Vancouver Formosa Academy » Refund Policy

Refund Policy

In the event that an applicant does not come to Canada or decides to leave the Vancouver Formosa Academy for personal reasons, a portion of the paid tuition fee may be refunded. $300 will be retained to cover administrative expenses.

All requests must be made in writing with required documentation.

The following refund policy will apply:

Full tuition refund, if the student authorization is not approved by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). The letter of rejection from IRCC must be submitted to the school.
Two-thirds (2/3) of tuition fee if written withdraws is received before the first day of the first term at the school.
One-half (1/2) of tuition fee if written withdrawal is received within the first month of the first term at the school.
No refund of the tuition fee if written withdraws is received after the first month of the first term at the school.
No refund of the tuition fee if the student is found to be in violation of school rules. The school reserves the right to expel a student after three written Student Disciplinary Notices or for any totally inappropriate, dangerous or illegal behaviour.
Other Notes
- A Withdrawal Exit Form must be completed by a parent or guardian in order for a student to be considered officially withdrawn.
- Request requests must be made through the Refund Application Form.
- In the event of a disruption of services, Vancouver Formosa Academy will resume its educational program as quickly as possible in accordance with legal requirements. The school reserves the right to offer services by alternative means, such as online, if required.
- If the case of school closure, a tuition refund will be granted.
The following fees are not refundable:
- Application Fee
- Homestay Placement Fee
- Custodianship Fee

Bonding-Financial Guarantee: British Columbia Ministry of Education and Child Care

In accordance with the Bonding Act, Vancouver Formosa Academy is bonded with the British Columbia Ministry of Education and Childcare. This bonding arrangement ensures security for fees paid in advance to the Vancouver Formosa Academy high school program.

Former students of Group 4 independent schools (or their parents/guardians) may submit a claim application for prorated fee refunds under the provisions of the Independent School Regulation and the Bonding Act in cases where a school closes or the Inspector of Independent Schools suspends or cancels the certificate of the authority (effectively a school closure). The bond is intended to provide prorated fee refunds where full fee refunds are not provided by the authority.

Prorated refunds will only be provided when courses are not taken or completed by students due to the closure of the school. A course is considered to be not taken or completed for the purposes of a refund if no final mark was issued for the course. For courses leading to a B.C. Certificate of Graduation, in order for a course to be considered complete, marks must have been submitted to the Ministry. For courses not leading to a B.C. certificate of graduation (e.g. courses that are specifically offered to English Language Learners to improve their language proficiency), in order for a course to be considered complete, final grades must have been provided to the student on a progress report.

To be eligible for a prorated refund, the former student (or their parent/guardian if the former student is less than 19 years of age at the time of claim application) must submit a full and complete claim application to the Ministry, including evidence of fees paid to the school authority where courses were not taken, or not completed, as a result of the school’s closure, and evidence of any refunds provided by the authority.
The Ministry will open a claim application period before the end of the two-year limitation period. The claim application period will be open for no fewer than six months. Claim applications will be reviewed and assessed at the end of the limitation period. Eligible claimants will be provided with a refund, typically pro-rated, by the Ministry once applications have been reviewed and assessed. The Ministry will endeavour to complete this process as quickly as possible.

When calculating the eligible claim amount, eligible tuition fees will not be prorated. All other fees will be prorated (e.g. accommodation fees, fees for extracurricular activities, fees for student medical insurance.) The Ministry will prorate repayments among eligible applicants who have applied for refunds when the total amount of eligible claims against the bond is greater than the amount that is available under the bond.
The Inspector of Independent Schools expects all Group 4 schools, including start-up schools with interim Group 4 certification to have access – without recourse to the Group 4 Independent School Bond – to enough cash-on-hand to provide fee refunds in full in the event that the school fails to open or re-open, fails to receive initial or ongoing certification after an inspection, or otherwise closes. Ministry of Education and Child Care’s administration of a Group 4 independent school bond for the purpose of providing partial refunds can be a lengthy process as it is completed very carefully and within legislatively established timelines.

Former students and their parents/guardians are advised that claims will not be assessed until the end of the limitation period (two to three years after the date of school closure) in order to provide equity of access to refunds from the bond to all potential claimants. The timeline for the Ministry’s claim review and refund administration process will depend on a variety of factors, including the number and complexity of the claims. Refunds will not be available until a minimum of 2.5 years beyond the date of the school closure but could take significantly longer. Parents should not rely on prorated refunds derived from this bond for any payment required before the payout of bond monies (e.g. parents should not rely on the partial refund coming from the bond to pay fees at another school).
For more detailed information on the above, please see Section 3 of the Group 4 Independent School Bonding Policy, British Columbia Ministry of Education and Child Care.