The National Medical Commission (NMC) has reiterated before the Kerala High Court that medical colleges can only charge MBBS fees for the prescribed four-and-a-half years of academic study, maintaining that institutions cannot charge tuition for periods beyond the notified academic duration.The submission was in response to a petition filed by the Kerala Private Medical College Management Association, which has challenged the Commission’s direction on refund of fees collected for an additional six months. In its submission before the court, the NMC maintained that only the Commission is empowered to prescribe the duration of the MBBS course and the collection of fees must remain within that framework.NMC cites legal provisions on course lengthThe Commission relied on Sections 10 and 24 of the National Medical Commission Act, 2019 read with the Competency Based Medical Education (CBME) Guidelines, 2024 framed under the Graduate Medical Education Regulations (GMER). Under these provisions, the MBBS program comprises 54 months, or four and a half years, of academic studies, followed by one year of compulsory rotating medical internship (CRMI).The NMC told the court that charging fees beyond the prescribed period of academic study is inconsistent with the approved structure of the MBBS program as internships do not constitute academic education.Previous court rulings form the legal basisThe Commission also referred to the interim directions issued in Abhishek Yadav v. Union of India (WP No. 730 of 2022), where complaints relating to non-payment of stipend and imposition of charges and fees relating to internships were considered.He further cited the rulings TMA Pai Foundation v. State of Karnataka, Islamic Academy of Education v. State of Karnataka and PA Inamdar v. State of Maharashtra, who felt that fee structures should be reasonable, transparent, non-exploitative and commensurate with the academic facilities and services actually provided.The Commission reiterates the compliance requirementThe NMC held that charging fees for periods beyond the prescribed academic duration, where relevant academic instruction is not provided, would be inconsistent with these legal principles. He reiterated that MBBS fees should be charged only for the four-and-a-half-year academic course.The Commission also told the court that all medical colleges, institutions and universities are required to comply with the National Medical Commission Act, 2019, applicable regulations and court directions governing medical education. He stated that any instance of non-compliance would be considered seriously and appropriate action could be initiated in accordance with the applicable legal and regulatory provisions.