NMC tells Kerala HC MBBS colleges cannot charge fees beyond 4.5 years of academic study

The National Medical Commission (NMC) has informed the Kerala High Court that medical colleges cannot collect MBBS tuition fees beyond the prescribed four-and-a-half-year academic course. According to the TOI report, the Commission has maintained that students can only be charged for the period of academic study notified by the regulator.

The submission came during the hearing of a petition filed by the Kerala private medical college management association, which has challenged the NMC's direction asking colleges to refund fees collected for an additional six months.

The Commission argued that only the NMC has the authority to determine the duration of the MBBS course and that colleges are expected to structure their fee collection accordingly.

NMC refers to course regulations

As per the TOI report, the Commission relied on the National Medical Commission Act, 2019, along with the competency based medical education (CBME) guidelines, 2024, framed under the graduate medical education regulations (GMER).

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It told the court that the MBBS programme consists of 54 months (four-and-a-half years) of classroom learning, followed by a one-year Compulsory Rotating Medical Internship (CRMI). Since the internship is not considered part of academic teaching, the Commission said colleges should not collect tuition fees for that period.

Earlier court rulings cited

The NMC also referred to the interim directions in Abhishek Yadav v. Union of India, a case that dealt with issues such as unpaid stipends and internship-related charges.

It further cited judgments in T.M.A. Pai Foundation v. State of Karnataka, Islamic Academy of Education v. State of Karnataka, and P.A. Inamdar v. State of Maharashtra. As per the TOI report, these rulings emphasise that educational institutions must keep their fee structures fair, transparent, and proportionate to the academic services they actually provide.

Compliance mandatory, says Commission

The Commission reiterated that charging fees beyond the approved academic duration, when no classroom instruction is being provided, is not in line with the legal framework governing medical education.

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It also informed the court that all medical colleges, universities and institutions are required to follow the National Medical Commission Act, 2019, along with the applicable regulations and court directions. Any violation of these provisions could invite action under the relevant statutory and regulatory framework, according to the TOI report.