Dear members,

The 2nd Assembly of Counselors (AC) Meeting and the 2nd Board of Directors (CA) Meeting took place on March 17 and March 27, 2026.

The agenda for the AC and CA meetings concerned the signing of an amendment to the agreement, which results in an increase in the annual contribution of LFIT to AEFE (the Agency for French Education Abroad).

This increase has been discussed in the press and has raised questions from our members. We therefore wish to provide some clarifications:

The 2025 French Finance Law reduced the French state’s subsidy to AEFE, worsening the already fragile financial situation of AEFE. In December 2025, the AEFE Board of Directors, by a narrow majority and despite opposition from parent representatives, decided to pass this cost on to the schools in the network.

In the case of LFIT, as with all contracted schools, AEFE chose to request the signing of an amendment to the agreement, which increases the fees paid by the school starting in July 2026. The Board voted to adopt this amendment.

Why did the parent representatives vote against it?

AEFE presented the amendment to the administrators as a done deal, explaining that failure to sign would result in the termination of the agreement.

No financial analysis or explanation of the consequences of such termination was provided.

The situation is in no way related to the management of LFIT, but rather to the chaotic management of AEFE and the budgetary situation in France. It is unclear whether such a request will not be repeated in the near future if AEFE’s financial situation continues to deteriorate.

It is regrettable that the efforts made by parents, staff, and administration to improve the school’s financial situation are thus partially negated.

Under these conditions, it was not possible to vote in favor.

What is the impact on LFIT?

The additional cost amounts to approximately 65 million yen for 2026/2027, and then approximately 106 million yen per year. This is a significant amount, equivalent to 3-5% of tuition fees. For comparison, this is roughly the amount allocated each year to maintenance and improvement work on the premises.

Will this cause an additional increase in tuition fees?

Not directly.

For the past four years, the school management has made financial projections aimed at improving the school’s financial situation and addressing upcoming property deadlines. These projections included a plan for annual increases in tuition fees. At the first Board meeting, a 5% increase was voted on, in accordance with this plan.

The projections were based on conservative assumptions, allowing for contingencies such as a drop in enrollment or high inflation.

Since these assumptions did not materialize, the financial situation has improved more quickly than expected, which is good news.

This will allow LFIT to absorb this additional cost while staying on the planned trajectory for tuition fee increases. In other words, there will be no increase beyond the 5% already approved for 2026/27, and future increase forecasts are also maintained.

Unfortunately, without this additional cost, it is possible that the trajectory of fee increases could have been softened.

Is the financial situation of LFIT weakened?

No, not for now. Despite this additional cost, the financial situation continues to improve in anticipation of real estate investment deadlines.

A more comprehensive summary is attached to this page

The FLT team