The President of Poland’s Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) has issued decisions concerning unlawful tuition fee increases during ongoing studies. The case involves two institutions – SWPS University in Warsaw and the Lublin University of Technology. According to UOKiK’s findings, both institutions raised tuition fees during a period when such practices were explicitly prohibited by law. As a result, students are entitled to refunds of overpaid amounts, and the universities have been fined.
Unlawful tuition increases
As UOKiK recalls, between July 2018 and September 2023, regulations guaranteed that tuition fees would remain unchanged throughout the entire course of study. This meant that once a contract was signed with a student, a university could neither increase fees nor introduce new charges for that cohort.
Despite this, the authority found that both SWPS University and the Lublin University of Technology applied practices involving tuition increases during the course of study. For some students, this meant an increase of several hundred złoty per semester, and in extreme cases, even several thousand złoty over the full duration of their studies.
Specific examples of fee increases
At the Lublin University of Technology, the issue affected, among others, part-time students who began their studies in the 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 academic years. For example, in the management program, tuition increased from PLN 1,750 to PLN 2,300 after just one year.
Meanwhile, SWPS University applied indexation clauses that allowed for systematic fee increases in subsequent years of study. As a result, the difference between the first and final year – for example in programs such as law or psychology – reached several thousand złoty.
UOKiK: price must be predictable
UOKiK President Tomasz Chróstny emphasized that in the case of paid education, transparency of costs at the recruitment stage is crucial.
“In paid education, price plays a key role. A student must know the total cost they will incur until graduation. During the analyzed period, the law did not allow fee increases, yet they were still applied,”
said the head of UOKiK.
Refunds for students
In its decisions, the authority ordered the universities to refund unlawfully collected fees. Students are to receive the difference between the tuition they actually paid and the amount that was valid at the time of signing the contract.
The universities will be required to inform eligible individuals about the refunds – both through their websites and social media, as well as individually. They have three months from the date the decisions become final to implement these actions.
Multi-million fines imposed
In addition to refund obligations, UOKiK imposed financial penalties on the universities for violating the collective interests of consumers.
- SWPS University in Warsaw was fined PLN 2,075,000
- Lublin University of Technology was fined PLN 921,000
The total amount of penalties therefore reaches nearly PLN 3 million.
Regulatory changes since 2023
It is worth noting that new regulations have been in force since the 2023/2024 academic year. Universities are now allowed to increase tuition fees, but only once per year and no more than the inflation rate announced by Poland’s Central Statistical Office (GUS).
However, these new rules do not apply to students who began their studies earlier. For them, the financial conditions agreed upon at the time of signing the contract remain binding.
Decisions not yet final
The decisions of the UOKiK President are not yet legally binding. The universities have the right to appeal to the court, meaning the case may still proceed to further stages.
At the same time, the signal sent by the regulator is clear: universities, like other market entities, must respect consumer rights, and students are entitled to stable and predictable financial conditions throughout their education.
