On September 4, 2026, President Marcos signed Republic Act No. 12325, amending the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act — the same RA 10931 that made tuition free at state universities back in 2017. Headlines called it an "expanded free tuition law," which is technically true but easy to misread. This isn't a private-school version of RA 10931's blanket coverage. It's a narrower, means-tested subsidy program layered on top. Here's what it actually changes.
What RA 12325 Actually Does
RA 12325 doesn't replace RA 10931 — it amends it. RA 10931 still governs free tuition at State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) and Local Universities and Colleges (LUCs), exactly as before (see our full RA 10931 explainer if you haven't read it). What RA 12325 adds is new: a government-funded assistance channel for students who were never covered by RA 10931 in the first place, because they're studying at a private institution.
Under the law, the Tertiary Education Subsidy (TES) — previously a public-school benefit administered through UniFAST — now extends to "poor and deserving students taking priority programs who are not covered by existing grants," letting them pursue their studies "in qualified private higher education and technical-vocational institutions," in President Marcos's own words at the signing. This new channel has a name: the Private Education Assistance (PEA) program.
Who's Actually Newly Covered
Three qualifiers matter here, and all three narrow who benefits:
- "Poor and deserving." This is means-tested assistance, not a universal benefit. It targets low-income households, not every private-school student who'd like help with tuition.
- "Priority programs." The subsidy is tied to government-identified priority programs — courses the country has a documented workforce need for — not every degree program a private school offers. The specific list wasn't public knowledge at the time of this writing.
- "Not covered by existing grants." This is explicitly a gap-filler, for students who don't already have a scholarship, discount, or other subsidy covering their private-school tuition.
Practically: a student already planning to enroll at Ateneo, DLSU, UST, or FEU shouldn't assume RA 12325 will make that tuition free. It's built for a much more specific case — a low-income student who'd otherwise be priced out of a priority-program seat at a qualified private HEI or TVET institution, with no other funding covering the gap.
What the Subsidy Now Pays For
Before RA 12325, TES paid a flat amount regardless of actual need or program cost: roughly ₱27,000/year for private HEI students and ₱20,000/year for public HEI students. RA 12325 replaces that one-size-fits-all figure with subsidy amounts that vary by undergraduate program, with extra incentives for the priority programs the law is built around.
The law also widens what the subsidy can cover beyond tuition itself. Based on official reporting on the amendment, expanded TES coverage now explicitly includes:
- Internship and Related Learning Experience (RLE) fees, specifically called out for nursing and allied health programs
- Licensure-related costs tied to a student's program
- Cost-of-living items beyond the campus gate — books, transportation, housing, laptops, and internet access
That last point matters a lot if you've read our RA 10931 guide: one of the biggest complaints about "free tuition" as originally implemented was that it never touched dorms, transport, or books — the costs that actually push students out of school. RA 12325 is the first amendment to explicitly acknowledge that gap in its own text, even if only for the students it covers.
A New Prioritization Scheme, and Why It Exists
RA 12325 also changes who gets picked first when TES slots are limited. Students from Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) households now get top priority; remaining slots are allocated by household per capita income rather than on a first-come basis.
This change responds to a real, documented problem: the share of TES grants actually reaching the poorest households fell from about 74.24% in 2018 to just 30.74% by 2022, according to figures cited in coverage of the amendment. Flat, ungraded eligibility rules had let the subsidy drift toward better-off applicants over time. Tying priority explicitly to 4Ps status and income is meant to correct that drift going forward.
What's Still Unclear
RA 12325 is a signed law, not yet a fully operating program. President Marcos directed CHED, TESDA, and UniFAST to finalize the law's implementing rules and regulations (IRR) "within the period required by law" — standard language that means the fine print (exact income thresholds, the actual priority-program list, application windows, and how the PEA program will be administered) wasn't settled as of this writing. If you think you might qualify, the right move is to watch UniFAST's official site for the IRR and application guidelines directly, rather than relying on secondhand summaries — including this one.
How This Fits With Everything Else on This Site
If you're using one of our private-school calculators — Ateneo, DLSU, UST, FEU, Mapúa, San Beda, LPU, and the rest — the number it gives you is still the real, full sticker price you should budget for today. RA 12325 doesn't change any of those figures; it creates a separate, competitive assistance track that a minority of students may eventually qualify for once the IRR is finalized. If you're a public-school (SUC/LUC) student, RA 10931 remains the law that actually applies to your tuition bill — read our RA 10931 guide for that. And regardless of which law might apply to you, our scholarships guide and student loans guide cover funding options that exist right now, with rules that are already settled.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does RA 12325 mean private university tuition is now free?
- No. RA 12325 doesn't make private tuition free the way RA 10931 did for public SUCs/LUCs. It creates a means-tested assistance program — the Private Education Assistance program — for poor and deserving students in government-identified priority programs who aren't already covered by an existing grant. Most students at private schools like Ateneo, DLSU, UST, FEU, or Mapúa will still pay full tuition.
- What is RA 12325?
- RA 12325 is the law President Marcos signed on September 4, 2026, amending RA 10931 (the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act). It expands the Tertiary Education Subsidy program to reach private higher education and technical-vocational students, changes how TES recipients are prioritized, and broadens what the subsidy can be spent on.
- Who gets priority for assistance under RA 12325?
- Students from Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) households get top priority. Remaining slots are allocated by household per capita income, replacing the old flat subsidy amounts that applied regardless of how poor a household actually was.
- When does RA 12325 take effect?
- The law itself was signed September 4, 2026, but CHED, TESDA, and UniFAST still need to finalize its implementing rules and regulations before the new private-school assistance and prioritization rules are operational. Specific eligibility thresholds and the priority-program list weren't public as of this writing — check UniFAST's official page before assuming you qualify.
- Is RA 12325 the same as RA 10931?
- No — RA 12325 amends RA 10931, it doesn't replace it. RA 10931 still governs free tuition at public SUCs and LUCs. RA 12325 adds a new, narrower layer on top: subsidy assistance (not full free tuition) for select students at private HEIs and TVET institutions.
This article is general information, not legal advice, and summarizes a law whose implementing rules were still being finalized at the time of writing. Details here may change once CHED, TESDA, and UniFAST publish official IRR and application guidelines — always confirm current eligibility and how to apply directly with UniFAST or your school's financial aid office.