Despite a clear fee cap issued by the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), private medical and dental colleges across the country have started charging far more than the legally allowed amount for the 2025–26 academic session, pushing thousands of families into severe financial strain.

Under the PMDC notification issued last month, the annual tuition fee for private medical and dental colleges was fixed at Rs1.89 million, inclusive of all charges. However, admission letters and bank challans shared by parents show colleges demanding upfront payments ranging from Rs2.5 million to over Rs3.5 million.

Parents from Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi, and Peshawar report that colleges are giving less than 24 hours to deposit the demanded amount, warning that admission seats will be cancelled if payments are delayed. Many families say this pressure leaves them with no choice but to comply.

In several cases, colleges have demanded additional “remaining college fees” even after students paid official university charges, effectively violating the PMDC’s notified cap. Parents further allege that unregulated charges are imposed over the five-year degree program under headings such as examinations, laboratories, clinical training, IT services, and graduation.

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These extra charges reportedly add between Rs800,000 and Rs1 million per student. “These colleges are openly defying the PMDC,” said a parent in Lahore. “They force you to pay millions immediately or risk losing your child’s future.”

Parents also complain that filing complaints through the PMDC portal has brought no relief. A PMDC official confirmed that a stay order against the fee cap was obtained by the medical colleges’ association, but said the issue is now under review by a high-powered committee headed by the deputy prime minister.

The controversy has once again reignited debate over unchecked profiteering by private medical colleges and the regulator’s ability to enforce its own rules.