in big cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

According to the decree, foreign schools that opened in Vietnam before this decree takes effect will not have to register again but will have to supply required documents within six months from November 15, 2012.

As of November 2012, there were 111 foreign invested education projects in Vietnam with a total investment of VND235.7 million, including 51 in HCMC, 44 in Hanoi and 16 in other cities and provinces.

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