UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 20-F

(Mark One)

OR

For the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009.2010.

OR

OR

Date of event requiring this shell company report            

For the transition period from            to            

Commission file number: 001-32993

NEW ORIENTAL EDUCATION & TECHNOLOGY GROUP INC.

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

N/A

(Translation of Registrant’s name into English)

Cayman Islands

(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)

No. 6 Hai Dian Zhong Street

Haidian District,

Beijing 100080

The People’s Republic of China

(Address of principal executive offices)

Louis T. Hsieh, President and Chief Financial Officer

Tel: +(86 10) 6260-5566

E-mail: louishsieh@staff.neworiental.org

Fax: +(86 10) 6260-5511

No. 6 Hai Dian Zhong Street

Haidian District,

Beijing 100080

The People’s Republic of China

(Name, Telephone, E-mail and/or Facsimile number and Address of Company Contact Person)

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:

None

(Title of Class)

Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act:

None

(Title of Class)

Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the Issuer’s classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report.153,004,707155,379,387 common shares, par value US$0.01 per share, as of May 31, 20092010..

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.    Yes  x    No  ¨

If this report is an annual or transition report, indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.    Yes  ¨    No  x

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.    Yes  x    No  ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).    Yes  ¨    No  ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, or a non-accelerated filer. See definition of “accelerated filer and large accelerated filer” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):

Large accelerated filer  x    Accelerated filer  ¨    Non-accelerated filer  ¨

Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the financial statements included in this filing:

U.S. GAAP  x

International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board  ¨

Other  ¨

If “Other” has been checked in response to the previous question, indicate by check mark which financial statement item the registrant has elected to follow. Item 17  ¨    Item��Item 18  ¨

If this is an annual report, indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).    Yes  ¨    No  x

(APPLICABLE ONLY TO ISSUERS INVOLVED IN BANKRUPTCY PROCEEDINGS DURING THE PAST FIVE YEARS)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed all documents and reports required to be filed by Sections 12, 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 subsequent to the distribution of securities under a plan confirmed by a court.    Yes  ¨    No  ¨

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

Unless otherwise indicated and except where the context otherwise requires, references in this annual report on Form 20-F to:

We refer to our teaching facilities in this annual report as either “schools” or “learning centers,” based primarily on a facility’s functions. Generally, our schools consist of classrooms and administrative facilities with student and administrative services, while our learning centers consist primarily of classroom facilities.

Glossary of Major Admissions and Assessment Tests

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This annual report contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. All statements other than statements of historical facts are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made under the “safe harbor” provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.

You can identify these forward-looking statements by words or phrases such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “is expected to,” “anticipate,” “aim,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “is/are likely to” or other similar expressions. We have based these forward-looking statements largely on our current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends that we believe may affect our financial condition, results of operations, business strategy and financial needs. These forward-looking statements include:include, but are not limited to:

You should read thoroughly this annual report and the documents that we refer to herein with the understanding that our actual future results may be materially different from and/or worse than what we expect. We qualify all of our forward-looking statements by these cautionary statements. Other sections of this annual report include additional factors which could adversely impact our business and financial performance. Moreover, we operate in an evolving environment. New risk factors emerge from time to time and it is not possible for our management to predict all risk factors, nor can we assess the impact of all factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements.

You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. The forward-looking statements made in this annual report relate only to events or information as of the date on which the statements are made in this annual report. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.

PART I

Not applicable.

Not applicable.

A.Selected Financial Data

Our Selected Consolidated Financial Data

The following selected consolidated condensed financial data as of May 31, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 20092010 and for the years ended May 31, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 20092010 have been derived from our audited consolidated financial statements. These consolidated condensed financial data have been audited by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu CPA Ltd., an independent registered public accounting firm. The report of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu CPA Ltd. on our audited consolidated financial statements for the three

years ended May 31, 2007, 2008 and 2009 is included elsewhere in this annual report. The selected consolidated condensed financial data should be read in conjunction with, and are qualified in their entirety by reference to, our audited consolidated financial statements and related notes and “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects” included elsewhere in this annual report. Our audited consolidated financial statements are prepared and presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States, or U.S. GAAP. Effective December 1, 2007, we changed our reporting currency from RMB to the U.S. dollar in order to improve research analysts’ and investors’ ability to compare our financial results with other publicly-traded companies and to simplify our earnings release presentation. In order to allow for comparison to the financial results for the years ended May 31, 2008, 2009 and 2009,2010, the financial data for the years ended, and as of, May 31, 2005, 2006 and 2007 have been restated to reflect US$U.S. dollars as the reporting currency according to the policy described in “Note 2—Significant Accounting Policies—Foreign currency translation” in the notes accompanying our financial statements which are included at the end of this annual report.

The following table presents a summary of our consolidated balance sheet data as of May 31, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2009:2010:

Exchange Rate Information

Our business is primarily conducted in China and substantially all of our revenues are denominated in RMB. Prior to December 1, 2007, we reported our financial data in RMB. Effective December 1, 2007, we changed our reporting currency from RMB to the U.S. dollar in order to improve research analysts’ and investors’ ability to compare our financial results with other publicly-traded companies and to simplify our earnings release presentation. In order to allow for comparison to the financial results for the years ended May 31, 2008 and 2009, the financial data for the years ended May 31, 2005, 2006 and 2007 have been restated to reflect US$ as the reporting currency using the methods described in “Note 2—Significant Accounting Policies—Foreign currency translation” in the notes accompanying our financial statements which are included at the end of this annual report. All other translations from RMB to U.S. dollars and from U.S. dollars to RMB in this annual report, unless otherwise noted, were made at a rate of RMB6.8278 to US$1.00, the noon buying rate of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on May 29, 2009. This annual report contains translations of RMB amounts into U.S. dollars at specific rates solely for the convenience of the reader. Unless otherwise noted, including in “Note 2—Significant Accounting Policies—Foreign currency translation” in the notes accompanying our financial statements, all translations from RMB to U.S. dollars and from U.S. dollars to RMB in this annual report were made at a rate of RMB6.8305 to US$1.00, the noon buying rate in The City of New York for cable transfers of RMB as certified for customs purposes by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, or the noon buying rate, on May 28, 2010. We make no representation that any RMB or U.S. dollar amounts could have been, or could be, converted into U.S. dollars or RMB, as the case may be, at any particular rate, the rates stated below, or at all. The PRC government imposes control over its foreign currency reserves in part through direct regulation of the conversion of RMB into foreign exchange and through restrictions on foreign trade. On October 8, 2010, the noon buying rate was RMB6.6710 to US$1.00.

The following table sets forth information concerning exchange rates between the RMB and the U.S. dollar for the periods indicated. Fiscal year refers to our five most recent fiscal years and the previous six months.year ended on May 31. These rates are provided solely for your convenience and are not necessarily the exchange rates that we used in this annual report or will use in the preparation of our periodic reports or any other information to be provided to you. The source of these rates is the

Source: Federal Reserve Bank of New York.Statistical Release

B.Capitalization and Indebtedness

Not applicable.

C.Reasons for the Offer and Use of Proceeds

Not applicable.

D.Risk Factors

Risks Related to Our Business

If we are not able to continue to attract students to enroll in our courses without a significant decrease in course fees, our revenues may decline and we may not be able to maintain profitability.

The success of our business depends primarily on the number of student enrollments in our courses and the amount of course fees that our students are willing to pay. Therefore, our ability to continue to attract students to enroll in our courses without a significant decrease in course fees is critical to the continued success and growth of our business. This in turn will depend on several factors, including our ability to develop new programs and enhance existing programs to respond to changes in market trends and student demands, expand our geographic reach, manage our growth while maintaining the consistency of our teaching quality, effectively market our programs to a broader base of prospective students, develop and license additional high-quality educational content and respond to competitive pressures. If we are unable to continue to attract students to enroll in our courses without a significant decrease in course fees, our revenue may decline and we may not be able to maintain profitability.

We depend on our dedicated and capable faculty, and if we are not able to continue to hire, train and retain qualified teachers, we may not be able to maintain consistent teaching quality throughout our school network and our brand, business and operating results may be materially and adversely affected.

Our teachers are critical to maintaining the quality of our programs, services and products and maintaining our brand and reputation, as they interact with our students on a daily basis. We must continue to attract qualified teachers who have a strong command of the subject areas to be taught and meet our qualification. We also seek to hire teachers who are capable of delivering innovative and inspirational instruction. There are a limited number of teachers in China with the necessary experience and language proficiency to teach our courses and we must provide competitive compensation packages to attract and retain qualified teachers. In addition, criteria such as commitment and dedication are difficult to ascertain during the recruitment process, in particular as we continue to expand and add teachers at a faster pace to meet rising student enrollments. We must also provide continuous training to our teachers so that they can stay abreast ofup to date with changes in student demands, admissions and assessment tests, admissions standards and other key trends necessary to effectively teach their respective courses. We may not be able to hire, train and retain enough qualified teachers to keep pace with our anticipated growth while maintaining consistent teaching quality across many different schools, learning centers and programs in different geographic locations. Shortages of qualified teachers or decreases in the quality of our instruction, whether actual or perceived, in one or more of our markets may have a material and adverse effect on our business.

Our business depends on our “New Oriental” brand, and if we are not able to maintain and enhance our brand, our business and operating results may be harmed.

We believe that market awareness of our “New Oriental” brand has contributed significantly to the success of our business. We also believe that maintaining and enhancing the “New Oriental” brand is critical to maintaining our competitive advantage. We offer a diverse set of programs, services and products to primary and middle school students, college students and other adults throughout many provinces and cities in China. As we continue to grow in size, expand our programs, servicesprogram, service and productsproduct offerings and extend our geographic reach, maintaining quality and consistency may be more difficult to achieve.

WeHistorically, we have developed our student base primarily by word-of-mouth referrals and have incurred limited brand promotion expenses to date.referrals. We have initiated brand promotion efforts in recent years, but we cannot assure you that our new marketing efforts will be successful in further promoting our brand to remain competitive. If we are unable to further enhance our brand recognition and increase awareness of our programs, services and products, or if we incur excessive marketing and promotion expenses, our business and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected. In addition, any negative publicity relating to our company or our programs and services, regardless of its veracity, could harm our brand image and in turn adversely affect our business and operating results.

We face risks related to health epidemics and other outbreaks, which could result in reduced attendance or temporary closure of our schools, learning centers and bookstores.

Our business could be materially and adversely affected by the outbreak of avian influenza, severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, or another epidemic.other epidemics. In April 2009, a new strain of influenza A virus subtype H1N1, commonly referred to as “swine flu,” was first discovered in North America and quickly spread to other parts of the world, including China. In early June 2009, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak to be a pandemic, while noting that most of the illnesses were of moderate severity. In early October 2009, theThe PRC Ministry of Health subsequently reported China’s first deathseveral hundred deaths caused by the influenza A (H1N1). The influenza A (H1N1) outbreak adversely affected our business and results of operations in the first and second fiscal quarters of 2010 as we experienced slower-than-usual student enrollment growth and large numbers of cancellations and deferments in enrollments from registered students. In addition, we had to cancel classes whenever an enrolled student was diagnosed with influenza A (H1N1), as required by applicable health regulations. Any future outbreak of avian influenza, SARS, the influenza A (H1N1), or other adverse public health developments in China may have a material and adverse effect on our business operations. These occurrences could cause cancellations or deferments of student enrollments and require the temporary closure of our schools, learning centers and bookstores. Such closures couldbookstores, thus severely disruptdisrupting our business operations and adversely affectaffecting our results of operations.

Failure to effectively and efficiently manage the expansion of our school network may materially and adversely affect our ability to capitalize on new business opportunities.

We have increased the number of our schools in China from three in 2001 to 48 by the end of May 2009,2010, and we increased the number of our learning centers in China from 23 in 2001 to 222319 by the end of May 2009.2010. We plan to continue to expand our operations in different geographic locations in China. ThisOur expansion has resulted, and will continue to result, in substantial demands on our management, faculty and operational, technological and other resources. Our planned expansion will also place significant demands on us to maintain the consistency of our teaching quality and our culture to ensure that our brand does not suffer as a result of any decreases, whether actual or perceived, in our teaching quality. To manage and support our growth, we must continue to improve our existing operational, administrative and technological systems and our financial and management controls, and recruit, train and

retain additional qualified teachers, and management personnel as well asand other administrative and sales and marketing personnel, particularly as we expand into new markets. We cannot assure you that we will be able to effectively and efficiently manage the growth of our operations, recruit and retain qualified teachers and management personnel and integrate new schools and learning centers into our operations. Any failure to effectively and efficiently manage our expansion may materially and adversely affect our ability to capitalize on new business opportunities, which in turn may have a material adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

If we fail to successfully execute our growth strategies, we may not be able to continue to attract students to enroll in our courses without a significant decrease in course fees, and our business and prospects may be materially and adversely affected.

Our growth strategies include expanding our program, service and product offerings and our network of schools, learning centers and bookstores, updating and expanding the content of our programs, services and products in a cost-effective and timely manner, as well as maintaining and continuing to establish strategic relationships with complementary businesses. The expansion of our programs, services and products in terms of types of offerings and geographic locations may not succeed due to competition, our failure to effectively market our new programs, services and products and maintain their quality and consistency, or other factors. In addition, we may be unable to identify new cities with sufficient growth potential to expand our network, and we may fail to attract students and increase student enrollments or recruit, train and retain qualified teachers for our new schools and learning centers. Some cities in China have undergone development and expansion for several decades while others are still at an early stage of urbanization and development. In more developed cities, it may be difficult to increase the number of schools and learning centers because we and/or our competitors already have extensive operations in suchthese cities. In recently developed and developing cities, demand for our programs, services and products may not increase as rapidly as we expect. Furthermore, we may be unable to develop or license additional content on commercially reasonable terms and in a timely manner, or at all, to keep pace with changes in market requirements.demands. If we fail to successfully execute our growth strategies, we may not be able to continue to attract students to enroll in our courses without a significant decrease in course fees, and our business and prospects may be materially and adversely affected.

We may not be able to achieve the benefits we expect from recent and future acquisitions, and recent and future acquisitions may have an adverse effect on our ability to manage our business.

InAs part of our business strategy, we have pursued and intend to continue to pursue selective strategic acquisitions of businesses that complement our existing business. For example, in June 2008, we acquired a 60% equity stake in Beijing Haidian Mingshitang Exam Training Education School, or Mingshitang School, a Beijing-based private school that specializes in tutoring students seeking to retake the gaokao,“gaokao,” the Chinese college entrance examination. The remaining 40% equity stake in Mingshitang School was still subject to a multi-year earn-out structure as of May 31, 2009. In September 2008, we acquired Changchun Tongwen Gaokao Training Education School, or Tongwen Gaokao School, a Changchun-based private school that provides types ofsimilar services similar to the services thatthose provided by Mingshitang School provides.School. In connection with this acquisition, we also acquired a small private high school with approximately 30 students affiliated with Tongwen Gaokao School. These strategic acquisitions are expected to allow us to extend our New Oriental brand to the large non-English test preparation market. These recent acquisitions and any future acquisitions expose us to potential risks, including risks associated with the diversion of resources from our existing businesses, difficulty in successfully integrating the acquired businesses, failure to achieve expected growth by the acquired businesses, and the inability to generate sufficient revenue to offset the costs and expenses of acquisitions. In addition, the revenue and cost synergies that we expect to achieve from our acquisitions may not materialize.materialize, and we may have to recognize impairment charges as a result. For the year ended May 31, 2010, we recognized a goodwill impairment loss of US$76,000 arising from the acquisitions of Mingshitang School and Tongwen Gaokao School. Any of these eventsthe risks associated with acquisitions could have an adverse effect on our business, and operating results.

If we are presented with appropriate opportunities, we may acquire additional complementary companies. The integration of acquired companies diverts a great deal of management attention and dedicated staff efforts from other areas of our business. A successful integration process is important to realizing the benefits of an acquisition. If we encounter difficulty integrating our recent and future acquisitions, our business may be adversely affected. The acquisitions may not result in the expected growth or development, which may have an adverse effect on our business. We plan to continue to make strategic acquisitions, and identifying acquisition opportunities could demand substantial management time and resources. Negotiating and financing the potential acquisitions could involve significant cost and uncertainties. If we fail to continue to execute advantageous acquisitions in the future, our overall growth strategy could be impaired, and our operating results could be adversely affected.and growth prospects.

Third parties have in the past brought intellectual property infringement claims against us based on the content of the books and other teaching or marketing materials that we or our teachers authored and/or distributed and may bring similar claims against us in the future.

We may be subject to claims by educational institutions and organizations, content providers and publishers, competitors and others foron the ground of intellectual property rights infringement, defamation, negligence or other legal theories based on the content of the materials that we or our teachers author and/or distribute as course materials. These types of claims have been brought, sometimes successfully, against print publications and educational institutions in the past, including ourselves. For example, in January 2001, the

Graduate Management Admission Council, or GMAC, and Educational Testing Service, or ETS, filed three separate lawsuits against us in the Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court, alleging that we had violated the copyrights and trademarks relating to the GMAT test owned by GMAC and relating to the GRE and TOEFL tests owned by ETS by duplicating, selling and distributing their test materials without their authorization. In September 2003, the trial court found that we had violated GMAC’s and ETS’s respective copyrights and trademarks in connection with those admissions tests. The trial court’s judgment was partially affirmed in a final judgment issued by the Beijing Higher People’s Court in December 2004. The Beijing Higher People’s Court held that we had not misused the trademarks of GMAC or ETS. However, it also found that the TOEFL and GRE tests were the original works of ETS and the GMAT test was the original work of GMAC, all of which are protected under the PRC Copyright Law. The Beijing Higher People’s Court held that our duplication, sale and distribution of the test materials relating to these tests without ETS’s and GMAC’s prior permission waswere not a “reasonable use” of the test materials under the PRC Copyright Law, and that we, therefore, had infringed upon ETS’s and GMAC’s respective copyrights. We were ordered to pay damages in an aggregate of approximately RMB6.5 million (US$0.9 million), cease all infringing activities and destroy all copyright-infringing materials in our possession, all of which we have done. We have also been involved in other claims and legal proceedings against us relating to infringement of third parties’ copyrights in materials distributed by us and the unauthorized use of a third party’s name in connection with the marketing and promotion of one of our programs.

Since the Beijing Higher People’s Court issued the final judgment in 2004, we have endeavored to comply with the court order and applicable PRC laws and regulations relating to intellectual property, and we have adopted policies and procedures to prohibit our employees and contractors from engaging in any copyright, trademark or trade name infringing activities. However, we cannot assure you that every teacher or other personnel will strictly comply with these policies at our schools, learning centers or other locations or media through which we provide our programs, services and products. In addition, certain types

We have also been involved in other claims and legal proceedings against us relating to infringement of third parties’ copyrights in materials distributed by us and the unauthorized use of a third party’s name in connection with the marketing and promotion of one of our teaching or marketing materials have subjected us to claims of intellectual property rights infringement by third parties in the pastprograms, and may be subject us to further claims in the future, particularly in light of the uncertainties in the interpretation and application of PRC intellectual property laws and regulations. Furthermore, if printed publications or other materials that we or our teachers author and/or distribute contain materials that government authorities find objectionable, these publications may have to be recalled, which could result in increased expenses, loss in revenues and adverse publicity. Any claims against us, with or without merit, could be time-consuming and costly to defend or litigate, divert our management’s attention and resources or result in the loss of goodwill associated with our brand. If a lawsuit against us is successful, we may be required to pay substantial damages and/or enter into royalty or license agreements that may not be based upon commercially reasonable terms, or we may be unable to enter into such agreements at all. We may also lose, or be limited in, the rights to offer some of our programs, services and products or be required to make changes to our course materials or websites. As a result, the scope of our course materials could be reduced, which could adversely affect the effectiveness of our teaching, limit our ability to attract new students, harm our reputation and have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial position.

We may lose our competitive advantage and our reputation, brand and operations may suffer if we fail to prevent the loss or misappropriation of, or disputes over, our intellectual property rights.

We consider our trademarks and trade name invaluable to our ability to continue to develop and enhance our brand recognition. We have spent over a decade building our “New Oriental” brand by emphasizing quality and consistency and building trust among students and parents. From time to time, our trademarks and trade name have been used by third parties for or as part of other branded programs, services and products unrelated to us. We have sent cease and desist letters to such third parties in the past and will continue to do so in the future. However, preventing trademark and trade name infringement, particularly in China, is difficult, costly and time-consuming and continued unauthorized use of our trademarks and trade name by unrelated third parties may damage our reputation and brand. In addition, we have spent significant time and expense developing or licensing and localizing the content of certain educational materials, such as books, software, CD-ROMs, magazines and other periodicals, to enrich our product offerings and meet students’ needs. The measures we take to protect our trademarks, copyrights and other intellectual property rights, which presently are based upon a combination of trademark, copyright and trade secret laws, may not be adequate to prevent unauthorized use by third parties. Furthermore, the application of laws governing intellectual property rights in China and abroad is uncertain and evolving, and could involve substantial risks to us. If we are unable to adequately protect our trademarks, copyrights and other intellectual property rights, we may lose these rights, our brand name may be harmed, and our business may suffer materially.

We face significant competition in each major program we offer and each geographic market in which we operate, and if we fail to compete effectively, we may lose our market share and our profitability may be adversely affected.

The private education sector in China is rapidly evolving, highly fragmented and competitive, and we expect competition in this sector to persist and intensify. We face competition in each major program we offer and each geographic market in which we operate.

For example, we face nationwide competition for our IELTS preparation courses from Global IELTS School, which offers IELTS preparation courses in many cities in China. We face regional competition for our English for children program from several competitors that focus on children’s English training in specific regions, including English First. We face competition for our “Elite English” program primarily from Wall Street Institute and EF English First, both of which offer English training courses for adults in many cities in China. Wall Street Institute began providing high-end English training courses to adults in major cities several years before we entered this market and enjoys a first-mover advantage. We also face competition from companies that focus on providing international and/or PRC test preparation courses in specific geographic markets in China.

Our student enrollments may decrease due to intense competition. Some of our competitors may have more resources than we do. These competitors may be able to devote greater resources than we can to the development, promotion and sale of their programs, services and products and respond more quickly than we can to changes in student needs, testing materials, admissions standards market needs or new technologies. In addition, we face competition from many different smaller sized organizations that focus on some of our targeted markets, whichand they may be able to respond more promptly to changes in student preferences in these markets. In addition, the increasing use of the Internet and advances in Internet- and computer-related technologies, such as web video conferencing and online testing simulators, are eliminating geographic and cost-entry barriers to providing private educational services. As a result, many of our international competitors that offer online test preparation and language training courses, such as The Princeton Review, Inc. and Kaplan, Inc. may be able to more effectively penetrate the China market. Many of these international competitors have strong education brands, and students and parents in China may be attracted to the offerings of international competitors based in the country that the student wishes to study in or in which the selected language is widely spoken. Moreover, many smaller companies are able to use the Internet to quickly and cost-effectively offer their programs, services and products to a large number of students with less capital expenditure than previously required. We may have to reduce course fees or increase spending in response to competition in order to retain or attract students or pursue new market opportunities. As a result, our revenues and profitability may decrease. We cannot assure you that we will be able to compete successfully against current or future competitors. If we are unable to maintain our competitive position or otherwise respond to competitive pressures effectively, we may lose our market share and our profitability may be adversely affected.

Failure to adequately and promptly respond to changes in testing materials, admissions standards and technologies could cause our programs, services and products to be less attractive to students.

Admissions and assessment tests undergo continuous change, in terms of the focus of the subjects and questions tested, the format of the tests and the manner in which the tests are administered. For example, certain admissions and assessment tests in the United States now include an essay component, which required us to hire and train our teachers to be able to analyze written essays that tend to be more subjective in nature and require a higher level of English proficiency. In addition, some admissions and assessment tests that were previously offered in paper format only are increasingly beingnow offered in a computer-based testing format. These changes require us to continually update and enhance our test preparation materials and our teaching methods. Any inability to track and respond to these changes in a timely and cost-effective manner would make our programs, services and products less attractive to students, which may materially and adversely affect our reputation and ability to continue to attract students without a significant decrease in course fees.

If colleges, universities and other higher education institutions reduce their reliance on admissions and assessment tests, we may experience a decrease in demand for our test preparation courses and our business may be materially and adversely affected.

We provide preparation courses for both overseas and domestic admissions and assessment tests. In the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, we derived a significant portion of our revenues from test preparation courses. The success of our test preparation courses depends on the continued use of admissions and assessment tests.tests as a requirement for admission or graduation. If the use of admissions and assessment tests declines or falls out of favor with educational institutions and government authorities, the markets for our online and classroom-based test preparation courses will deteriorate and our business will be materially and adversely affected. For example, in early 2005, the PRC Ministry of Education started reforming the CET 4 and the CET 6 exams, which,exams. The reform, among other things, limited these exams only to college students starting from 2007. As a result, the total number of students who enrolled in our CET 4 and CET 6 exam preparation courses decreased from approximately 180,000 in 2004 to approximately 140,000 in 2005, and we experienced a slight decline in the number of students who enrolled in our CET 4 and CET 6 exam preparation courses in 2006 as compared to 2005. The number of students who enrolled in our CET 4 and CET 6 exam preparation courses was approximately 190,000 in 2007 and 180,000 in 2008. The reform implemented by the PRC Ministry of Education has effectively limited the pool of potential students for our CET 4 and CET 6 exam preparation courses to college students only. In the United States, there has been a continuing debate regarding the usefulness of admissions and assessment tests to assess qualifications of applicants and many people have criticized the use of admissions and assessment tests as unfairly discriminating against certain test takers. In addition, in March 2006, the College Board in the United States revealed that, because of technical problems in scanning answer sheets, the scores of several thousand students taking the SAT were inaccurately reported, causing additional concerns regarding the accuracy and quality of admissions and assessment tests. If a large number of

educational institutions abandon the use of existing admissions and assessment tests as a requirement for admission, without replacing them with other admissions and assessment tests, we may experience a decrease in demand for our test preparation courses and our business may be seriously harmed.

We may experience a decrease in our margins.

Many factors may cause our gross and net income margins to decline. For example, there is a recent trend that the short-term language training and test preparation markets are moving towards smaller class sizes, especially for students between the ages of five and 12. This may resulthave resulted from discretionary income increases for families in China, which cause students to be more willing and able to pay higher course fees for the more individualized attention that smaller classes can offer. In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, the average class size for our short-term language training and test preparation courses was approximately 3021 students per class, which was a decrease from approximately 4030 students per class in the previous fiscal year. We offered approximately 52,600 short-term training courses in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009 compared to approximately 31,800 in the previous fiscal year. Although our smaller-sized classes are highly profitable, they are marginally less profitable on average than our large classes. Our net income margin for our fiscal year ended May 31, 20092010 was 20.9%20.1%, down from 24.4%20.9% in the previous fiscal year. This decrease was partly due to the increase in demand for our smaller-sized classes. In addition, our new investments and acquisitions may also cause our margins to decline before we successfully integrate the acquired businesses into our operations and realize the full benefits of these investments and acquisitions. There is a risk that our margins could continue to decline in the future due to increasing demand for our smaller-sized classes and/or other factors.

New programs, services and products that we develop may compete with our current offerings.

We are constantly developing new programs, services and products to meet changes in student demands and respond to changes in testing materials, admissions standards, market needs and trends and technological changes. While some of the programs, services and products that we develop will expand our current offerings and increase student enrollments, others may compete with or make irrelevant our existing offerings without increasing our total student enrollments. For example, our online courses may take away students from our existing classroom-based courses, and our new schools and learning centers may take away students from our existing schools and learning centers. If we are unable to expand our program, service and product offerings while increasing our total student enrollments and profitability, our business and growth may be adversely affected.

Our business is subject to fluctuations caused by seasonality or other factors beyond our control, which may cause our operating results to fluctuate from quarter to quarter. This may result in volatility and adversely affect the price of our ADSs.

We have experienced, and expect to continue to experience, seasonal fluctuations in our revenues and results of operations, primary due to seasonal changes in student enrollments. Historically, our courses tend to have the largest student enrollments in our first fiscal quarter from June 1 to August 31 each year.year, primarily because many students enroll in our courses during the summer vacation to enhance their foreign language skills and/or prepare for admissions and assessment tests in subsequent school terms. In addition, we have generally experienced larger student enrollments in our third fiscal quarter from December 1 to February 28 each year, primarily because many students enroll in our language training and other courses during the winter school holidays. Our expenses, however, vary significantly and do not necessarily correspond with changes in our student enrollments and revenues. We make investments in marketing and promotion, teacher recruitment and training, and product development throughout the year. In addition, other factors beyond our control, such as special events that take place during a quarter when our student enrollment would normally be high, may have a negative impact on our student enrollments. For example, the Beijing Olympic Games held in August 2008 negatively impacted our business in the fiscal quarter ended August 31, 20092008 due to transportation and security logistics arrangements in Beijing and some distractions from classes as the nation enjoyed the Olympic Games. We expect quarterly fluctuations in our revenues and results of operations to continue. These fluctuations could result in volatility and adversely affect the price of our ADSs. As our revenues grow, these seasonal fluctuations may become more pronounced.

Our historical financial and operating results are not indicative of our future performance; and our financial and operating results are difficult to forecast.

Our financial and operating results may not meet the expectations of public market analysts or investors, which could cause the price of our ADSs to decline. In addition to the fluctuations described above, our revenues, expenses and operating results may vary from quarter to quarter and from year to year in response to a variety of other factors beyond our control, including:

Due to these and other factors, among others, we believe that quarter-to-quarter comparisons of our operating results may not be indicative of our future performance, and therefore you should not rely on them to predict the future performance of our ADSs. In addition, our past results may not be indicative of future performance because of our new businesses.businesses developed or acquired by us.

Our business is difficult to evaluate because we have limited experience generating net income from some of our newer services.

Historically, our core businesses have been English language training for adults and test preparation courses for college and graduate students. We started professional certification preparation programs in 2007, which include preparation for the PRC bar exam, certified public accountant exam, and the civil service exam. Also in 2007, we established our pre-school business with the opening of our first kindergarten in Beijing. In 2008, we launched our “New Oriental U-Can” training program, which targets middle and high school students in China from ages 13 to 18 who are preparing for the college entrance examination in China, known as the “gaokao.” The gaokao is required for admission to bachelor degree programs and most associate degree programs at colleges and universities in China. Some of these operations have not generated significant or any profit to date, and we have less experience responding quickly to changes, competing successfully and maintaining and expanding our brand in these areas without jeopardizing our brand in other areas. Consequently, there is limited operating history on which you can base your evaluation of the business and prospects of these relatively more recent operations.

Our success depends on the continuing efforts of our senior management team and other key personnel, and our business may be harmed if we lose their services.

Our future success depends heavily upon the continuing services of the members of our senior management team, in particular, our founder, chairman and chief executive officer, Michael Minhong Yu, who has been our leader since our inception in 1993. If one or more of our senior executives or other key personnel are unable or unwilling to continue in their present positions, we may not be able to replace them easily or at all, and our business may be disrupted and our financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected. Competition for experienced management personnel in the private education sector is intense, the pool of qualified candidates is very limited, and we may not be able to retain the services of our senior executives or key personnel, or attract and retain high-quality senior executives or key personnel in the future. In addition, if any member of our senior management team or any of our other key personnel joins a competitor or forms a competing company, we may lose teachers, students, key professionals and staff members. Each of our executive officers and key employees has entered into a confidentiality and non- competitionnon-competition agreement with us. IfHowever, if any disputes arise between any of our senior executives or key personnel and us, it may be difficult to enforce these agreements against these individuals.individuals because of the uncertainties of China’s legal systems.

We generate a majority of our revenues from four cities in China. Any event negatively affecting the private education industry in these cities could have a material adverse effect on our overall business and results of operations.

We currently generate a majority of our revenues in Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan and Guangzhou. We derived approximately 54%51% of our total net revenues for the fiscal year ended May 31, 20092010 from these four cities and we expect these cities to continue to constitute important sources of our revenues. If any of these cities experiences an event negatively affecting its private education industry, such as a serious economic downturn, a natural disaster or an outbreak of contagious disease, or if any of these cities adopts regulations relating to private education that place additional restrictions or burdens on us, our overall business and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

If we are not able to continually enhance our online programs, services and products and adapt them to rapid technological changes and student needs, we may lose market share and our business could be adversely affected.

Rapid growth in the use of the Internet is a recent occurrence in China, and the market for Internet-based educational programs, services and products is characterized by rapid technological changes and innovation, unpredictable product life cycles and user preferences. We have limited experience with generating revenues from online programs, services and products, and their results are largely uncertain. The increasing adoption of computer-based testing formats for admissions testing may lead more students to seek online test preparation courses. We must quickly modify our programs, services and products to adapt to changing student needs and preferences, technological advances and evolving Internet practices. Ongoing enhancement of our online offerings and related technology may entail significant expense and technical risk. We may fail to use new technologies ineffectivelyeffectively or fail to adapt our online products or services and related technology on a timely and cost-effective basis. If our improvements to our online offerings and the related technology are delayed, result in systems interruptions or are not aligned with market expectations or preferences, we may lose market share and our business could be adversely affected.

Failure to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting could have a material and adverse effect on the trading price of our ADSs.

We are subject to the reporting obligations under the U.S. securities laws. The Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, as required under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, has adopted rules requiring public companies to include a report of management on the effectiveness of such companies’a company’s internal control over financial reporting in its annual report. In addition, an independent registered public accounting firm for a public company must issue an attestation report on the effectiveness of the company’s internal control over financial reporting. Our management conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting and concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was effective as of May 31, 2009.2010. In addition, our independent registered public accounting firm attested our internal control over financial reporting in accordance with the standards of the United States Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) and reported that our company maintained effective internal control over financial reporting as of May 31, 2009.2010. If we fail to maintain the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, we may not be able to conclude on an ongoing basis that we have effective internal control over financial reporting in accordance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Moreover, effective internal control over financial reporting is necessary for us to produce reliable financial reports. As a result, any failure to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting could result in the loss of investor confidence in the reliability of our financial statements, which in turn could negatively impact the trading price of our ADSs. Furthermore, we may need to incur additional costs and use additional management and other resources in an effort to comply with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and other requirements going forward.

We do not have any liability or business disruption insurance, and a liability claim against us due to injuries suffered by our students or other people at our facilities could adversely affect our reputation and our financial results.

We could be held liable for accidents that occur at our schools, learning centers and other facilities, including indoor facilities where we organize certain summer campscamp activities and temporary housing facilities that we lease for our students from time to time. In the event of on-site food poisoning, personal injuries, fires or other accidents suffered by students or other people, we could face claims alleging that we were negligent, provided inadequate supervision or were otherwise liable for the injuries. We currently do not have any liability insurance or business disruption insurance. A successful liability claim against us due to injuries suffered by our students or other people at our facilities could adversely affect our reputation and our financial results. Even if unsuccessful, such a claim could cause unfavorable publicity, require substantial cost to defend and divert the time and attention of our management.

Capacity constraints or system disruptions to our computer systems or websites could damage our reputation, limit our ability to retain students and increase student enrollments and require us to expend significant resources.

The performance and reliability of our online program infrastructure is critical to our reputation and ability to retain students and increase student enrollments. Any system error or failure, or a sudden and significant increase in traffic, could result in the difficulty of accessing our websites by our students or unavailability of our online programs. We cannot assure you that we will be able to timely expand our online program infrastructure on a timely basis sufficient to meet demand for such programs. Our computer systems and operations could be vulnerable to interruption or malfunction due to events beyond our control, including natural disasters and telecommunications failures. Our computer networks may also be vulnerable to unauthorized access, computer hackers,hacking, computer viruses and other security problems. A user who circumvents security measures could misappropriate proprietary information or cause interruptions or malfunctions in operations. Any interruption to our computer systems or operations could have a material adverse effect on our ability to retain students and increase student enrollments. Furthermore, we may be required to expend significant resources to protect against the threat of security breaches or to alleviate problems caused by these breaches.

Terrorist attacks, geopolitical uncertainty and international conflicts involving the U.S. and elsewhere may discourage more students from studying in the United States and elsewhere outside of China, which could cause declines in the student enrollments for our courses.

Terrorist attacks, geopolitical uncertainty and international conflicts involving the U.S. and elsewhere, such as those that took place on September 11, 2001, could have an adverse effect on our overseas test preparation courses and English language training courses. Such attacks may discourage students from studying in the United States and elsewhere outside of China and may also make it more difficult for Chinese students to obtain visas to study abroad. These factors could cause declines in the student enrollments for our test preparation and English language training courses and could have an adverse effect on our overall business and results of operations.

Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure

If the PRC government finds that the agreements that establish the structure for operating our China business do not comply with applicable PRC laws and regulations, we could be subject to severe penalties.

PRC laws and regulations currently require any foreign entity that invests in the education business in China to be an educational institution with relevant experience in providing educational services outside China. Our Cayman Islands holding company is not an educational institution and does not provide educational services. In addition, foreign ownership of primary and middle schools for students in grades one to nine is prohibited in the PRC. Accordingly, our wholly owned subsidiaries in China, which are considered foreign invested enterprises, are currently ineligible to apply for the required education licenses and permits in China. We conduct our education business in China through contractual arrangements with New Oriental China and its subsidiaries and shareholders. New Oriental China is our consolidated affiliated entity directly owned by our founders and/or their respective affiliates. New Oriental China’s subsidiaries hold the requisite licenses and permits necessary to conduct our education business and operate our schools, learning centers and bookstores in China. We have been and are expected to continue to be dependent on New Oriental China and its subsidiaries to operate our education business until we qualify for direct ownership of educational businesses in China. We have entered into contractual arrangements with New Oriental China and its subsidiaries, pursuant to which we, through our wholly owned subsidiaries in China, provide exclusive teaching support, new enrollment system support and other services to New Oriental China and its subsidiaries in exchange for payments from them. In addition, we have entered into agreements with New Oriental China and each of the shareholders of New Oriental China, which provide us with a substantial ability to control New Oriental China and its existing and future subsidiaries.

If we, any of our wholly owned subsidiaries, New Oriental China or any of its existing and future subsidiaries are found to be in violation of any existing or future PRC laws or regulations or fail to obtain or maintain any of the required permits or approvals, the relevant PRC regulatory authorities, including the Ministry of Education, which regulates the education industry, would have broad discretion in dealing with such violations, including:

The imposition of any of these penalties could result in a material and adverse effect on our ability to conduct our business.

We rely on contractual arrangements with New Oriental China and its subsidiaries and shareholders for our China operations, which may not be as effective in providing operational control as direct ownership.

We have relied and expect to continue to rely on contractual arrangements with New Oriental China and its subsidiaries and shareholders to operate our education business. For a description of these contractual arrangements, see “Item 7. Major Shareholders and Related Party Transactions—B. Related Party Transactions—Contractual Arrangements with New Oriental China and Its Subsidiary and Shareholders.” These contractual arrangements may not be as effective in providing us with control over New Oriental China and its subsidiaries as direct ownership. If we had direct ownership of New Oriental China and its subsidiaries, we would be able to exercise our rights as a shareholder to effect changes in the board of directors of New Oriental China and its subsidiaries, which in turn could effect changes, subject to any applicable fiduciary obligations, at the management level. However, under the current contractual arrangements, as a legal matter, if New Oriental China or any of its subsidiaries and shareholders fails to perform its or his respective obligations under these contractual arrangements, we may have to incur substantial costs and spend other resources to enforce such arrangements, and rely on legal remedies under PRC law, including seeking specific performance or injunctive relief and claiming damages, which may not be effective. For example, if the shareholders of New Oriental China were to refuse to transfer their equity interest in New Oriental China to us or our designee when we exercise the call option pursuant to these contractual arrangements, or if they were otherwise to act in bad faith toward us, then we may have to take legal action to compel them to fulfill their contractual obligations. In addition, we may not be able to renew these contracts with New Oriental China and/or its subsidiaries and shareholders if the beneficial owners of New Oriental China do not act in the best interests of our company when conflicts of interest arise between their dual roles as beneficial owners and directors of both New Oriental China and our company.

Many of these contractual arrangements are governed by PRC law and provide for the resolution of disputes through arbitration in the PRC. Accordingly, these contracts would be interpreted in accordance with PRC law and any disputes would be resolved in accordance with PRC legal procedures. The legal environment in the PRC is not as developed as in some other jurisdictions, such as the United States. As a result, uncertainties in the PRC legal system could limit our ability to enforce these contractual arrangements. In the event we are unable to enforce these contractual arrangements, we may not be able to exert effective control over our affiliated entities, and our ability to conduct our business may be negatively affected.

The beneficial owners of New Oriental China may have potential conflicts of interest with us, which may materially and adversely affect our business and financial condition.

The beneficial owners of New Oriental China are also the founders and beneficial owners of our company. Some of them are directors of both New Oriental China and our company. Conflicts of interests between their dual roles as beneficial owners and directors of both New Oriental China and our company may arise. We cannot assure you that when conflicts of interest arise, any or all of these individuals will act in the best interests of our company or that conflicts of interests will be resolved in our favor. In addition, these individuals may breach or cause New Oriental China and its subsidiaries to breach or refuse to renew the existing contractual arrangements that allow us to effectively control New Oriental China and its subsidiaries and receive economic benefits from them. Currently, we do not have existing arrangements to address potential conflicts of interest between these individuals and our company. We rely on these individuals to abide by the laws of the Cayman Islands and China, both of whichChina. These laws provide that directors owe a fiduciary duty to the company, which requires them to act in good faith and in the best interests of the company and not to use their positions for personal gain. If we cannot resolve any conflicts of interest or disputes between us and the beneficial owners of New Oriental China, we would have to rely on legal proceedings, which could result in disruption of our business, and substantial uncertainty as to the outcome of any such legal proceedings.proceedings would be uncertain.

New Oriental China and its subsidiaries may be subject to significant limitations on their ability to operate private schools or make payments to related parties or otherwise be materially and adversely affected by changes in PRC laws and regulations.

The principal regulations governing private education in China are The Law for Promoting Private Education (2003) and The Implementation Rules for the Law for Promoting Private Education (2004). Under these regulations, a private school may elect to be a school that does not require reasonable returns or a school that requires reasonable returns. At the end of each fiscal year, every private school is required to allocate a certain amount to its development fund for the construction or maintenance of the school or procurement or upgrade of educational equipment. In the case of a private school that requires reasonable returns, this amount shall be no less than 25% of annual net income of the school, while in the case of a private school that does not require reasonable returns, this amount shall be equivalent to no less than 25% of the annual increase in the net assets of the school, if any. A private school that requires reasonable returns must publicly disclose such election and additional information required under the regulations. A private school shall consider factors such as the school’s tuition, ratio of the funds used for education-related activities to the course fees collected, admission standards and educational quality when determining the percentage of the school’s net income that would be distributed to the investors as reasonable returns. However, none of the current PRC laws and regulations provides a formula or guidelines for determining “reasonable returns.” In addition, none of the current PRC laws and regulations sets forth different requirements or restrictions on a private school’s ability to operate its education business based on such school’s status as a school that requires reasonable returns or a school that does not require reasonable returns.

In some cities, our schools are registered as schools that require reasonable returns, while in other cities, our schools are registered as schools that do not require reasonable returns. The current PRC laws and regulations governing private education may be amended or replaced by new laws and regulations that (i) impose significant limitations on the ability of our schools to operate their business, charge course fees or make payments to related parties for services received, (ii) specify the formula for calculating “reasonable returns,” or (iii) change the preferential tax treatment policies applicable to private schools. We cannot predict the timing and effects of any such amendments or new laws and regulations. Changes in PRC laws and regulations governing private education or otherwise affecting New Oriental China’s and its subsidiaries’ operations could materially and adversely affect our business prospects and results of operations.

On July 29, 2010, the PRC central government promulgated the Outline of China’s National Plan for Medium- and Long-Term Education Reform and Development, which for the first time announced the policy that the government will implement a reform to divide private education entities into two categories: (1) for-profit private education entities and (2) not-for-profit private education entities. However, this outline is still new and no further law or regulation has been promulgated to implement the outline. If upon the implementation of this reform, our schools choose to be for-profit private education entities, they may be subject to income tax at the rate of 25% and other taxes as if they were enterprises; if our schools choose to be not-for-profit private education entities, our contractual arrangements with New Oriental China and its subsidiaries may be subject to more stringent scrutiny and the education authorities may not allow our schools to pay us services fees under the contractual arrangements as they currently do. As a result, implementation of this reform may adversely affect our results of operations.

Contractual arrangements we have entered into among our subsidiaries and New Oriental China and its subsidiaries may be subject to scrutiny by the PRC tax authorities, and a finding that we or New Oriental China and its subsidiaries owe additional taxes could substantially reduce our consolidated net income and the value of your investment.

Under PRC laws and regulations, arrangements and transactions among related parties may be subject to audit or challenge by the PRC tax authorities. We could face material and adverse tax consequences if the PRC tax authorities determine that the contractual arrangements among our wholly owned subsidiaries in China and New Oriental China and its subsidiaries do not represent an arm’s-length price and adjust New Oriental China or any of its subsidiaries’ income in the form of a transfer pricing adjustment. A transfer pricing adjustment could, among other things, result in a reduction, for PRC tax purposes, of expense deductions recorded by New Oriental China or any of its subsidiaries, which could in turn increase its tax liabilities. In addition, the PRC tax authorities may impose late payment fees and other penalties to our affiliated entities for under-paid taxes. Our consolidated net income may be materially and adversely affected if our affiliated entities’ tax liabilities increase or if they are found to be subject to late payment fees or other penalties.

Regulatory agencies may commence investigations of the private primary and secondary schools controlled and operated by New Oriental China. If the results of the investigations are unfavorable to us, we may be subject to fines, penalties, injunctions or other censure that could have an adverse impact on our results of operations.

PRC laws and regulations currently prohibit foreign ownership of primary and middle schools for students in grades one to nine in China. New Oriental China controls and operates a private primary and secondary school in Yangzhou, and a small private high school in Changchun and a private secondary school in Beijing, which may enter into contractual arrangements with our wholly owned subsidiaries in China in the future to pay teaching support and other fees to our subsidiaries in exchange for their services. As the provision of private primary and middle school services is a heavily regulated industry in China, the existing and any new primary or middle schools that New Oriental China or any of its subsidiaries establishes or acquires in the future may be subject from time to time to investigations, claims of non-compliance or lawsuits by governmental agencies, which may allege statutory violations, regulatory infractions or other causes of action. If the results of the investigations are unfavorable to us, we may be subject to fines, penalties, injunctions or other censurepenalties that could have an adverse impact on our results of operations. Even if we adequately address the issues raised by a government investigation, we may have to devote significant financial and management resources to resolve these issues, which could harm our business.

We may rely on dividends and other distributions on equity paid by our wholly owned subsidiaries to fund any cash and financing requirements we may have, and any limitation on the ability of our subsidiaries and affiliated entities to make payments to us could have a material adverse effect on our ability to conduct our business.

We are a holding company, and we may rely on dividends from our wholly owned subsidiaries in China and service, license and other fees paid to our wholly owned subsidiaries by New Oriental China and its subsidiaries for our cash requirements, including any debt we may incur. Current PRC regulations permit our subsidiaries to pay dividends to us only out of their accumulated profits, if any, determined in accordance with Chinese accounting standards and regulations. In addition, each of our subsidiaries and affiliated entities (other than our schools) in China is required to set aside at least 10% of its after-tax profits each year, if any, to fund a statutory reserve until such reserve reaches 50% of its registered capital, and each of our subsidiaries is required to further set aside a portion of its after-tax profits to fund the employee welfare fund at the discretion of the board.its board of directors. These reserves are not distributable as cash dividends. Furthermore, if our subsidiaries and affiliated entities in China incur debt on their own behalf in the future, the instruments governing the debt may restrict their ability to pay dividends or make other payments to us. In addition, the PRC tax authorities may require us to adjust our taxable income under the contractual arrangements we currently have in place in a manner that would materially and adversely affect our subsidiaries’ ability to pay dividends and other distributions to us. Moreover, at the end of each fiscal year, every private school in China is required to allocate a certain amount to its development fund for the construction or maintenance of the school or procurement or upgrade of educational equipment. In the case of a private school that requires reasonable returns, this amount shall be no less than 25% of the annual net income of the school, while in the case of a private school that does not require reasonable returns, this amount shall be equivalent to no less than 25% of the annual increase in the net assets of the school, if any. We own our wholly-owned subsidiaries in China indirectly through our wholly owned subsidiaries established in Hong Kong. According to the Agreement Between the Mainland of China and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region for the Avoidance of Double Taxation of Income, under the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement, dividends from our subsidiaries in China distributed to our subsidiaries in Hong Kong will be subject to a withholding tax rate of 5%. Any limitation on the ability of our subsidiaries and affiliated entities to distribute dividends or other payments to us could materially and adversely limit our ability to grow, make investments or acquisitions that could be beneficial to our businesses, pay dividends, or otherwise fund and conduct our business.

PRC regulation of loans and direct investment by offshore holding companies to PRC entities may delay or prevent us from making loans or additional capital contributions to our PRC operating subsidiaries and affiliated entities, which could materially and adversely affect our liquidity and our ability to fund and expand our business.

As an offshore holding company of our PRC operating subsidiaries and affiliated entities, we may make loans to our PRC subsidiaries and consolidated affiliated entities, or we may make additional capital contributions to our PRC subsidiaries. Any loans to our PRC subsidiaries or consolidated PRC affiliated entities are subject to PRC regulations and approvals. For example:

We may also decide to finance our wholly owned subsidiaries by means of capital contributions. These capital contributions must be approved by the PRC Ministry of Commerce or its local counterpart.branch offices. Further, SAFE promulgated a circular in August 2008 with respect to the administration of conversion of foreign exchange capital contributions of foreign-invested enterprise. The circular clarifies that RMB converted from foreign exchange capital contributions can only be used for the activities within the approved business scope of such foreign-invested enterprise and cannot be used for domestic equity investment unless otherwise allowed. Because New Oriental China and its subsidiaries are domestic PRC entities, we are not likely to finance their activities by means of capital contributions due to regulatory issues relating to foreign investment in domestic PRC entities, as well as the licensing and other regulatory issues discussed in “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Regulation.” We cannot assure you that we will be able to obtain these government registrations or approvals on a timely basis, if at all, with respect to future loans or capital contributions by us to our subsidiaries or New Oriental China or any of its subsidiaries. If we fail to receive such registrations or approvals, our ability to make loans or additional capital contributions to our PRC operating subsidiaries and affiliated entities may be negatively affected, which could adversely and materially affect our liquidity and our ability to fund and expand our business.

If any of our PRC affiliated entities and their subsidiaries becomes the subject of a bankruptcy or liquidation proceeding, we may lose the ability to use and enjoy their assets, which could reduce the size of our operations and materially and adversely affect our business, ability to generate revenue and the market price of our ADSs.

To comply with PRC laws and regulations relating to foreign ownership restrictions in the education business, we currently conduct our operations in China through contractual arrangements with New Oriental China and its shareholders and subsidiaries. As part of these arrangements, New Oriental China and its subsidiaries hold some of the assets that are important to the operation of our business. If any of these entities goes bankrupt and all or part of their assets become subject to liens or rights of third-party creditors, we may be unable to continue some or all of our business activities, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. If any of New Oriental China and its subsidiaries undergoes a voluntary or involuntary liquidation proceeding, its shareholders or unrelated third-party creditors may claim rights to some or all of these assets, thereby hindering our ability to operate our business, which could materially and adversely affect our business, our ability to generate revenue and the market price of our ADSs.

Risks Related to Doing Business in China

Adverse changes in economic and political policies of the PRC government could have a material adverse effect on the overall economic growth of China, which could adversely affect our business.

Substantially all of our business operations are conducted in China. Accordingly, our results of operations, financial condition and prospects are subject to a significant degree to economic, political and legal developments in China. China’s economy differs from the economies of most developed countries in many respects, including with respect to the amount of government involvement, level of development, growth rate, control of foreign exchange and allocation of resources. While the PRC economy has experienced significant growth in the past 30 years or so, growth has been uneven across different regions and among various economic sectors of China. The PRC government has implemented various measures to encourage economic development and guide the allocation of resources. While some of these measures benefit the overall PRC economy, they may also have a negative effect on us. For example, our financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected by government control over capital investments or changes in tax regulations that are applicable to us. In addition, future actions or policies of the PRC government to control the pace of economic growth may cause a decrease in the level of economic activity in China, which in turn could materially affect our liquidity and access to capital and our ability to operate our business.

A severe and prolonged global economic recession, particularly the resulting slowdown or recession in the Chinese economy, may adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Recent global market and economic conditions have been unprecedented and challenging with recession in most major economies persisting in 2009 and significant market volatility in 2010. Continued concerns about the systemic impact of a potentially long-term and widespread recession have contributed to increased market volatility and diminished expectations for economic growth around the world. The Chinese economy also faces challenges. The stimulus plans and various other measures adopted by the PRC government may not work effectively to maintain sustained economic growth amid a global recession. Since we derive substantially all of our revenues in China, any persistent slowdown in the Chinese economy may have negative impacts on our business, operating results and financial condition in a number of ways. For example, student enrollments in some of our programs may grow more slowly or even decline due to declining disposable income and economic uncertainty. In addition, further disruptions of the financial markets may significantly restrict our ability to obtain financing in the capital markets or from financial institutions.

Uncertainties with respect to the PRC legal system could adversely affect us.

We conduct our business primarily through our subsidiaries and affiliated entities in China. Our operations in China are governed by PRC laws and regulations. Our subsidiaries are generally subject to laws and regulations applicable to foreign investments in China and, in particular, laws applicable to wholly foreign-owned enterprises. The PRC legal system is based on written statutes. Prior court decisions may be cited for reference but have limited precedential value.

Since 1979, PRC legislation and regulations have significantly enhanced the protections afforded to various forms of foreign investments in China. However, China has not developed a fully integrated legal system and recently enacted laws and regulations may not sufficiently cover all aspects of economic activities in China. In particular, because many of these laws and regulations are relatively new, and because of the limited volume of published decisions and their nonbinding nature, the interpretation and enforcement of these laws and regulations involve uncertainties. In addition, the PRC legal system is based in part on government policies and internal rules (some of which are not published on a timely basis or at all) that may have a retroactive effect. As a result, we may not be aware of our violation of these policies and rules until some time after the violation. In addition, any litigation in China may be protracted and may result in substantial costs and diversion of resources and management attention.

Regulation and censorship of information disseminated over the Internet in China may adversely affect our business and reputation and subject us to liability for information displayed on our websites.

The PRC government has adopted regulations governing Internet access and the distribution of news and other information over the Internet. Under these regulations, Internet content providers and Internet publishers are prohibited from posting or displaying over the Internet content that, among other things, violates PRC laws and regulations, impairs the national dignity of China, or is reactionary, obscene, superstitious, fraudulent or defamatory. Failure to comply with these requirements may result in the revocation of licenses to provide Internet content and other licenses, and the closure of the concerned websites. In the past, failure to comply with such requirements has resulted in the closure of certain websites. The website operator may also be held liable for such censored information displayed on or linked to the websites. If any of our websites, including those used for our online education business, are found to be in violation of any such requirements, we may be penalized by relevant authorities, and our operations or reputation could be adversely affected.

Some of our affiliated companies previously engaged in activities without necessary approvals. This could subject those companies to fines and other penalties, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.

Some of our affiliated companies historically engaged in business activities that were not within the authorized scope of their respective licenses and without requisite approvals. For example, Beijing Xuncheng Network Technology Co., Ltd., or Xuncheng Network, a subsidiary of New Oriental China, had engaged in online sales of publications without all necessary licenses and permits. Each of these companies subsequently ceased the unauthorized activities or included these activities into the business scope of their respective business licenses. While all these companies currently operate within their authorized scope of business or are in the process of obtaining relevant licenses, the relevant PRC authorities have the authority to impose fines or other penalties for their past violations. In rare instances, these authorities may require disgorgement of profits or revoke business license, but as a matter of practice, the authorities are likely to impose such an extreme penalty only after repeated warnings are ignored or where a violation is blatant and continuous. Due to the discretionary nature of regulatory enforcements in the PRC, we cannot assure you that these companies will not be subject to such type of penalties for their past violations, or that such type of penalties will not have a material adverse effect on our business.

Uncertainties exist with respect to the interpretation and application of the Administrative Measures Regarding Internet Audio-Video Program Services, or the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures. If the governmental authorities decide that our provision of online education services fall within the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures and we are unable to re-register or obtain the necessary license timely, or at all, our equity ownership structure may require restructuring, or we may become subject to penalties, fines, legal sanctions or an order to suspend our use of audio-video content.

On December 20, 2007, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, or SARFT, and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, or MIIT, issued the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures, which became effective on January 31, 2008. Among other things, the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures stipulate that no entities or individuals may provide Internet audio- video program services without a License for Disseminating Audio-Video Programs through Information Network issued by SARFT or its local counterparts or completing the relevant registration with SARFT or its local counterparts and only entities wholly owned or controlled by the PRC government may engage in the production, editing, integration or consolidation, and transfer to the public through the Internet, of audio-video programs, and the provision of audio-video program uploading and transmission services. On February 3, 2008, SARFT and MIIT jointly held a press conference in response to inquiries related to the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures, during which SARFT and MIIT officials indicated that providers of audio-video program services established prior to the promulgation date of the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures that do not have any regulatory non-compliance records can re-register with the relevant government authorities to continue their current business operations. After the conference, the two authorities published a press release that confirms the above guidelines. There are still significant uncertainties relating to the interpretation and implementation of the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures, in particular, the scope of “Internet Audio-Video Programs.”

Xuncheng Network, our affiliated entity engaging in online education services, does not possess a License for Disseminating Audio-Video Programs through Information Network. However, we do not believe that, as an enterprise providing online education and test preparation courses, we are required to apply for a License for Disseminating Audio-Video Programs through Information Network. As an online education services provider, we transmit our audio-video educational courses and programs through the Internet only to enrolled course participants, not to the general public. The limited scope of our audience distinguishes us from general online audio-video broadcasting companies, such as companies operating user-generated content websites. As a result, we believe that we are not one of those providers of audio-video program services covered under the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures. In the event that we are deemed to be a provider of audio-video program services covered under the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures, we believe that pursuant to the press release published by SARFT and MIIT, it is possible that we may be allowed to continue our current operations and re-register with SARFT or MIIT in accordance with the published guidelines. We will monitor the regulatory developments relating to the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures and we will re-register with the relevant governmental authorities if required. However, if the governmental authorities decide that our provision of online education services falls within the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures and we are unable to re-register or obtain the necessary license timely, or at all, due to reasons beyond our control, our equity ownership structure may require restructuring, or we may become subject to significant penalties, fines, legal sanctions or an order to suspend our use of audio-video content, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, and prospects, as well as the trading price of our ADSs.

If any of our PRC subsidiaries, affiliated entities and their subsidiaries becomes the subject of a bankruptcy or liquidation proceeding, we may lose the ability to use and enjoy those assets, which could reduce the size of our operations and materially and adversely affect our business, ability to generate revenue and the market price of our ADSs.

To comply with PRC laws and regulations relating to foreign ownership restrictions in the education business, we currently conduct our operations in China through contractual arrangements with New Oriental China, its shareholders and subsidiaries. As part of these arrangements, New Oriental China and its subsidiaries hold some of the assets that are important to the operation of our business. If any of these entities goes bankrupt and all or part of their assets become subject to liens or rights of third-party creditors, we may be unable to continue some or all of our business activities, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. If any of New Oriental China and its subsidiaries undergoes a voluntary or involuntary liquidation proceeding, its shareholders or unrelated third-party creditors may claim rights to some or all of these assets, thereby hindering our ability to operate our business, which could materially and adversely affect our business, our ability to generate revenue and the market price of our ADSs.

Risks Related to Doing Business in China

Adverse changes in economic and political policies of the PRC government could have a material adverse effect on the overall economic growth of China, which could adversely affect our business.

Substantially all of our business operations are conducted in China. Accordingly, our results of operations, financial condition and prospects are subject to a significant degree to economic, political and legal developments in China. China’s economy differs from the economies of most developed countries in many respects, including with respect to the amount of government involvement, level of development, growth rate, control of foreign exchange and allocation of resources. While the PRC economy has experienced significant growth in the past 30 years, growth has been uneven across different regions and among various economic sectors of China. The PRC government has implemented various measures to encourage economic development and guide the allocation of resources. While some of these measures benefit the overall PRC economy, they may also have a negative effect on us. For example, our financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected by government control over capital investments or changes in tax regulations that are applicable to us. In addition, future actions or policies of the PRC government to control the pace of economic growth may cause a decrease in the level of economic activity in China, which in turn could materially affect our liquidity and access to capital and our ability to operate our business.

The recent slowdown in the Chinese economy may adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

The global financial markets have experienced significant disruptions since 2008, and most of the world’s major economies have entered into recession. As a result, the Chinese economy has slowed down significantly since the second half of 2008 and this trend may continue. The various measures adopted by the PRC government to forestall the economic downturn may not achieve their desired effect. Since we derive substantially all of our revenues in China, any persistent slowdown in the Chinese economy may have negative impacts on our business, operating results and financial condition in a number of ways. For example, student enrollments in some of our programs may grow more slowly or even decline due to declining disposable income and economic uncertainty. In addition, further disruptions of the financial markets may significantly restrict our ability to obtain financing in the capital markets or from financial institutions.

Uncertainties with respect to the PRC legal system could adversely affect us.

We conduct our business primarily through our subsidiaries and affiliated entities in China. Our operations in China are governed by PRC laws and regulations. Our subsidiaries are generally subject to laws and regulations applicable to foreign investments in China and, in particular, laws applicable to wholly foreign-owned enterprises. The PRC legal system is based on written statutes. Prior court decisions may be cited for reference but have limited precedential value.

Since 1979, PRC legislation and regulations have significantly enhanced the protections afforded to various forms of foreign investments in China. However, China has not developed a fully integrated legal system and recently enacted laws and regulations may not sufficiently cover all aspects of economic activities in China. In particular, because many of these laws and regulations are relatively new, and because of the limited volume of published decisions and their nonbinding nature, the interpretation and enforcement of these laws and regulations involve uncertainties. In addition, the PRC legal system is based in part on government policies and internal rules (some of which are not published on a timely basis or at all) that may have a retroactive effect. As a result, we may not be aware of our violation of these policies and rules until some time after the violation. In addition, any litigation in China may be protracted and result in substantial costs and diversion of resources and management attention.

You may experience difficulties in effecting service of legal process, enforcing foreign judgments or bringing original actions in China based on United States or other foreign laws against us, our management named in the annual report.

We conduct substantially all of our operations in China and substantially all of our assets are located in China. In addition, all of our senior executive officers reside within China. As a result, it may not be possible to effect service of process within the United States or elsewhere outside China upon our senior executive officers, including with respect to matters arising under U.S. federal securities laws or applicable state securities laws. Moreover, our PRC counsel has advised us that the PRC does not have treaties with the United States or many other countries providing for the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of judgment of courts.

Governmental control of currency conversion may affect the value of your investment.

The PRC government imposes controls on the convertibility between the RMB and foreign currencies and, in certain cases, the remittance of currency out of China. We receive substantially all of our revenues in RMB. Under our current corporate structure,

our income is primarily derived from dividend payments from our PRC subsidiaries. Shortages in the availability of foreign currency may restrict the ability of our PRC subsidiaries and our affiliated entity to remit sufficient foreign currency to pay dividends or other payments to us, or otherwise satisfy their foreign currency denominated obligations. Under existing PRC foreign exchange regulations, payments of current account items, including profit distributions, interest payments and expenditures from trade-related transactions, can be made in foreign currencies without prior approval from SAFE by complying with certain procedural requirements. However, approval from appropriate government authorities is required where RMB is to be converted into foreign currency and remitted out of China to pay capital expenses such as the repayment of loans denominated in foreign currencies. The PRC government may also at its discretion restrict access in the future to foreign currencies for current account transactions. If the foreign exchange control system prevents us from obtaining sufficient foreign currency to satisfy our currency demands, we may not be able to pay dividends in foreign currencies to our shareholders, including holders of our ADSs.

PRC regulations relating to the establishment of offshore special purpose companies by PRC residents may subject our PRC resident shareholders to personal liability and limit our ability to inject capital into our PRC subsidiaries, limit our PRC subsidiaries’ ability to distribute profits to us or otherwise adversely affect us.

SAFE issued a public notice in October 2005, requiring PRC residents to register with the local SAFE branch before establishing or controlling any company outside of China for the purpose of capital financing with assets or equities of PRC companies, referred to in the notice as an “offshore special purpose company.” PRC residents that are shareholders of offshore special purpose companies established before November 1, 2005 were required to register with the local SAFE branch before March 31, 2006. Our beneficial owners immediately before our initial public offering who are PRC residents had registered with the local SAFE branch prior to our initial public offering as required under the SAFE notice. The failure of these beneficial owners to timely amend their SAFE registrations pursuant to the SAFE notice or the failure of future beneficial owners of our company who are PRC residents to comply with the registration procedures set forth in the SAFE notice may subject such beneficial owners to fines and legal sanctions and may also limit our ability to contribute additional capital into our PRC subsidiaries, limit our PRC subsidiaries’ ability to distribute dividends or repay loans in foreign exchange to our company or otherwise adversely affect our business.

All employee participants in our share incentive plan who are PRC citizens may be required to register with SAFE. We may also face regulatory uncertainties in China that could restrict our ability to adopt additional share incentive plans forgrant options to our directors and employees underwho are PRC law.citizens.

To implement the Administrative Rule on Foreign Exchange Matters of Individuals promulgated by the People’s Bank of China and its related Implementing Rule,implementing rule provided by SAFE, on April 6, 2007, the Department of General Administration Affairs of SAFE issued the Operating Procedures for Administration of Domestic Individuals Participating in the Employee Stock Incentive Plan and Stock Option Plan of An Overseas Listed Company, or Circular No. 78. For any plans whichadopted by an overseas listed company that are covered by Circular No. 78, and are adopted by an overseas listed company, Circular No. 78 requires the employee participants who are PRC citizens to register, through a PRC agent or PRC subsidiary of the overseas listed company, with SAFE or its local branch within ten days of the beginning of each quarter. Registration should have been made by July 5, 2007 if the employee participated in such plan prior to April 6, 2007.branch. In addition, Circular No. 78 also requires the employee participants who are PRC citizens to follow a series of requirements, including applications for foreign exchange purchase quotas, opening of special bank accounts and filings with SAFE or its local branch before they exercise their stock option.

Circular No. 78 has not yet been made publicly available and has not been formally promulgated by SAFE. However,options. On January 7, 2008, SAFE issued Notice on Relinquishing Power of Approving the First-time Application of Foreign Exchange Purchase Quotas, Opening of Special Bank Accounts. According to this notice, SAFE has already begun enforcingrelinquished the authority to approve certain foreign exchange transactions in connection with equity compensation plans or incentive plans to its provisions. local counterparts at provincial level.

We cannot predict whether SAFE will continue to enforce this circular or adopt additional or different requirements with respect to equity compensation plans or incentive plans.plans in the future. If it is determined that our share incentive plan is subject to Circular No. 78, failure to comply with such provisions may subject us and the participants of our share incentive plan who are PRC citizens to fines and legal sanctions and may prevent us from further granting options under our share incentive plan to our employees.employees who are PRC citizens. Such events could adversely affect our business operations.

The enforcement of the Labor Contract Law and other labor-related regulations in China may adversely affect our business and our results of operations.

On June 29, 2007, theThe PRC government enacted the Labor Contract Law, of the PRC, which became effective on January 1, 2008. The Labor Contract Law2008, establishes more restrictions and increases the cost to employers upon termination of employment, including specific provisions related to fixed-term employment contracts, temporary employment, probation, consultation with the labor union and employee general assembly, employment without a contract, dismissal of employees, compensation upon termination and overtime work, and collective bargaining. According to the Labor Contract Law, an employer is obligated to sign an unlimited term labor contract with an employee if the employer continues to employ the employee after two consecutive fixed term labor contracts. The employer also has to pay compensation to employees if the employer terminates an unlimited term labor contract.

Unless an employee refuses to extend an expired labor contract, compensation is also required when the labor contract expires and the employer does not extend the labor contract with the employee under the same terms or better terms than those in the original contract. Further, under the Regulations on Paid Annual Leave for Employees, which became effective on January 1, 2008, employees who have served more than one year with an employer are entitled to a paid vacation ranging from five to 15 days, depending on their length of service. Employees who waive such vacation time at the request of employers shall be compensated at three times their normal salaries for each waived vacation day. As a result of these and other new protective labor measures, our labor costs may increase.

Governmental control of currency conversion may affect the value of your investment.

The PRC government imposes controls on the convertibility between the RMB and foreign currencies and, in certain cases, the remittance of currency out of China. We receive substantially all of our revenues in RMB. Under our current corporate structure, our income at the holding company level may be primarily derived from dividend payments from our PRC subsidiaries. Shortages in the availability of foreign currency may restrict the ability of our PRC subsidiaries and our affiliated entities to remit sufficient foreign currency to pay dividends or other payments to us, or otherwise satisfy their foreign currency denominated obligations. Under existing PRC foreign exchange regulations, payments of current account items, including profit distributions, interest payments and expenditures from trade-related transactions, can be made in foreign currencies without prior approval from SAFE by complying with certain procedural requirements. However, approval from appropriate government authorities is required where RMB is to be converted into foreign currency and remitted out of China to pay capital expenses such as the repayment of loans denominated in foreign currencies. The PRC government may also at its discretion restrict access in the future to foreign currencies for current account transactions. If the foreign exchange control system prevents us from obtaining sufficient foreign currency to satisfy our currency demands, we may not be able to pay dividends in foreign currencies to our shareholders, including holders of our ADSs.

Fluctuation in the value of the RMB may have a material adverse effect on your investment.

The value of the RMB against the U.S. dollar and other currencies may fluctuate and is affected by, among other things, changes in political and economic conditions. On July 21, 2005, the PRC government changed its decade-old policy of pegging the value of the RMB to the U.S. dollar. Under the newrevised policy, the RMB is permitted to fluctuate within a narrow and managed band against a basket of certain foreign currencies. This change in policy has resulted in an approximately 21.2% appreciation of the RMB against the U.S. dollar between July 21, 2005 and May 29, 2009. On May 19, 2007, the People’s Bank of China announced a policy to expand the maximum daily floating range of the RMB trading prices against the U.S. dollar in the inter-bank spot foreign exchange market from 0.3% to 0.5%. With this increased floating range, the RMB’s value may appreciate or depreciate significantly against the U.S. dollar in the long term. Between July 21, 2005 and October 8, 2010, the RMB appreciated by approximately 24.1% against the U.S. dollar, although the pace of appreciation was uneven during the period. It is difficult to predict how the RMB exchange rates may change in the future.

Our revenues and costs are mostly denominated in the RMB, and a significant portion of our financial assets are also denominated in RMB. We may rely entirely on dividends and other fees paid to us by our subsidiaries and affiliated entities in China. Any significant revaluation of the RMB may materially and adversely affect our cash flows, revenues, earnings and financial position, and the value of, and any dividends payable on, our ADSs in U.S. dollars. For example, a further appreciation of the RMB against the U.S. dollar would make any new RMB- denominatedRMB-denominated investments or expenditures more costly to us, to the extent that we need to convert U.S. dollars into the RMB for such purposes. Conversely, a significant depreciation of the RMB against the U.S. dollar may significantly reduce our reported earnings in U.S. dollars, which in turn could adversely affect the price of our ADSs.

The discontinuation of any preferential tax treatments currently available to us could result in a decrease of our net income and materially and adversely affect our results of operations.

On March 16, 2007, the National People’s Congress passed the Enterprise Income Tax Law, or the EIT Law, which took effect on January 1, 2008. The EIT Law applies a uniform 25% enterprise income tax rate to both foreign-invested enterprises and domestic enterprises. There is a transition period for enterprises, whether foreign-invested or domestic, which had received preferential tax treatments granted by relevant tax authorities prior to March 16, 2007. Enterprises that had been established and been entitled to exemptions or reductions from the then standard income tax rate for a fixed term prior to March 16, 2007 may continue to enjoy such treatment until the fixed term expires. Although the EIT Law provides that preferential tax treatments will continue to be granted to industries and projects that are strongly supported and encouraged by the state, and that enterprises otherwise classified as “high and new technology enterprises strongly supported by the state” will be entitled to a preferential enterprise income tax rate, the implementation rules of the EIT Law promulgated by the State Council in December 2007 and other supplemental rules promulgated by the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation in April 2008 and July 2008, respectively, have stipulated new criteria for such “high and new technology enterprises,” and all enterprises which had been granted such status before the effectiveness of the EIT Law are required to be re-examined according to such new rules before they can continue to be entitled to such preferential tax treatments.

In December 2008, two of our wholly owned subsidiaries in China, Beijing Hewstone Technology Co., Ltd. and Beijing Decision Education & Consulting Co., Ltd. were recertified as “high and new technology enterprise” in Beijing. Both of them are entitled to a 7.5% enterprise income tax rate from 2008 to 2010, followed by a 15% tax rate as long as they continue to qualify as a “high and new technology enterprise.” The enterprise income tax rate from 2008 to 2010 for those two subsidiaries, which has been set by the local tax authorities in Beijing, is more favorable than the ones mandated by the national tax authorities. The other wholly owned subsidiary of our company, Beijing Judgment Education & Consulting Co., Ltd., has been subject to the standard enterprise income tax rate of 25% since January 1, 2008.

On April 21, 2010, the State Administration of Taxation issued the Circular Regarding Further Clarification on Implementation of Preferential EIT Rate during Transition Periods, or “Circular 157.” Circular 157 seeks to provide additional guidance on the interaction of certain preferential tax rates under the transitional rules of the EIT Law. According to Circular 157, if an enterprise is qualified as a “high and new technology enterprise” and is also in a tax holiday period, including “2-year exemption plus 3-year half rate,” “5-year exemption plus 5-year half rate” and other tax exemptions and reductions, then it would be entitled to pay tax, at its own election, at the lower of 15% or 50% of the specific tax rate set for the transitional period of preferential tax treatment (i.e., 18% in 2008, 20% in 2009, 22% in 2010, 24% in 2011 and 25% in 2012), but it is not allowed to pay tax at 50% of the 15% tax rate, i.e., 7.5%. Nonetheless, we have consulted with the relevant local tax district, which confirmed to us that Circular 157 is not applicable to entities that qualify for “3-year exemption plus 3-year half rate” tax holiday as “high and new technology enterprises” and are registered in the Zhongguancun High and New Technology Industrial Zones of Beijing, and that such entities will continue to pay tax at the rate of 7.5%. In light of the position taken by the relevant local tax authority, and given the fact that our subsidiaries that are enjoying “3-year exemption plus 3-year half rate” as “high and new technology enterprises” are registered in the Zhongguancun High and New Technology Industrial Zones of Beijing, we do not believe that Circular 157 has any effect on our current tax position. However, if the State Administration of Taxation took a position contrary to the position of the relevant local tax authority in its subsequent interpretation or implementation of Circular 157, the current preferential tax rate of 7.5% enjoyed by some of our subsidiaries would be increased or revoked, which would negatively affect our results of options.

According to The Implementation Rules for the Law for Promoting Private Education (2004), private schools that do not require reasonable returns enjoy the same preferential tax treatment as public schools, while the preferential tax treatment policies applicable to private schools requiring reasonable returns shall be separately formulated by the relevant authorities under the State Council. The implementing rules of the Enterprise Income Tax Law, or the EIT Law which took effect on January 1, 2008, provide certain conditions under which not-for-profit entities may be exempted from enterprise income tax. According to such conditions, our schools may not be entitled to income tax exemption. To date, however, no separate specific regulations or policies have been promulgated by the relevant authorities in this regard and whether our schools can be entitled to any preferential income tax treatment remains unclear. In practice, tax treatments for private schools vary across different cities in China. In some cities, private schools are subject to a 25% standard enterprise income tax starting from January 1, 2008, while in other cities, private schools are subject to a 2% to 3% tax on gross receipts in lieu of the 25% standard enterprise income tax or may be exempted from enterprise income tax. In addition, some of our PRC subsidiaries and other affiliated entities currently also enjoy certain preferential tax treatment.

Preferential tax treatments granted to us by local governmental authorities are subject to review and may be adjusted or revoked at any time in the future. The discontinuation of any preferential tax treatments currently available to us, especially to those schools in major cities, will cause our effective tax rate to increase, which will increase our income tax expenses and in turn decrease our net income.

Under PRC tax laws and regulations in effect before January 1, 2008, an enterprise that was registered in a high-tech zone and also qualified as “new or high-technology enterprise” may enjoy preferential tax benefits. Each of our three wholly owned subsidiaries in China, Beijing Judgment Education & Consulting Company Limited, Beijing Hewstone Technology Co., Ltd. and Beijing Decision Education Co., Ltd., and New Oriental China was a certified “new or high-technology enterprise” newly established in a high-tech zone in Beijing, and was entitled to a three-year exemption from enterprise income tax beginning from its first year of operation, a 7.5% enterprise income tax rate for another three years followed by a 15% tax rate so long as it continued to qualify as a “new or high-technology enterprise.”

On March 16, 2007, the National People’s Congress passed the EIT Law, which took effect on January 1, 2008. The EIT Law applies a uniform 25% enterprise income tax rate to both foreign-invested enterprises and domestic enterprises. There is a transition period for enterprises, whether foreign-invested or domestic, which had received preferential tax treatments granted by relevant tax authorities prior to March 16, 2007. Enterprises that had been established and been entitled to exemptions or reductions from then the standard income tax rate for a fixed term prior to March 16, 2007 may continue to enjoy such treatment until the fixed term expires. Although the EIT Law provides that preferential tax treatments will continue to be granted to industries and projects that are strongly supported and encouraged by the state, and that enterprises otherwise classified as “new or high technology enterprises strongly

supported by the state” will be entitled to a preferential enterprise income tax rate, the implementation rules of the EIT Law promulgated by the State Council in December 2007 and other supplemental rules promulgated by the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation in April 2008 and July 2008, respectively, have stipulated new criteria for such “new or high technology enterprises,” and all enterprises which had been granted such status before the effectiveness of the EIT Law are required to be re-examined according to such new rules before they can continue to be entitled to such preferential tax treatments.

In December 2008, two of our wholly owned subsidiaries in China, Beijing Hewstone Technology Co., Ltd. and Beijing Decision Education Co., Ltd. were recertified as “new or high-technology enterprise” in Beijing. As a result, both of them are entitled to a 7.5% enterprise income tax rate from 2008 to 2010, followed by a 15% tax rate as long as they continue to qualify as a “new or high technology enterprise.” The enterprise income tax rate from 2008 to 2010 for those two subsidiaries, which has been set by the local tax authorities in Beijing, is more favorable than the ones mandated by the national tax authorities. These and other preferential tax treatments granted to us by local government authorities are subject to review and may be adjusted or revoked at any time in the future. The other wholly owned subsidiary of our company, Beijing Judgment Education & Consulting Co., Ltd., and New Oriental China have been subject to the standard enterprise income tax rate of 25% since January 1, 2008. Loss of preferential tax treatments could lead to a significant increase in our effective tax rate, which in turn could have a material and adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

We may be treated as a resident enterprise for PRC tax purposes under the EIT Law, which may subject us to PRC income tax for our global income and withholding for any dividends we pay to our non-PRC shareholders and ADS holders.

Under the EIT Law, enterprises established outside of China whose “de facto management bodies” are located in China are considered “resident enterprises,” and will generally be subject to the uniform 25% enterprise income tax rate for their global income. Although the term “de facto management bodies” is defined as “management bodies which has substantial and overall management and control power on the operation, human resources, accounting and assets of the enterprise,” the circumstances under which an enterprise’s “de facto management body” would be considered to be located in China are currently unclear. A recent circular issued by the State Administration of Taxation on April 22, 2009 provides that a foreign enterprise controlled by a PRC company or a PRC company group will be classified as a “resident enterprise” with its “de facto management bodies” located within China if the following requirements are satisfied: (i) the senior management and core management departments in charge of its daily operations function mainly in the PRC; (ii) its financial and human resources decisions are subject to determination or approval by persons or bodies in the PRC; (iii) its major assets, accounting books, company seals, and minutes and files of its board and shareholders’ meetings are located or kept in the PRC; and (iv) at least half of the enterprise’s directors or senior management with voting rights reside in the PRC.

Our management is currently based in China and is expected to remain in China. Although our offshore holding companies are not controlled by any PRC company or company group, we cannot assure you that we will not be deemed to be a PRC resident enterprise under the EIT Law and its implementation rules. If we are deemed to be a PRC resident enterprise, we will be subject to PRC enterprise income tax at the rate of 25% on our global income. In that case, however, dividend income we receive from our PRC subsidiaries may be exempt from PRC enterprise income tax because the EIT Law and its implementation rules generally provide that dividends received by a PRC resident enterprise from its directly invested entity that is also a PRC resident enterprise is exempt from enterprise income tax. However, as there is still uncertainty as to how the EIT Law and its implementation rules will be interpreted and implemented, we cannot assure you thatAccordingly, If we are eligible for suchdeemed to be a PRC resident enterprise and earn income other than dividends from our PRC subsidiaries, a 25% enterprise income tax exemptions or reductions. If we are required to payon our global income could significantly increase our tax for any dividends we receive fromburden and materially and adversely affect our subsidiaries, the amount of dividends we can pay to our shareholderscash flow and ADS holders could be materially reduced.profitability.

In addition, the EIT Law and its implementation rules are relatively new and ambiguities exist with respect to the interpretation of the provisions relating to identification of PRC-sourced income. If we are deemed to be a PRC resident enterprise, dividends distributed to our non-PRC entity investors by us, or the gain our non-PRC entity investors may realize from the transfer of our common shares or ADSs, may be treated as PRC-sourced income and therefore be subject to a 10% PRC withholding tax pursuant to the EIT Law and, as a result, the value of your investment may be materially and adversely affected.

Dividends we receive from our operating subsidiaries located in the PRC may be subject to PRC withholding tax.

The EIT Law provides that a maximum income tax rate of 20% may apply to dividends payable to non-PRC investors that are “non-resident enterprises,” to the extent such dividends are derived from sources within the PRC. The State Council has reduced such rate to 10%, in the absence of any applicable tax treaties that may reduce such rate. We are a Cayman Islands holding company and substantially all of our income may be derived from dividends we receive from our operating subsidiaries located in the PRC. If we are required under the EIT Law to pay income tax for any dividends we receive from our PRC subsidiaries, the amount of dividends, if any, we may pay to our shareholders and ADS holders may be materially and adversely affected.

According to The Arrangement between the PRC and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region on the Avoidance of Double Taxation and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income, or the Double Taxation Arrangement (Hong Kong), which became effective on January 1, 2007, The Notice of the State Administration of Taxation on Negotiated Reduction of Dividends and Interest Rates, which was issued on January 29, 2008, and The Notice of the State Administration of Taxation Regarding Interpretation and Recognition of Beneficial Owners under Tax Treaties, which became effective on October 27, 2009, dividends paid to enterprises incorporated in Hong Kong are subject to a withholding tax of 5% provided that a Hong Kong resident enterprise owns over 25% of the PRC enterprise distributing the dividend and can be considered as a “beneficial owner” and entitled to treaty benefits under the Double Taxation Arrangement (Hong Kong). Elite Concept Holdings Limited, Winner Park Limited and Smart Shine International Limited, our Hong Kong wholly owned subsidiaries, own 100% of our PRC subsidiaries. Thus, dividends paid by our PRC subsidiaries to us through our Hong Kong wholly owned subsidiaries may be subject to the 5% withholding tax if we and our Hong Kong subsidiaries are considered as “non-resident enterprises” under the EIT Law and our Hong Kong subsidiaries are considered as “beneficial owners” and entitled to treaty benefits under the Double Taxation Arrangement (Hong Kong). If our Hong Kong subsidiaries are not regarded as the beneficial owners of any such dividends, they will not be entitled to the treaty benefits under the Double Taxation Arrangement (Hong Kong). As a result, such dividends would be subject to regular withholding tax of 10% as provided by the PRC domestic law rather than the favorable rate of 5% applicable under the Double Taxation Arrangement (Hong Kong).

Risks Related to Our ADSs

The market price for our ADSs may be volatile.

The market price for our ADSs may be volatile and subject to wide fluctuations in response to factors such as actual or anticipated fluctuations in our quarterly operating results, changes in financial estimates by securities research analysts, changes in the economic performance or market valuations of other education companies, announcements by us or our competitions of material

acquisitions, strategic partnerships, joint ventures or capital commitments, fluctuations of exchange rates between the RMB and the U.S. dollar, intellectual property litigation, economic or political conditions in China and the impact of global macroeconomic conditions. In addition, the performance and fluctuation in market prices, of other companies with business operations located mainly in China that have listed their securities in the United States, and fluctuation in market prices of their securities, may affect the volatility in the price and trading volumes of our ADSs. Furthermore, the securities market has from time to time experienced significant price and volume fluctuations that are not related to the operating performance of particular companies. Thesecompanies, and these market fluctuations may also materially and adversely affect the market price of our ADSs. Volatility in global capital markets, such as volatility caused by the recent global financial and economic crises, could also have an effect on the market price of our ADSs.

We may need additional capital, and the sale of additional ADSs or other equity securities could result in additional dilution to our shareholders.

We believe that our current cash and cash equivalents and anticipated cash flow from operations and the net proceeds from our initial public offering in September 2006 and from our additional public offering in February 2007 will be sufficient to meet our anticipated cash needs for the near future. We may, however, require additional cash resources to finance our continued growth or other future developments, including any investments or acquisitions we may decide to pursue. The amount and timing of such additional financing needs will vary principally depending on the timing of new school and learning center openings, investments and/or acquisitions, and the amount of cash flow from our operations. If our existing cash resources are insufficient to satisfy our cash requirements, we may seek to sell additional equity or debt securities or obtain a credit facility. The sale of additional equity securities could result in additional dilution to our shareholders. The incurrence of indebtedness would result in increased debt service obligations and could result in operating and financing covenants that would restrict our operations.

Our ability to obtain additional capital on acceptable terms is subject to a variety of uncertainties, including:

We cannot assure you that financing will be available in amounts or on terms acceptable to us, if at all, especially ifin the recentevent of a severe and prolonged global financial and economic crises continue or worsen.recession. If we fail to raise additional funds, we may need to sell debt or additional equity securities or to reduce our growth to a level that can be supported by our cash flow. Without additional capital, we may not be able to:

Our corporate actions are substantially controlled by our officers, directors, principal shareholders and affiliated entities.

As of August 31, 2009,2010, our executive officers, directors and their affiliated entities beneficially owned approximately 20.3%19.7% of our outstanding shares. These shareholders, if they acted together, could exert substantial influence over matters requiring approval by our shareholders, including electing directors and approving mergers or other business combination transactions and they may not act in the best interests of other minority shareholders. This concentration of ownership may also discourage, delay or prevent a change in control of our company, which could deprive our shareholders of an opportunity to receive a premium for their shares as part of a sale of our company and might reduce the price of our ADSs. These actions may be taken even if they are opposed to by our other shareholders.

Substantial future sales or the perception of sales of our ADSs in the public market could cause the price of our ADSs to decline.

Substantial sales of our ADSs or common shares in the public market, or the perception that these sales could occur, could cause the market price of our ADSs to decline. In addition, certain holders of our common shares have the right to cause us to register the sale of their shares under the Securities Act. Registration of these shares under the Securities Act would result in these shares becoming freely tradable without restriction under the Securities Act immediately upon the effectiveness of the registration. Sales of these registered shares in the public market could cause the price of our ADSs to decline. If any existing shareholder or shareholders sell a substantial amount of common shares, the market price of our ADSs could decline.

If securities or industry analysts publish negative reports about our business, the price and trading volume of our ADSs securities could decline.

The trading market for our ADSs depends, in part, on the research reports and ratings that securities or industry analysts or ratings agencies publish about us, our business and the private education market in China in general. We do not have any control over these analysts or agencies. If one or more of the analysts or agencies who cover us downgrades us or our securities, the price of our ADSs may decline. If one or more of these analysts cease coverage of our company or fail to regularly publish reports on us, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which could cause the price of our ADSs or trading volume to decline.

You may not have the same voting rights as the holders of our common shares and may not receive voting materials in time to be able to exercise your right to vote.

Except as described in the deposit agreement, holders of our ADSs will not be able to exercise voting rights attaching to the common shares evidenced by our ADSs on an individual basis. Holders of our ADSs will appoint the depositary or its nominee as their representative to exercise the voting rights attaching to the common shares represented by the ADSs. You may not receive voting materials in time to instruct the depositary to vote, and it is possible that you, or persons who hold their ADSs through brokers, dealers or other third parties, will not have the opportunity to exercise a right to vote. Upon our written request, the depositary will mail to you a shareholder meeting notice which contains, among other things, a statement as to the manner in which your voting instructions may be given, including an express indication that such instructions may be given or deemed given to the depositary to give a discretionary proxy to a person designated by us if no instructions are received by the depositary from you on or before the response date established by the depositary. However, no voting instruction shall be deemed given and no such discretionary proxy shall be given with respect to any matter as to which we inform the depositary that (i) we do not wish such proxy given, (ii) substantial opposition exists or (iii) such matter materially and adversely affects the rights of shareholders.

You may not be able to participate in rights offerings and may experience dilution of your holdings as a result.

We may from time to time distribute rights to our shareholders, including rights to acquire our securities. Under the deposit agreement for the ADSs, the depositary will not offer those rights to ADS holders unless both the rights and the underlying securities to be distributed to ADS holders are either registered under the Securities Act, or exempt from registration under the Securities Act with respect to all holders of ADSs. We are under no obligation to file a registration statement with respect to any such rights or underlying securities or to endeavor to cause such a registration statement to be declared effective. In addition, we may not be able to take advantage of any exemptions from registration under the Securities Act. Accordingly, holders of our ADSs may be unable to participate in our rights offerings and may experience dilution in their holdings as a result.

You may be subject to limitations on transfer of your ADSs.

Your ADSs are transferable on the books of the depositary. However, the depositary may close its transfer books at any time or from time to time when it deems expedient in connection with the performance of its duties. In addition, the depositary may refuse to deliver, transfer or register transfers of ADSs generally when our books or the books of the depositary are closed, or at any time if we or the depositary deemdeems it advisable to do so because of any requirement of law or of any government or governmental body, or under any provision of the deposit agreement, or for any other reason.

CertainYou may experience difficulties in effecting service of legal process, enforcing foreign judgments obtainedor bringing original actions in the Cayman Islands or China based on United States or other foreign laws against us byor our shareholders may not be enforceable.management.

We are incorporated in the Cayman Islands and conduct substantially all of our operations in China throughChina. Substantially all of our wholly owned subsidiaries and affiliated entitiesassets are located in China. All of our executive officers reside outside the United Statesin China and some or all of the assets of those persons are located outside of the United States. As a result, it may be difficult for you to effect service of process within the United States or elsewhere outside the Cayman Islands and China upon us or our executive officers, including with respect to matters arising under U.S. federal securities laws or applicable state securities laws. It may also be difficult or impossible for you to bring an action against us or against these individualsour executive officers in the Cayman Islands or in China in the event that you believe that your rights as an ADS holder have been infringed under the securities laws of the United States or otherwise. Even if you are successful in bringing an action of this kind in the United States, the respective

laws of the Cayman Islands and China may render you unable to enforce a judgment against our assets or the assets of our directors and officers. There is no statutory recognition in the Cayman Islands of judgments obtained in the United States, although the courts of the Cayman Islands will generally recognize and enforce a non-penal judgment of a foreign court of competent jurisdiction without retrial on the merits. Moreover, our PRC counsel has advised us that the PRC does not have treaties with the United States or many other countries providing for the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of judgment of courts.

We are a Cayman Islands company and, because judicial precedent regarding the rights of shareholders is more limited under Cayman Islands law than under U.S. law, you may have less protection of your shareholder rights than you would under U.S. law.

Our corporate affairs are governed by our memorandum and articles of association and by the Companies Law (2009(2010 Revision) and common law of the Cayman Islands. The rights of shareholders to take legal action against our directors and us, actions by minority shareholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our directors to us under Cayman Islands law are to a large extent governed by the common law of the Cayman Islands. The common law of the Cayman Islands is derived in part from comparatively limited judicial precedentprecedents in the Cayman Islands as well as from English common law, which has persuasive, but not binding, authority on a court in the Cayman Islands. The rights of our shareholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our directors under Cayman Islands law are not as clearly established as they would be under statutes or judicial precedents in the United States. In particular, the Cayman Islands has a less developed body of securities laws as compared to the United States, and provides significantly less protection to investors. In addition, Cayman Islands companies may not have standing to initiate a shareholder derivative action before the federal courts of the United States.

As a result of all of the above, holders and beneficial owners of our public shareholdersADSs may have more difficultydifficulties in protecting their interests through actions against our management, directors or major shareholders than would shareholders of a corporation incorporated in a jurisdiction in the United States.

Our articles of association contain anti-takeover provisions that could have a material adverse effect on the rights of holders of our common shares and ADSs.

Our articles of association contain provisions that limit the ability of others to acquire control of our company or cause us to engage in change-of-control transactions. These provisions could have the effect of depriving our shareholders of an opportunity to sell their shares at a premium over prevailing market prices by discouraging third parties from seeking to obtain control of our company in a tender offer or similar transaction. For example, our board of directors has the authority, without further action by our shareholders, to issue preferred shares in one or more series and to fix their designations, powers, preferences, privileges, and relative participating, optional or special rights and the qualifications, limitations or restrictions, including dividend rights, conversion rights, voting rights, terms of redemption and liquidation preferences, any or all of which may be greater than the rights associated with our common shares, in the form of ADS or otherwise. Preferred shares could be issued quickly with terms calculated to delay or prevent a change in control of our company or make removal of management more difficult. If our board of directors decides to issue preferred shares, the price of our ADSs may fall and the voting and other rights of the holders of our common shares and ADSs may be materially and adversely affected.

We may be classified as a passive foreign investment company, which could result in adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences to U.S. holders of our ADSs or common shares.

We believe we were not a “passive foreign investment company,” or PFIC, for U.S. federal income tax purposes for our taxable year ending May 31, 2009.2010. However, the application of the PFIC rules is subject to ambiguity in several respects, and, in addition, we must make a separate determination each taxable year as to whether we are a PFIC (after the close of each taxable year). Accordingly, we cannot assure you that we will not be a PFIC for our current taxable year ending May 31, 20102011 or any future taxable year. A non- U.S.non-U.S. corporation will be considered a PFIC for any taxable year if either (1) at least 75% or more of its gross income is passivefor such year consists of certain types of “is passive” income or (2) at least 50% or more of the value of its average quarterly assets during such year is attributable to assets that produce or are held for the production of passive income. The value of our assets will be determined based on the market price of our ADSs and common shares, which may fluctuate. If we were treated as a PFIC for any taxable year during which a U.S. person held an ADS or a common share, certain adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences could apply to such U.S. person. See “Item 10. Additional Information—E. Taxation—United States Federal Income Taxation—Passive Foreign Investment Company.”

A.History and Development of the Company

Our first school was established by Michael Minhong Yu, our chairman and chief executive officer, in Beijing, China in 1993 to offer TOEFL test preparation courses to college students. We established New Oriental China in 2001 to own all of our schools and learning centers. Since our inception, we have grown rapidly and transformed ourselves from primarily a language training and test preparation company to the largest provider of private educational services in China offering a wide range of educational programs, services and products to a varied student population throughout China.

In order to facilitate foreign investment in our company, we established our offshore holding company, New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc., as a company registered in the British Virgin Islands in August 2004. On January 25, 2006, our shareholders approved the change of our offshore holding company’s corporate domicile to the Cayman Islands, and we are now a Cayman Islands company limited by shares. Since December 2007, we have established three wholly-owned subsidiaries in Hong Kong, which now directly own our wholly-owned subsidiaries in China.

We and certain selling shareholders of our company completed an initial public offering of 8,625,000 ADSs in September 2006. On September 7, 2006, we listed our ADSs on the New York Stock Exchange, or the NYSE, under the symbol “EDU.” In February 2007, we and certain selling shareholders of our company completed an additional public offering of 7,300,000 ADSs.

Our principal executive offices are located at No. 6 Hai Dian Zhong Street, Haidian District, Beijing 100080, the People’s Republic of China. Our telephone number at this address is +(8610) 6260-5566. Our registered office in the Cayman Islands is located at Codan Trust Company (Cayman) Limited, Cricket Square, Hutchins Drive, P.O. Box 2681, Grand Cayman KY1-1111, Cayman Islands. Our telephone number at this address is +(1) 345-949-1040. In addition, weWe have branch offices in 4240 cities in China and one branch office in Vancouver, Canada.China. Our agent for service of process in the United States in connection with our registration statements on Form F-1 for our initial public offering and the additional offering in February 2007 is CT Corporation System, located at 111 Eighth Avenue, New York, New York 10011.

Acquisitions

In June 2008, we completed the acquisition of a 60% equity stake in Mingshitang School, a Beijing-based private school that specializes in tutoring students seeking to retake the gaokao, the Chinese college entrance examination. The remaining 40% equity stake in Mingshitang was still subject to a multi-year earn-out structure as of May 31, 2009. In September 2008, we completed the acquisition of Tongwen Gaokao School, a Changchun-based school that provides types ofsimilar services similar to the services thatthose provided by Mingshitang School provides.School. In connection with this acquisition, we also acquired a small private high school with approximately 30 students affiliated with Tongwen Gaokao School. These strategic acquisitions are expected to allow us to extend our New Oriental brand to the large non-English test preparation market; moderate the seasonality of our businesses as the gaokao re-takers training market is largely counter-seasonal to our other core businesses; offer opportunities for consolidation in the highly-fragmented gaokao training market; and provide synergies with our “New Oriental U-Can” training program which targets middle and high school Chinese students ages 13 to 18 who are preparing for the gaokao.

B.Business Overview

We are the largest provider of private educational services in China based on the number of program offerings, total student enrollments and geographic presence. We offer a wide range of educational programs, services and products consisting primarily of English and other foreign language training, test preparation courses for admissions and assessment tests in the United States, the PRC and Commonwealth countries, primary and secondary school education, development and distribution of educational content, software and other technology, and online education. We provide educational services under our “New Oriental” brand, which we believe is the leading consumer brand in China’s private education sector, as evidenced by awards we received from many national print and online media sources in China, including the “Most Influential Education Brand in 2005” given by Southern China Metropolitan Daily, a newspaper with nationwide circulation; the “Top Ten Largest Private Educational Organizations in China in 2006” given by a group of over 40 major media outlets in China; the “Award for Outstanding Achievement in China’s Education and Training Industry in 2007” given by two non-profit educational organizations; and the “Top 10 Education Brands During 30 Years of Reform and Opening-up” in 2008 given by three educational media outlets; the “2009 Award for Distinguished Contributions to China’s Education” given by three websites in China; and the “Top 10 Most Influential Educational Groups in China” given by a group of major media outlets.

Since our inception in 1993, we have had approximately 7.39.11 million cumulative student enrollments. In the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, we had approximately 1,519,0001,807,000 student enrollments, including approximately 937,0001,038,000 student enrollments in our language training programs and approximately 582,000769,000 student enrollments in our test preparation courses. We deliver our educational programs, services and products to students through an extensive physical network of 48 schools, 222 learning centers and 24 bookstores, operated by us, over 5,000 third-party bookstores and approximately 5,200 teachers in 42 cities as of May 31, 2009, as well as through our virtual online network, which has approximately 4.5 million registered users.

We have experienced significant growth in our business in recent years. Our total net revenues increased from US$132.6201.0 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 20072008 to US$292.6386.3 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, representing a compound annual growth rate, or CAGR, of 48.5%38.6%. Net revenues from our language training and test preparation courses accounted for 88.3%87.6%, 87.6%87.4% and 91.1%87.3%, respectively, of our total net revenues in the fiscal years ended May 31, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2009. Our net2010. Net income attributable to New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc. increased from US$28.649.0 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2007 and2008 to US$61.077.8 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, representing a CAGR of 46.0%26.0%.

Our Network

We deliver our educational programs, services and products to students through an extensive physical network of 48 schools, 222319 learning centers and 2425 bookstores operated by us, over 5,000 third-party bookstores and approximately 5,2008,100 teachers in 4240 cities as of May 31, 2009,2010, as well as through our virtual online network, which has approximately 4.56 million registered users. In addition, as we have had over 7.3 million cumulative student enrollments since our inception, we have an extensive network of students and alumni. This networkalumni, which has been essential in promotinghelping us promote our brand and our programs, services and products by word-of-mouth referrals and through our students’ and alumni’s academic and career achievements. We will continue to open new schools and learning centers in cities that exhibit strong enrollment potential.

All of our schools, learning centers and bookstores operate under our “New Oriental” brand. Our hub schools in major cities consist of classrooms and administrative facilities with full student and administrative services while our schools in satellite cities and our learning centers consist primarily of classroom facilities and limited course registration and management capabilities. We select new locations based on various factors, including demographics and the number of colleges in, and the economic condition of, the particular region. We have opened bookstores in our established schools to primarily sell educational materials relating to our courses and also sell self-help, know-how, inspirational and other books.

We lease all of our facilities except for our Yangzhou school and part of the premises for theour headquarters in Beijing and our schools in Xi’an Tianjin and Yangzhou schools, which we own.Tianjin. The following table sets forth information concerning the locations of our schools, learning centers and bookstores as of May 31, 2009.2010.

Our Programs, Services and Products

We provide a wide variety of educational programs, services and products intended to address the needs of our students. We deliver education to our students primarily in traditional classroom settings and also through online instruction. With the exception of the full-time primary and secondary school in Yangzhou, a full-time secondary school in Beijing and a school that provides post-secondary education, our classroom-based courses are generally designed to be completed in two2 to 16 weeks. Course fees are determined based on the length of the course, the size and the subject of the class, the area of study and the geographic location of the school. We currently have a full-time staff of approximately 150200 people involved in our centralized curriculum development process. We update and expand our course offerings frequently in response to evolving market needs. Our program, service and product offerings are generally divided into six areas: language training; test preparation; primary and secondary schools and kindergartens; educational content, software and other technology development and distribution; online education; and other services and products.

Language Training Courses

Our language training courses primarily consist of various types of English language training courses. We also provide training courses for other foreign languages, including German, Japanese, French, Korean and Spanish. In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, we had approximately 937,0001,038,000 student enrollments in our language training courses, of which over 90%95% were in our English language training courses. Our interactive courses focus not only on reading and writing, but also on teaching and improving critical listening and speaking skills.

We recognize that students progress at different rates when learning foreign languages, and our large number of students allows us to offer suitable courses at many different levels of proficiency. While we offer English to students of all age groups and with various motivations for learning English, we generally categorize our English language training courses into the following areas: (i) English for adults; (ii) English for children, including our “Pop Kids” English program; (iii) English for middle school and high schools students; and (iv) “Elite English” for high-income adults and children of high-income families.

English for Adults. Historically, this has been the primary component of our English language training courses. Many employers in China, including foreign-invested enterprises, multinational corporations’ branch offices as well as domestic enterprises involved in international business transactions or the tourism industry, require their employees to have a high level of English proficiency.

Our English for adults program offers courses designed to teach and improve college and other adult students’ English writing, reading, listening and speaking skills. Our schools and learning centers also have language labs at which our students can listen to and recite spoken passages on CDs and audio tapes to improve their listening and speaking skills. A typical course lasts for six6 to 12 weeks with classroom instruction one to four times per week for two to five hours per visit. We also offer more intensive and condensed versions of our courses, in particular during the summer months when many academic institutions are on summer break. The sizes of our English for adults courses typically range from one1 to approximately 150 students per class.

In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, we had approximately 278,000 student enrollments in our English for adults courses and approximately 23%, 16% and 7%6% of the total enrollments were for courses taught in Beijing, Shanghai and Wuhan, respectively. Course fees for our English for adults courses range from approximately RMB200 to approximately RMB3,000 per course.

English for Children. We established our English for children program in 2002 for children in kindergarten through grade six and it has achieved rapid growth. We designed our English for children program based upon the following principles: (i) we use localized materials originally published by international education content providers and publishers while taking into account the local public schools’ curricula and the skills and abilities of the individual child and adapting to his or her particular needs; (ii) we assist

students in mastering the basics of the language in various fun ways, including interactive games, activities and cultural studies; and (iii) we help children develop a passion for learning the language and guide and inspire them to develop their self-learning abilities. In 2004, we established our “Pop Kids” English learning centers at which we attempt to immerse young kids in a fun and interactive English- speakingEnglish-speaking environment dedicated solely to children.

Our English for children classes are typically divided into classes of one1 to approximately 25 students per class. Students attend class one to two times per week for 1.5 to two2 hours per class. We test our students to measure their progress and make sure they are progressing as needed to advance to the next book and class level without jeopardizing the fundamentals that will allow them to excel in the future.

To enhance our Pop Kids English program, in November 2008, we began a cooperationcooperate with the Sino-British Academic Exchange Center for Education Measurement (SBC), Cambridge ESOL’s sole representative in China, for the administration of the Cambridge Young Learners English exam (YLE) to our students in the Pop Kids English program. Cambridge ESOL is a not-for-profit department of the University of Cambridge focusing on examinations for the English language. We currently are administering the YLE exam for our POP Kids English students in 1422 cities.

In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, we had approximately 308,000434,000 student enrollments in our English for children program, and approximately 22%13%, 11%9% and 10%8% of the enrollments took place in Wuhan, BeijingShanghai and Guangzhou,Beijing, respectively. Course fees for our English for children courses range from approximately RMB100 to approximately RMB1,000 per course.

English for Middle School and High School Students. English proficiency is tested as a major subject of entrance exams for admission into China’s high schools, colleges and universities. Given the intense competition to gain admission into top high schools and higher education institutions in China, English exam scores can be a deciding factor in gaining admission. Our English language training courses for middle school and high school students are designed to supplement students’ regular school curricula and help students achieve better scores on English exams for admission into high schools or higher education institutions.

Our typical English courses for middle school and high school students last for eight8 to 16 weeks with classroom instruction one to four times per week for 90 minutes1.5 to five5 hours per visit. We also offer more intensive and condensed versions of our courses, in particular during the summer months when many academic institutions are on summer break. The sizes of these courses typically range from one1 to approximately 300 students per class.

In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, we had approximately 225,000244,000 student enrollments in our English language training courses for middle school and high school students, and approximately 19%17%, 6%5%, and 6%5% of the enrollments took place in Beijing, Shanghai and Wuhan, respectively. Course fees for our English training courses for middle school and high school students range from approximately RMB200 to approximately RMB2,000 per course.

“Elite English” for High-Income Adults and Children of High-Income Families. With the rapid economic growth of China in the past three decades and increased sophistication and frequency of international business transactions, there is a growing demand for high-end, personalized, advanced English language training for high-income working professionals and other adults in large, economically prosperous cities. China’s economic growth has led to increased personal disposable income which, coupled withfor Chinese families, and the “single child” policy and the potential rewards of English proficiency hashave prompted Chinese families to spend a high percentage of their disposable income investing in their children’s English language education. We started our “Elite English” programs for high-income adults and children of high income families in 2003 in response to the market demand from high-income students and parents for such personalized instruction.

While we have a standardized curriculum for our “Elite English” program, our trained teachers work closely with a small group of students to evaluate and customize the curriculum based on the progress and demands of the students. Our “Elite English” program is divided into classes of one to ten students per class.

In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, we had approximately 4,7008,000 students in our “Elite English” program at our “Elite English” centers in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Nanjing, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Jinan, Ningbo, Chongqing, Chengdu and Changsha. The schedules of our “Elite English” classes are more flexible in order to accommodate students’ schedules and are provided in up-scale locations and environments. We plan to continue growing this area of our business. Enrollment fees for our “Elite English” program generally range from RMB12,000 to RMB18,000 per year.

Test Preparation Courses

We offer test preparation courses to students taking language and entrance exams used by educational institutions in the United States, the PRC and Commonwealth countries. In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, we had approximately 582,000769,000 student enrollments in our test preparation courses, of which approximately 229,000256,000 were in overseas test preparation courses, and 353,000389,000 were in PRC test preparation courses.courses and 124,000 were in test preparation courses for middle and high school Chinese students.

We offer test preparation courses for the following major overseas exams: TOEFL, TSE, SAT, ACT, IELTS, GRE, GMAT, LSAT, BEC and TOEIC. In addition, we offer test preparation classes for the following major PRC admissions tests: CET 4, CET 6, National English TestTests for Entrance into Master’s Degree Programs, National Math Test for Entrance of Master’s Degree Programs, Professional Title English Test and PETS. In November 2006, we established our Beijing New Oriental North Star Training School to expand into the professional certification preparation field, which includes preparation for the PRC bar, the PRC certified public accountant and civil service exams. In November 2007, Educational Testing Service, the creator of the TOEFL, and New Oriental reached an agreement making New Oriental’s language schools the only language schools in China authorized by the Educational Testing Service to sell the TOEFL Practice Online, or the TPO, in their training classes. As part of the agreement, New Oriental has an exclusive right to provide the TPO as a component of its language training or test preparation courses and may also sell the TPO to the general public through its bookstores. Educational Testing Service will continue to sell the TPO on its own website and through its subsidiaries or other third-party resellers.

In March 2008, we launched our “New Oriental U-Can” training program, which targets middle and high school Chinese students from ages 13 to 18 who are preparing for the college entrance examination in China, known as the gaokao. The gaokao is required for admission to bachelor degree programs and most associate degree programs at Chinese colleges and universities. In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2009, we had over 58,000 student enrollments in New Oriental U-Can. To complement New Oriental U-Can, we also entered the gaokao re-takers market with our acquisition of Mingshitang School, a Beijing-based private school that specializes in tutoring students who seek to retake the gaokao, in June 2008 and our acquisition of Tongwen Gaokao School, a Changchun-based private school providing similar types of services, in September 2008. In February 2009, we launched a customized learning program for students from ages 6 to 18, offering small class size tutoring ranging from one to five students per class, in all subjects required for the gaokao and the high school entrance examinations, respectively. In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2010, we had over 120,000 student enrollments in New Oriental U-Can, including the customized small-class program. With this two-pronged strategy of offering affordable larger classes and higher priced individualized small classes for school aged children, we aim to capture more market share in the large after-school training market in China.

In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, approximately 41% and 18%17% of the total student enrollments in our overseas test preparation courses took place in Beijing and Shanghai, respectively, and approximately 22%24% of the total student enrollments in our PRC test preparation courses took place in Beijing, while no other city accounted for over 10% of the total student enrollments in our PRC test preparation courses.

Our test preparation courses focus on quality instruction and test-taking techniques designed to help students achieve high scores on the admissions and assessment tests. OurExcept for the customized small class program discussed above, our experienced teachers generally teach in large classes ranging from 50 to 500 students. Our students enroll in a 2020- to 160-hour program with classes meeting one to four times per week for approximately 2.5 hours per class. We also offer intensive and condensed versions of our courses, which are compacted into shorter time periods. Course fees for our test preparation courses range from RMB150 to RMB25,000 per course.

Primary and Secondary Schools

New Oriental China established the first full-time private primary and secondary school in Yangzhou in 2002. This is a private boarding school for students in grades one1 to twelve12 seeking a full curriculum taught in both Chinese and English, with a strong emphasis on English language training. We target parents who desire to provide their children with a global vision and an understanding and appreciation of both traditional Chinese culture and the modern world, a competitive advantage in academics and social development and English language proficiency. Our goal is to develop the Yangzhou school, and other new schools to be established in the future, into elite schools whose students consistently gain acceptance into the top universities in China and around the world.

We attempt to immerse our students in the English language at an early age through native English speaking teachers and activities designed to emphasize early and significant exposure to a bilingual environment. The Yangzhou private school has a capacity of up to 4,000 students. In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, we had over 3,4003,500 students at the Yangzhou school, approximately 68% of whom came from Yangzhou, with the remainder from various parts of China. Our students must take an admission test and undergo an interview to gain acceptance into our school.

There are over 280 teachers and 320 supporting staff at the Yangzhou school. The school has been regarded as one of the best primary and secondary schools in the local market since shortly after its inception. In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, the school accepted 1,1731,156 students out of over approximately 2,0001,800 applicants from the local market as well as elsewhere in China. All students of class of 2009, the first class to graduate from the Yangzhou school, were admitted by the top 100 universities in the U.S.

The Yangzhou school has received various accreditations from local authorities. We work closely with the local educational authorities to make sure that our curriculum is compatible with public school curriculums and covers the full spectrum of required courses. We have also expanded our curriculum to include subjects, activities and techniques that teach the students to learn and think independently. There is less emphasis on memorization and recitation and greater emphasis on creative thinking and analytical activities. We use computers as a major part of our teaching and learning methods and encourage students to learn in an interactive format. In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, tuition at the Yangzhou school ranged from RMB5,000 to RMB10,000 per year.

In SeptemberJuly 2006, we established an international high school project within the Yangzhou school. In July 2010, we opened our second primary and secondaryan international high school in Taixing, China nearBeijing. Our international high schools aim to provide students with a full curriculum of high school education in a bilingual environment while preparing them for admission into foreign universities. Over 90% of the students of class of 2010 of the international high school within our Yangzhou school. We closedschool were admitted by the top 100 universities in the United States. In our Taixing school in July 2008, and transferred all the students and teachersfiscal year ended May 31, 2010, tuition at our international schools range from our Taixing schoolRMB60,000 to our Yangzhou school.RMB90,000 per year.

Educational Content, Software and Other Technology Development and Distribution

We develop and edit content forof educational materials for language training and test preparation, such as books, software, CD-ROMs, magazines and other periodicals, as well as “self-help,” “know-how” and “inspirational” books for our students and other readers. We distribute these materials through various distribution channels, consisting of our own classrooms and bookstores as well as third-party distributors, including over 5,000 bookstores in China. In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, we developed and edited over 130200 titles and distributed approximately nine9 million books authored or licensed by us in China. Over 95%Most of the materials distributed by us are education-related and include the materials that we use in our courses and also include a large number of titles that we market for use in English language area.

Our extensive distribution channels have attracted international education content providers to cooperate with us in distributing localized versions of their materials in China. We currently have arrangements with Pearson Education, The McGraw-Hill Companies, Cambridge University Press, Barron’s, and Wiley, DynEd International Inc., or their respective authorized local publishers, to develop and distribute localized versions of selected educational materials in China, some of which bear both our logo and the original publisher’s logo. In January 2007, we entered into an agreement with DynEd International Inc., or DynEd, to license DynEd’s proprietary English language training software for use in our Elite English programs and to collaborate with DynEd to develop accompanying teaching materials. In November 2007, we entered into an agreement with Heinle ELT, a part of Cengage Learning and a leading provider of materials of English language teaching and learning throughout the world. Pursuant to the agreement, Heinle ELT has worked with our instructors to develop a line of localized English language learning materials, including textbooks, audio and video programs, and Internet-based content for use via our Koolearn.com online learning platform and in our “iEnglish” brand courses, which is our specially branded English-language learning program that focuses on improving students’ listening comprehension and speaking abilities. Heinle ELT has also provided support in ongoing instructor training and research activities to us. In June 2008, we and Intuto Ltd., a New Zealand-based e-learning solutions provider, formed a partnership to co-develop and update custom learning materials tailored to our existing IELTS courses. IELTS is used to assess the language ability of second language speakers planning to live, work or study in English-speaking countries. Pursuant to the agreement, Intuto has worked with our instructors to develop a line of English language learning materials, including textbooks, to address the four skills in the IELTS exam: reading, writing, speaking and listening of the English language. Meanwhile, we are developing our own IELTS courses and exercises through our Koolearn.com online learning platform based on material developed under the partnership, in accordance with the terms of the agreement. We plan to establish additional strategic relationships with leading international education content providers to enrich our content offerings.

Online Education

We offer online education programs on our website www.koolearn.com. As of May 31, 2009,2010, approximately 5.36 million users had registered accounts with us, giving them access to free informational content on our website. In our fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, we had approximately 176,000301,000 users that paid for additional access to our specialized education programs. These users purchase pre-paid cards that give them the right to use our paid content for a specific period of time or for specific courses. Course fees for our online courses range from RMB10 to RMB5,000 per course.

We currently offer approximately 6001,200 online courses inincluding language training courses, test preparation courses, professional certification courses, and business knowledge and skills training courses in the areas of accounting, legal, management and others. Our typical online courses last for 30 hours and each session normally lasts 15 minutes or less. We have live interactive online courses as well as courses that allow students to view replays of pre-recorded lectures. In June 2008, we entered into an agreement with Coca-Cola (China) Beverages Ltd. to jointly develop an e-learning platform offering vocational training to Coca-Cola system employees in China through our Koolearn.com online platform. Our Koolearn.com online learning management system allow Coca-Cola management and human resource professionals to evaluate employees’ knowledge in specific subject areas and assess their progress throughout the course. As of May 31, 2009, approximately 5,300 users in 12 Coca-Cola plants had used this training platform.

Our online courses are particularly attractive to students who need the flexibility to prepare at any time of the day or night and on short notice. Our online tools provide more flexibility by offering our students the ability to choose their best and most convenient way of learning as they experience our programs.

Partially through our Koolearn.com website, we also offer enterprise clients customized training services. By working closely with enterprise clients, we gain a good understanding of the clients’ specific training needs and design training solutions to meet those needs. We also have the capability to develop customized e-learning management systems for enterprise clients.

Other Services

Overseas Studies Consulting. Our consultants help students through the application and admission process for overseas educational institutions and provide useful college, graduate and career counseling advice to help students to make informed decisions. We also counsel students with the immigration process for overseas studies, such as obtaining visas and student and off- campusoff-campus housing. We charge each student a fee based on the scope of consulting services requested by the student.

Post-Secondary Education. We provide post-secondary educational programs to help students seek career opportunities requiring English proficiency, such as interpreters for international trade organizations. Such programs normally last for less than one year. Students have the flexibility to enroll in specific courses of interest or to enroll in the full program.

Pre-school Education. In September 2007, we established our pre-school business with the opening of our first kindergarten in Beijing, which currently has 110 students and has a capacity of enrolling up to 180160 students. In April 2009, we opened a newanother kindergarten in Nanjing. As of May 31, 2009,2010, our two kindergartens had a total of 180424 students.

Marketing and Student Recruitment

We employ a variety of marketing and recruiting methods to attract students and increase enrollments. We have positioned ourselves as a provider of private educational services that inspires students to achieve their potential and build self-confidence and that boosts students’ enthusiasm for learning. We believe prospective students are attracted to our schools due to our excellent brand name, the quality of our programs and our relatively long operating history in the private education sector.

We employ the following marketing methods to attract new and returning students:

Speeches and Seminars. Our management, most of whom are experienced teachers and were among our earliest teachers, and our top teachers frequently give speeches at colleges, universities, high schools and middle schools and to student groups, parent groups and educational organizations. They also participate in educational seminars and workshops. Our speeches include direct program promotion speeches during which we directly explain the merits and advantages of our programs or general English learning methods, as well as inspirational speeches designed to motivate students to reach their full potential and strive for success. In the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009,2010, our management and teachers gave a total of over 7,80011,000 speeches and seminars in China.

Referrals. Historically, our student enrollments have grown primarily through word-of-mouth referrals. Our student enrollments have benefited and will continue to benefit by referrals from our extensive network of students and alumni and the successful academic and professional careers that many of them have achieved.

Distribution of Marketing Materials. We use New Oriental “booths” and “information tables” to distribute free inspirational books authored by our chairman and chief executive officer Michael Minhong Yu and others, informational brochures, posters and flyers at various on-campus events, educational expos, conferences and college and employment fairs. We also conduct extensive free information sessions to introduce our programs to our target markets.

Advertisements. We advertise through our own websites and also on China’s leading portals, such as Sina.com and Sohu.com. We also have advertising arrangements with many Chinese national and regional newspapers and other media outlets, including school campus newspapers. In addition, we advertise through local radio stations and other advertisement platforms, including building lobby or elevator LCD displays and outdoor advertisement displays.

Social Events and Activities. We participate in and host community events designed to promote awareness of the virtues of education. We believe that these events enhance our public image and increase brand awareness. We also host English speech competitions, English drama performances and cultural events designed to raise enthusiasm for English language learning and to further promote awareness of our brand.

Cross-Selling. As we gain footholds in many different markets, we use our programs in one market as an opportunity to advertise our programs in other markets. With a variety of programs aimed at different age groups, our goal is to create a brand name that permeates every stage of our potential students’ educational, career and life progression, from English for children to English for adults to test preparation to “Elite English” to continuing professional education, and to encourage our students to introduce their children to the same system and courses. Outside of our organization, we have established cross-promotional relationships with a number of companies to promote our programs, services and products and awareness of our brand.

Competition

The private education sector in China is rapidly evolving, highly fragmented and competitive, and we expect competition in this sector to persist and intensify. We face competition in each major program we offer and each geographic market in which we operate. We believe none of our competitors focuses on as broad a spectrum of programs, products and services as we provide. Instead, our competitors focus on targeted markets, both in terms of the particular segments of students they aim to attract and the local markets in which they operate.

For example, we face nationwide competition for our IELTS preparation courses from Global IELTS School, which offers IELTS preparation courses in many cities in China. We face regional competition for our English for children program from several competitors that focus on children’s English language training in specific regions, including English First. We face competition for our “Elite English” program primarily from Wall Street Institute and English First, both of which offer English language training courses for adults in many cities in China. Wall Street Institute began providing high-end English language training courses to adults in major cities several years before we entered this market and enjoys a first-mover advantage. We also face limited competition from many competitors that focus on providing international and/or PRC test preparation courses in specific geographic markets in China.

We believe that the principal competitive factors in our markets include the following:

We believe that our primary competitive advantages are our well-known “New Oriental” brand, our innovative and inspirational instruction methods and the breadth and quality of our programs, services and products. However, some of our existing and potential competitors may have more resources than we do. These competitors may be able to devote greater resources than we can to the development, promotion and sale of their programs, services and products and respond more quickly than we can to changes in student demands, testing materials, admissions standards, market needs or new technologies. In addition, we face competition from many different smaller sized organizations that focus on some of our targeted markets, which may be able to respond more promptly to changes in student preferences in these markets.

The increasing use of the Internet and advances in Internet- and computer-related technologies, such as web video conferencing and online testing simulators, are eliminating geographic and cost-entry barriers to providing private educational services. As a result, many of our international competitors that offer online test preparation and language training courses, such as The Princeton Review, Inc. and Kaplan, Inc., may be able to more effectively penetrate the China market. Many of these international competitors have strong education brands, and students and parents in China may be attracted to the offerings of our international competitors based in the country that the student wishes to study in or in which the selected language is widely spoken. In addition, many smaller companies are able to use the Internet to quickly and cost-effectively offer their programs, services and products to a large number of students with less capital expenditure than previously required.

REGULATION

The PRC government regulates the education services industry. This section summarizes the principal PRC regulations relating to our businesses.

We operate our business in China under a legal regime consisting of the State Council, which is the highest authority of the executive branch of the PRC central government, and several ministries and agencies under its authority, including the Ministry of Education, or the MOE, the General Administration of Press and Publication, or GAPP, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, or the MIIT, the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, or SAIC, the Ministry of Civil Affairs or MCA, and their respective authorized local counterparts.

Regulations on Private Education

The principal regulations governing private education in China consist of the Education Law of the PRC, the Law for Promoting Private Education (2003) and the Implementation Rules for the Law for Promoting Private Education (2004), and the Regulations on Chinese-Foreign Cooperation in Operating Schools. Below is a summary of relevant provisions of these regulations.

Education Law of the PRC

On March 18, 1995, the National People’s Congress enacted the Education Law of the PRC. The Education Law sets forth provisions relating to the fundamental education systems of the PRC, including a school system of pre-school education, primary education, secondary education and higher education, a system of nine-year compulsory education and a system of education certificates. The Education Law stipulates that the government formulatesshould formulate plans for the development of education and establishesestablish and operatesoperate schools and other institutions of education, and that in principle, enterprises, social organizations and individuals are encouraged to operate schools and other types of educational organizations in accordance with PRC laws and regulations. Meanwhile, no organization or individual may establish or operate a school or any other institution of education for profit-making purposes. However, private schools may be operated for “reasonable returns,” as described in more detail below.

The Law for Promoting Private Education (2003) and the Implementation Rules for the Law for Promoting Private Education (2004)

The Law for Promoting Private Education (2003) became effective on September 1, 2003, and the Implementation Rules for the Law for Promoting Private Education (2004) became effective on April 1, 2004. Under these regulations, “private schools” are defined as schools established by social organizations or individuals using non-government funds. In addition, private schools providing certifications, pre-school education, education for self-study aid and other academic education shall be subject to approval by the education authorities, while private schools engaging in occupational qualification training and occupational skill training shall be subject to approvals from the authorities in charge of labor and social welfare. A duly approved private school will be granted a Permit for Operating a Private School, and shall be registered with the MCAMinistry of Civil Affairs or its local counterparts as a privately run non-enterprise institution. Each of our schools has obtained the Permit for Operating a Private School and has been registered with the relevant local counterpart of the MCA.Ministry of Civil Affairs.

Under the above regulations, private schools have the same status as public schools, though private schools are prohibited from providing military, police, political and other kinds of education which are of a special nature. Government-run schools that provide compulsory education are not permitted to be converted into private schools. In addition, the operation of a private school is highly regulated. For example, the types and amounts of fees charged by a private school providing certifications shall be approved by the governmental pricing authority and be publicly disclosed. A private school that does not provide certifications shall file its pricing information with the governmental pricing authority and publicly disclose such information. Except for our primary and secondary school in Yangzhou and a small high school in Changchun, which provide graduation certifications to students, none of the schools operated by New Oriental China provides a diploma or certification to students.

Private education is treated as a public welfare undertaking under the regulations. Nonetheless, investors of a private school may choose to require “reasonable returns” from the annual net balance of the school after deduction of costs, donations received, government subsidies, if any, the reserved development fund and other expenses as required by the regulations. Private schools are divided into three categories: private schools established with donated funds; private schools that require reasonable returns and private schools that do not require reasonable returns.

The election to establish a private school requiring reasonable returns shall be provided in the articles of association of the school. The percentage of the school’s annual net balance that can be distributed as reasonable return shall be determined by the school’s board of directors, taking into consideration the following factors: (i) items and criteria for the school’s fees, (ii) the ratio of the school’s expenses used for educational activities and improving the educational conditions to the total fees collected;collected, and (iii) the admission standards and educational quality. The relevant information relating to the above factors shall be publicly disclosed before the school’s board determines the percentage of the school’s annual net balance that can be distributed as reasonable returns. Such information and the decision to distribute reasonable returns shall also be filed with the approval authorities within 15 days from the decision made by the board. However, none of the current PRC laws and regulations provides a formula or guidelines for determining “reasonable returns.” In addition, none of the current PRC laws and regulations sets forth different requirements or restrictions on a private school’s ability to operate its education business based on such school’s status as a school that requires reasonable returns or a school that does not require reasonable returns.

At the end of each fiscal year, every private school is required to allocate a certain amount to its development fund for the construction or maintenance of the school or procurement or upgrade of educational equipment. In the case of a private school that requires reasonable returns, this amount shall be no less than 25% of the annual net income of the school, while in the case of a private school that does not require reasonable returns, this amount shall be equal to no less than 25% of the annual increase in the net assets of the school, if any. Private schools that do not require reasonable returns shall be entitled to the same preferential tax treatment as public schools, while the preferential tax treatment policies applicable to private schools requiring reasonable returns

shall be formulated by the finance authority, taxation authority and other authorities under the State Council. To date, however, no regulations have been promulgated by the relevant authorities in this regard.

Regulations on Chinese-Foreign Cooperation in Operating Schools

Chinese-foreign cooperation in operating schools or training programs is specifically governed by the Regulations on Operating Chinese-Foreign Schools, promulgated by the State Council in 2003 in accordance with the Education Law, the Occupational Education Law and the Law for Promoting Private Education, and the Implementing Rules for the Regulations on Operating Chinese-Foreign Schools, or the Implementing Rules, which were issued by the MOE in 2004.

The Regulations on Operating Chinese-foreign Schools and its Implementing Rules encourage substantive cooperation between overseas educational organizations with relevant qualifications and experience in providing high-quality education and Chinese educational organizations to jointly operate various types of schools in the PRC, with such cooperation in the areas of higher education and occupational education being encouraged. Chinese-foreign cooperative schools are not permitted, however, to engage in compulsory education and military, police, political and other kinds of education that are of a special nature in the PRC.

Permits for Chinese-Foreign Cooperation in Operating Schools shall be obtained from the relevant education authorities or the authorities that regulate labor and social welfare in the PRC.

We have not applied for a Permit for Chinese-Foreign Cooperation in Operating Schools at this stage since all of our schools are operated by New Oriental China.

Outline of China’s National Plan for Medium- and Long-Term Education Reform and Development (2010-2020)

On July 29, 2010, the PRC central government promulgated the Outline of China’s National Plan for Medium- and Long-Term Education Reform and Development (2010-2020), which for the first time announced the policy that the government will implement a reform to divide private education entities into two categories: (1) for-profit private education entities and (2) not-for-profit private education entities. However, this outline is still new and no further law or regulation has been promulgated to implement it. If upon the implementation of this reform, our schools choose to be for-profit private education entities, they may be subject to income tax at the rate of 25% and other taxes as if they were enterprises; if our schools choose to be not-for-profit private education entities, our contractual arrangements with New Oriental China and its subsidiaries may be subject to more stringent scrutiny and the education authorities may not allow our schools to pay us services fees under the contractual arrangements as they currently do. As a result, the implementation of this reform may adversely affect our results of operations.

Regulations on Online and Distance Education

Pursuant to the Administrative Regulations on Educational Websites and Online and Distance Education Schools issued by the MOE in 2000, educational websites and online education schools may provide educational services in relation to higher education, elementary education, pre-school education, teaching education, occupational education, adult education, other education and public educational information services. “Educational websites” refersrefer to organizations providing education or education-related information services to website visitors by means of a database or online education platform connected via the Internet or an educational television station through an Internet service provider, or ISP. “Online education schools” refer to education websites providing academic education services or training services with the issuance of various certificates.

Setting up education websites and online education schools is subject to approval from relevant education authorities, depending on the specific types of education. Any education website and online education school shall, upon the receipt of approval, indicate on its website such approval information as well as the approval date and file number.

According to the Administrative License Law promulgated by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress or NPC, on August 27, 2003 and effective as of July 1, 2004, only laws promulgated by the NPCNational People’s Congress and regulations and decisions promulgated by the State Council may set down administrative license. On June 29, 2004, the State Council promulgated the Decision on Setting Down Administrative Licenses for the Administrative Examination and Approval Items Really Necessary to be Retained, in which the administrative license for “online education schools” was retained, while the administrative license for “educational websites” was not retained.

Regulations on Publishing and Distribution of Publications

On December 25, 2001, the State Council promulgated the Administrative Regulations on Publication, or the Publication Regulations, which became effective on February 1, 2002. The Publication Regulations apply to publication activities, i.e., the publishing, printing, copying, importation or distribution of publications, including books, newspapers, periodicals, audio and video products and electronic publications, each of which requires approval from the relevant publication administrative authorities.

On April 13, 2005, the State Council announced a policy on private investments in China that relate to cultural matters, which affects private investments in businesses that involve publishing. The policy authorizes the Ministry of Culture and several other central government authorities to adopt detailed rules to implement the policy. In July 2005, the Ministry of Culture, together with other central government authorities, issued a regulation that prohibits private and foreign investors from engaging in the publishing business. Our subsidiaries and affiliated entities are not permitted to engage in the publishing business under this regulation. Beijing New Oriental Dogwood Cultural Communications Co., Ltd,Ltd., a subsidiary of New Oriental China, has been cooperating with qualified PRC publishing companies to publish our self-developed teaching materials and other content.

Subsequent to the implementation of the Publication Regulations, the GAPP issued the Administrative Regulations on Publications Market, which became effective on September 1, 2003 and which were amended on June 16, 2004. According to the Administrative Regulations on Publications Market, any organization or individual engaged in general distribution, whole sale or retail of publications shall obtain a Permit for Operating Publications. Distribution of publications in the PRC is regulated on different administrative levels. An entity engaged in general distribution of publications shall obtain such permit from the GAPP and may conduct general distribution of the publications in the PRC; an entity engaged in wholesaling of publications shall obtain such permit from the provincial counterpart of GAPP and may not engage in general distribution in the PRC; and an entity engaged in retail distribution of publications shall obtain such permit from the local counterpart of the GAPP at the county level and may not conduct general distribution or wholesaling of publications in the PRC.

In addition, pursuant to the Administrative Regulations on Publishing Audio-Video Products promulgated by the State Council on December 25, 2001, which became effective as of February 1, 2002, any entity engaged in the wholesale or retail distribution of audio-video products shall secure a Permit for Operating Audio-Video Products from the relevant culture authorities.

The subsidiaries of New Oriental China engaged in the wholesale and retail distribution of books, periodicals, audio-visual products and electronic publications have obtained the relevant Permits for Operating Publications and the relevant Permits for Operating Audio-Video Products. During the term of the above-mentioned permits or licenses, the GAPP or its local counterparts or other competent authorities may conduct annual or random examination or inspection from time to time to ascertain their compliance with applicable regulations and may require for change or renewal of such permits or licenses. If the subsidiaries of New Oriental China engaged in the wholesale and retail distribution of books, periodicals, audio-visual products and electronic publications are not able to pass the subsequent inspection or examination, they may not be able to maintain such permits or licenses necessary for their business.

Regulations on Online Publications

GAPP and the MIIT jointly promulgated the Tentative Internet Publishing Administrative Measures, or the Internet Publishing Measures, which took effect on August 1, 2002. The Internet Publishing Measures require Internet publishers to obtain approval from GAPP. The term “Internet publishing” is defined as an act of online dissemination whereby Internet information service providers select, edit and process works created by themselves or others (including content from books, newspapers, periodicals, audio and video products, electronic publications, and other sources that have already been formally published or works that have been made public in other media) and subsequently post the same on the Internet or transmit the same to users via the Internet for browsing, use or downloading by the public.

Xuncheng Network, a subsidiary of New Oriental China engaging in Internet content services, received verbal confirmation from GAPP that the online content services that Xuncheng Network provides does not fall within the scope of “Internet publishing” that requires approval or a license from GAPP. Obtaining an online publication license requires certain conditions, including having five or more qualified editors, which Xuncheng Network cannot satisfy. However, because there is no further official or publicly available interpretation of “Internet publishing,” we cannot assure you that Xuncheng Network will not require an online publication license in the future.

Regulations on Consulting Services for Overseas Studies or Other Overseas Visits for Private Matters

The Ministry of Public Security and the SAIC jointly issued the Administrative Measures on Intermediate Activities relating to Entry and Exit for Private Purpose on June 6, 2001, which requires that any entity engaged in intermediate and consulting services for Chinese citizens going abroad to visit families, relatives or friends, to reside abroad, to inherit properties, or to conduct other non-business matters other than studying, working or touring, shall obtain a license granted by the relevant provincial authority on public security. RegardingWith respect to intermediate and consulting business activities relating to self-funded overseas studying, the MOE, the Ministry of Public Security and the SAIC jointly issued the Administrative Regulations on Intermediate Services for Overseas Studies with Private Funds and their Implementing Rules in 1999, which require that any intermediate service organization engaged in such services procure from the MOE the Recognition on the Intermediate Service Organization for Self-funded Overseas Studies.

Beijing New Oriental Vision Overseas Consulting Co., Ltd,Ltd., a subsidiary of New Oriental China engaging in overseas studies consulting and other consulting services, has obtained the relevant licenses from the MOE and the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau.

Regulations on Internet Information Services

Subsequent to the State Council’s promulgation of the Telecom Regulations and the Internet Information Services Administrative Measures on September 25, 2000, or the Internet Information Measures, the MIIT and other regulatory authorities formulated and implemented a number of Internet-related regulations, including but not limited to the Internet Electronic Bulletin Board Service Administrative Measures, or the BBS Measures.

The Internet Information Measures require that commercial Internet content providers, or ICP providers, obtain a license for Internet information services, or ICP license, from the appropriate telecommunications authorities in order to carry on any commercial Internet information services in the PRC. ICP providers shall display their ICP license number in a conspicuous location on their home page. In addition, the Internet Information Measures also provide that ICP providers that operate in sensitive and strategic sectors, including news, publishing, education, health care, medicine and medical devices, must obtain additional approvals from the relevant authorities in charge of those sectors as well. The BBS Measures provide that any ICP provider engaged in providing online bulletin board services, or BBS, is subject to a special approval and filing process with the relevant telecommunications industry authorities. Xuncheng Network has obtained the ICP license and is in the process of obtainingcompleting such BBS approval.filing.

In July 2006, the MIIT posted a notice on its website entitled “Notice on Strengthening Management of Foreign Investment in Operating Value-Added Telecom Services.” The notice prohibits PRC Internet content providers from leasing, transferring or selling their ICP licenses or providing facilities or other resources to any illegal foreign investors. The notice states that PRC Internet content providers should directly own the trademarks and domain names for websites operated by them, as well as servers and other infrastructure used to support these websites. The notice also states that PRC Internet content providers had until November 1, 2006 to evaluate their compliance with the notice and correct any non-compliance. A PRC Internet content provider’s failure to do so by November 1, 2006 may result in revocation of its ICP license.

Regulations on Internet Culture Activities

The Ministry of Culture of the PRC promulgated the Internet Culture Administration Tentative Measures, or the Internet Culture Measures, on May 10, 2003, which became effective on July 1, 2003, and which were amended on July 1, 2004. The Internet Culture Measures require ICP operators engaging in Internet culture activities to obtain an Internet culture business operations license from the Ministry of Culture in accordance with the Internet Culture Measures. The term “Internet culture activities” includes, among other things, acts of online dissemination of Internet cultural products, such as audio-visual products, games, performances of plays or programs, works of art and cartoons, and the production, reproduction, importation, sale (wholesale or retail), leasing and broadcasting of Internet cultural products.

Xuncheng Network, a subsidiary of New Oriental China engaging in the distribution of certain audio-visual products through the Internet, received verbal confirmation from the Ministry of Culture that the products of Xuncheng Network do not fall within the definition of “Internet culture products” and its operations do not fall within the definition of “Internet culture activities” as defined under the Internet Culture Measures. Accordingly, Xuncheng Network is not required to obtain an Internet culture business operations license. However, because there is no further official or publicly-available interpretation of these definitions, we cannot assure you that Xuncheng Network will not need an Internet culture business operations license in the future.

Regulation on Broadcasting Audio-Video Programs through the Internet or Other Information Network

The State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, or SARFT, promulgated the Rules for Administration of Broadcasting of Audio-Video Programs through the Internet and Other Information Networks, or the Broadcasting Rules, in 2004, which became effective on October 11, 2004. The Broadcasting Rules apply to the activities of broadcasting, integration, transmission, downloading of audio-video programs with computers, televisions or mobile phones as the main terminals and through various types of information networks. Pursuant to the Broadcasting Rules, a Permit for Broadcasting Audio-video Programs via Information Network is required to engage in these Internet broadcasting activities. On April 13, 2005, the State Council announced a policy on private investments in businesses in China that relate to cultural matters, which prohibits private investments in businesses relating to the dissemination of audio-video programs through information networks.

On December 20, 2007, SARFT and MIIT issued the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures, which became effective on January 31, 2008. Among other things, the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures stipulate that no entities or individuals may provide Internet audio-video program services without a License for Disseminating Audio-Video Programs through Information Network issued by SARFT or its local counterparts or completing the relevant registration with SARFT or its local counterparts and only entities wholly owned or controlled by the PRC government may engage in the production, editing, integration or consolidation, and transfer to the public through the Internet, of audio-video programs, and the provision of audio-video program uploading and transmission services. On February 3, 2008, SARFT and MIIT jointly held a press conference in response to inquiries related to the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures, during which SARFT and MIIT officials indicated that providers of audio-video program services established prior to the promulgation date of the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures that do not have any regulatory non-compliance records can re-register with the relevant government authorities to continue their current business operations. After

the conference, the two authorities published a press release that confirms the above guidelines. However, there remain significant uncertainties relating toOn September 15, 2009, SARFT promulgated the interpretationNotice on Several Issues regarding the License for Disseminating Audio-Video Programs through Information Network. The Notice restates the necessity of applying for such license and implementation ofsets forth the legal liabilities for those providing Internet Audio-Video Program Measures andaudio-video program services without the related press release, in particular, the scope of “Internet Audio-Video Programs.”

license. Xuncheng Network, a subsidiary of New Oriental China engaging in online education services, does not possess a License for Disseminating Audio-Video Programs through Information Network. However, we do not believe that we are required to apply for aobtained the License for Disseminating Audio-Video Programs through Information Network as an enterprise providing online education and test preparation courses. As an online education services provider, we transmit our audio-video educational courses and programs through the Internet only to enrolled course participants, not to the general public. The limited scope of our audience distinguishes us from general online audio-video broadcasting companies, such as companies operating websites that post user-generated content. In addition, we do not provide audio-video program uploading and transmission services. As a result, we believe that we are not one of those providers of audio-video program services covered under the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures. In the event that we are deemed to be a provider of audio-video program services covered under the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures, we believe that pursuant to the press release described above, it is possible that we may be allowed to continue our current operations and re-register with SARFT or MIIT in accordance with the published guidelines. We will monitor the regulatory developments relating to the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures and we will re-register with the relevant governmental authorities if required. However, if the governmental authorities decide that our provision of online education services fall within the Internet Audio-Video Program Measures and we are unable to re-register or obtain the necessary license timely, or at all, due to reasons beyond our control, our equity ownership structure may require significant restructuring, or we may become subject to significant penalties, fines, legal sanctions or an order to suspend our use of audio-video content.on January 15, 2010.

Regulations on Protection of the Right of Dissemination through Information Networks

On May 18, 2006, the State Council promulgated the Regulations on Protection of the Right of Dissemination through Information Networks, which became effective on July 1, 2006. This regulation requires that every organization or individual who disseminates a third party’s work, performance, audio or visual recording products to the public through information networks shall obtain permission from, and pay compensation to, the legitimate copyright owner of such products, unless otherwise provided under relevant laws and regulations. The legitimate copyright owner may take technical measures to protect his or her right of dissemination through information networks and any organization or individual shall not intentionally avoid, destroy or otherwise assist others in avoiding such protective measures unless permissible under law. This regulation also provides that permission from and compensation for the copyright owner are not required in the event of limited dissemination to teaching or research staff for the purpose of school teaching or scientific research only.

Regulations on Copyright and Trademark Protection

China has adopted legislation governing intellectual property rights, including copyrights and trademarks. China is a signatory to the main international conventions on intellectual property rights and became a member of the Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights upon its accession to the World Trade Organization in December 2001.

Copyright. The National People’s Congress amended the Copyright Law in 2001 to widen the scope of works and rights that are eligible for copyright protection. The amended Copyright Law extends copyright protection to Internet activities, products disseminated over the Internet and software products. In addition, there is a voluntary registration system administered by the China Copyright Protection Center.

To address the problem of copyright infringement related to the content posted or transmitted over the Internet, the National Copyright Administration and the MIIT jointly promulgated the Administrative Measures for Copyright Protection Related to the Internet on April 30, 2005. These measures became effective on May 30, 2005.

Trademark. The PRC Trademark Law, adopted in 1982 and revised in 2001, protects the proprietary rights to registered trademarks. The Trademark Office under the SAIC handles trademark registrations and grants a term of ten years to registered trademarks and another ten years to trademarks as requested upon expiry of the prior term. Trademark license agreements must be filed with the Trademark Office for record. We have registered certain trademarks and logos, including “New Oriental,” “Pop Kids” and “Elite English,” with the Trademark Office and are in the process of registering additional marks. In addition, if a registered trademark is recognized as a well-known trademark in a specific case, the proprietary right of the trademark holder may be extended beyond the registered sphere of products and services of the trademark in such case. Our trademarks “ ” and “New Oriental” were recognized as well-known trademarks in a civil action adjudicated by the Intermediate People’s Court of Jilin City, Jilin Province.

On November 5, 2004, the MIIT amended the Measures for Administration of Domain Names for the Chinese Internet, or the Domain Name Measures. The Domain Name Measures regulate the registration of domain names, such as the first tier domain name “.cn.” In February 2006, China Internet Network Information Center, or CNNIC, issued the Implementing Rules for Domain Name Registration and the Measures on Domain Name Disputes Resolution, pursuant to which CNNIC can authorize a domain name dispute resolution institution to decide disputes. We have registered many domain names with CNNIC.

Regulations on Foreign Exchange

Foreign Currency Exchange

Pursuant to the Foreign Currency Administration Rules promulgated in 1996 and amended in 2008 and various regulations issued by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, or SAFE, and other relevant PRC government authorities, RMB is freely convertible only to the extent of current account items, such as trade-related receipts and payments, interest and dividend. Capital account items, such as direct equity investments, loans and repatriation of investment, require the prior approval from SAFE or its local counterpart for conversion of RMB into a foreign currency, such as U.S. dollars, and remittance of the foreign currency outside the PRC.

Payments for transactions that take place within the PRC must be made in RMB. Unless otherwise approved, PRC companies must repatriate foreign currency payments received from abroad. Foreign-investedDomestic enterprises (including foreign-invested enterprises) may retain foreign exchange in accounts with designated foreign exchange banks subject to a cap set by SAFE or its local counterpart. Unlessderived from current account items, but unless otherwise approved, domestic enterprisesthey must convert all of their foreign currency receipts derived from capital account items into RMB.

SAFE promulgated a new circular in August 2008 with respect to the administration of conversion of foreign exchange capital contributions of foreign invested enterprise. This circular clarifies that RMB converted from foreign exchange capital contributions can only be used for the activities within the approved business scope of such foreign invested enterprise and cannot be used for domestic equity investment unless otherwise allowed.

Foreign Exchange Registration of Offshore Investment by PRC Residents

Pursuant to the SAFE’s Notice on Relevant Issues Concerning Foreign Exchange Administration for PRC Residents to Engage in Financing and Inbound Investment via Overseas Special Purpose Vehicles, or SAFE Circular No. 75, issued on October 21, 2005, (i) a PRC citizen residing in the PRC, or PRC Resident, shall register with the local branch of SAFE before it establishes or controls an overseas special purpose vehicle, or SPV, for the purpose of overseas equity financing (including convertible debts financing); (ii) when a PRC Resident contributes the assets of or its equity interests in a domestic enterprise into an SPV, or engages in overseas financing after contributing assets or equity interests into an SPV, such PRC Resident shall register his or her interest in the SPV and the change thereof with the local branch of SAFE; and (iii) when the SPV undergoes a material event outside of China, such as change in share capital or merger and acquisition, the PRC resident shall, within 30 days from the occurrence of such event, register such change with the local branch of SAFE. PRC residents who are shareholders of SPVs established before November 1, 2005 were required to register with the local SAFE branch before March 31, 2006.

Under SAFE Circular No. 75, failure to comply with the registration procedures set forth above may result in the penalties, including imposition of restrictions on a PRC subsidiary’s foreign exchange activities and its ability to distribute dividends to the SPV.

Our beneficial owners immediately before our initial public offering who are PRC residents had registered with the local branch of SAFE prior to our initial public offering as required under SAFE Circular No. 75.

Dividend Distribution

The principal regulations governing dividend distributions by wholly foreign-owned enterprises and Sino-foreign equity joint ventures include:

Under these regulations, wholly foreign-owned enterprises and Sino-foreign equity joint ventures in the PRC may pay dividends only out of their accumulated profits, if any, determined in accordance with PRC accounting standards and regulations. Additionally,

these foreign-invested enterprises are required to set aside certain amounts of their accumulated profits each year, if any, to fund certain reserve funds. These reserves are not distributable as cash dividends.

Provisions Regarding Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors

On August 8, 2006, six PRC regulatory agencies, including the Chinese Securities Regulatory Commission, or CSRC, promulgated a rule entitled “Provisions regarding Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors,” or the M&A rule,Rule, to more effectively regulate foreign investment in PRC domestic enterprises. The M&A ruleRule, as amended on June 22, 2009, provides that the Ministry of Commerce must be notified in advance of any change-of-control transaction in which a foreign investor takes control of a PRC domestic enterprise and any of the following situations exists: (i) the transaction involves an important industry in China, (ii) the transaction may affect national “economic security,” or (iii) the PRC domestic enterprise has a well-known trademark or historical Chinese trade name in China. The M&A ruleRule also contains a provision requiring offshore special purpose vehicles, or SPVs, formed for listing purposes through acquisitions of PRC domestic companies and controlled by PRC individuals to obtain the approval of the CSRC prior to publicly listing their securities on an overseas stock exchange.

The M&A ruleRule became effective on September 8, 2006 without retroactive effect. Based on the advice of Tian Yuan Law Firm, our PRC counsel, we do not believe that the CSRC approval was required for our listing on the NYSE because trading of our ADSs commenced prior to the effective date of the M&A rule.Rule.

Regulations on Taxation

On March 16, 2007, the National People’s Congress, the Chinese legislature, passed the EIT Law, which took effect on January 1, 2008. The EIT Law applies a uniform 25% enterprise income tax rate to both foreign-invested enterprises and domestic enterprises. There is a transition period for the enterprises, whether foreign-invested or domestic, which had received preferential tax treatments granted by relevant tax authorities prior to March 16, 2007. Enterprises that had been subject to an enterprise income tax rate lower than 25% prior to March 16, 2007 may continue to enjoy the lower rate and gradually transfer to the new tax rate within five years after the effective date of the EIT Law. Enterprises that had been entitled to exemptions or reductions from the standard income tax rate for a fixed term prior to March 16, 2007 may continue to enjoy such treatment until the fixed term expires. Preferential tax treatments will continue to be granted to industries and projects that are strongly supported and encouraged by the state, and enterprises otherwise classified as “new or high“high and new technology enterprises strongly supported by the state” upon re-examination will be entitled to a 15% enterprise income tax rate. The EIT Law empowers the State Council to enact appropriate implementing rules and regulations. The State Council promulgated the new implementation rules of thisthe EIT Law in December 2007 and the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation promulgated other supplemental rules in April 2008 and July 2008, respectively, regarding new criteria for the granting of “new or high“high and new technology enterprises” status. According to such newthese rules, all enterprises which have been granted such status before the effectiveness of the EIT Law are required to be re-examined according to such new rules before they can continue to be entitled to the preferential tax treatments. Any enterprises to be granted with “high and new technology enterprises” status shall meet certain requirements, including but not limited to the following: (1) in the latest three years, the enterprise itself owns intellectual rights of the core technology of its product or service; (2) the enterprise’s product or service falls into the ambit of “high-tech fields heavily supported by the government”; (3) technicians with a bachelor’s degree account for more than 30% of all the staffs, and the research and development personnel account for more than 10% of all the staffs; (4) in the latest three financial years, the research and development expenses account for 3%-6% or more of the latest sales revenue and the research and development expenses incurred within China shall not be less than 60% of the total research and development expenses; and (5) the revenue derived from the high-tech product or service accounts for more 60% of the total revenue. To apply for the “high and new technology enterprises” status, an enterprise shall file its corporate certificates and supporting documents evidencing the requirements to the relevant government authority. The government authority will examine the filed certificates and documents to determine whether the enterprise meets the “high and new technology enterprises” requirements. If the decision is positive, the authority will make a public announcement and grant the enterprise with a “high and new technology enterprises” certificate with a valid term of three years. Upon the expiration of the initial term, the enterprise shall file a new application to obtain such status. Loss of any preferential tax treatments previously granted to us could have a material and adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

On April 21, 2010, the State Administration of Taxation issued the Circular Regarding Further Clarification on Implementation of Preferential EIT Rate during Transition Periods, or Circular 157. Circular 157 seeks to provide additional guidance on the interaction of certain preferential tax rates under the transitional rules of the EIT Law. According to Circular 157, if an enterprise is qualified as a “high and new technology enterprise” and is also in a tax holiday period, including “2-year exemption plus 3-year half rate,” “5-year exemption plus 5-year half rate” and other tax exemptions and reductions, then it would be entitled to pay tax, at its own election, at the lower of 15% or 50% of the specific tax rate set for the transitional period of preferential tax treatment (i.e., 18% in 2008, 20% in 2009, 22% in 2010, 24% in 2011 and 25% in 2012), but it is not allowed to pay tax at 50% of the 15% tax rate, i.e., 7.5%. Nonetheless, we have consulted with the relevant local tax district, which confirmed to us that Circular 157 is not applicable to entities that qualify for “3-year exemption plus 3-year half rate” tax holiday as “high and new technology enterprises” and are registered in the Zhongguancun High and New Technology Industrial Zones of Beijing, and that such entities will continue to pay tax at the rate of 7.5%. In light of the position taken by the relevant local tax authority, and given the fact that our subsidiaries that are enjoying “3-year exemption plus 3-year half rate” as “high and new technology enterprises” are registered in the Zhongguancun High and New Technology Industrial Zones of Beijing, we do not believe that Circular 157 has any effect on our current tax position. However, if the State Administration of Taxation took a position contrary to the position of the relevant local tax authority in its subsequent interpretation or implementation of Circular 157, the current preferential tax rate of 7.5% enjoyed by some of our subsidiaries would be increased or revoked, which would negatively affect our results of operations.

The EIT Law also provides that enterprises established outside of China whose “de facto management bodies” are located in China are considered “resident enterprises” and will generally be subject to the uniform 25% enterprise income tax rate on their global income. Although the term “de facto management bodies” is defined as “management bodies which has substantial and overall management and control power on the operation, human resources, accounting and assets of the enterprise,” the circumstances under which an enterprise’s “de facto management body” would be considered to be located in China are currently unclear. A recent circular issued by the State Administration of Taxation on April 22, 2009 provides that a foreign enterprise controlled by a PRC company or a PRC company group will be classified as a “resident enterprise” with its “de facto management bodies” located within China if the following requirements are satisfied: (i) the senior management and core management departments in charge of its daily operations function mainly in the PRC; (ii) its financial and human resources decisions are subject to determination or approval by persons or bodies in the PRC; (iii) its major assets, accounting books, company seals, and minutes and files of its board and shareholders’ meetings are located or kept in the PRC; and (iv) at least half of the enterprise’s directors or senior management with voting rights reside in the PRC.

Our management is currently based in China and is expected to remain in China. Although our offshore holding companies are not controlled by any PRC company or company group, we cannot assure you that we will not be deemed to be a PRC resident enterprise under the EIT Law and its implementation rules. If we are deemed to be a PRC resident enterprise, we will be subject to PRC enterprise income tax at the rate of 25% on our global income. In that case, however, dividend income we receive from our PRC subsidiaries may be exempt from PRC enterprise income tax because the EIT Law and its implementation rules generally provide that dividends received by a PRC resident enterprise from its directly invested entity that is also a PRC resident enterprise is exempt from enterprise income tax. However, as there is still uncertainty as to how the EIT Law and its implementation rules will be interpreted

and implemented, we cannot assure you thatAccordingly, If we are eligible for suchdeemed to be a PRC resident enterprise and earn income other than dividends from our PRC subsidiaries, a 25% enterprise income tax exemptions or reductions.on our global income could significantly increase our tax burden and materially and adversely affect our cash flow and profitability.

The EIT Law provides that a maximum income tax rate of 20% may apply to dividends payable to non-PRC investors that are “non-resident enterprises,” to the extent such dividends are derived from sources within the PRC. The State Council has reduced such rate to 10%, in the absence of any applicable tax treaties that may reduce such rate. We are a Cayman Islands holding company and substantially all of our income may be derived from dividends we receive from our operating subsidiaries located in the PRC. If we are required under the EIT Law to pay income tax for any dividends we receive from our PRC subsidiaries, the amount of dividends, if any, we canmay pay to our shareholders and ADS holders could be materially reduced.

Furthermore, the EIT Law provides that an income tax rate of 10% will normally be applicable to dividends payable to non-PRC investors which are derived from sources within China, although such income tax may be exempted or reduced by the State Counsel of the PRC or pursuant to a tax treaty between China and the jurisdictions in which our non-PRC shareholders reside. It is unclear whether any dividends payable to non-PRC investors will be deemed to be derived from sources within China and be subject to PRC income tax. If we are required under the EIT Law to withhold income tax on dividends payable to our non-PRC shareholders and ADS holders, the value of your investment may be materially and adversely affected.

According to the Double Taxation Arrangement (Hong Kong), which became effective on January 1, 2007, The Notice of the State Administration of Taxation on Negotiated Reduction of Dividends and Interest Rates, which was issued on January 29, 2008, and The Notice of the State Administration of Taxation Regarding Interpretation and Recognition of Beneficial Owners under Tax Treaties, which became effective on October 27, 2009, dividends paid to enterprises incorporated in Hong Kong are subject to a withholding tax of 5% provided that a Hong Kong resident enterprise owns over 25% of the PRC enterprise distributing the dividend and can be considered as a “beneficial owner” and entitled to treaty benefits under the Double Taxation Arrangement (Hong Kong). Our wholly owned Hong Kong Subsidiaries, Elite Concept Holdings Limited, Winner Park Limited and Smart Shine International Limited, own 100% of our PRC subsidiaries. Thus, dividends paid to us by our PRC subsidiaries through our Hong Kong wholly owned subsidiaries may be subject to the 5% withholding tax if we and our Hong Kong subsidiaries are considered as “non-resident enterprises” under the EIT Law and our Hong Kong subsidiaries are considered as “beneficial owners” and entitled to treaty benefits under the Double Taxation Arrangement (Hong Kong). If our Hong Kong subsidiaries are not regarded as the beneficial owners of any such dividends, it will not be entitled to the treaty benefits under the Double Taxation Arrangement (Hong Kong). As a result, such dividends would be subject to regular withholding tax of 10% as provided by the PRC domestic law rather than the favorable rate of 5% applicable under the Double Taxation Arrangement (Hong Kong).

C.Organizational Structure

Substantially all of our operations are conducted in China through our contractual arrangements with our consolidated affiliated entity, New Oriental China, and its subsidiaries, as well as through our foursix wholly owned subsidiaries in China:

The following diagram illustrates our corporate structure and the place of incorporation of each named entity as of May 31, 2009:2010:

PRC laws and regulations currently require any foreign entity that invests in the education business in China to be an educational institution with relevant experience in providing education outside China. Our Cayman Islands holding company is not an educational institution and does not provide educational services. Accordingly, our wholly owned subsidiaries in China, which are considered foreign-invested, are currently ineligible to apply for the required education licenses and permits in China. In addition, PRC laws and regulations prohibit foreign ownership of primary and middle schools for students in grades one to nine in China. Accordingly, we conduct our education business in China through contractual arrangements with New Oriental China and its subsidiaries and shareholders. New Oriental China is our consolidated affiliated entity directly owned by our founders and/or their respective affiliates.

New Oriental China’s subsidiaries hold the requisite licenses and permits necessary to conduct our education business and operate our schools, learning centers, bookstores as well as online education business in China. We have been and are expected to continue to be dependent on New Oriental China and its subsidiaries to operate our education business until we qualify for direct ownership of an education business in China under PRC laws and regulations and acquire New Oriental China and its subsidiaries as our direct, wholly owned subsidiaries. We have entered into contractual arrangements with New Oriental China and its subsidiaries and shareholders, which enable us to:

D.Property, Plants and Equipment

Our headquarters are located in Beijing, China, where we own approximately 14,000 square meters of office and classroom space. In addition, we lease andor own an aggregate of approximately 579,000695,000 square meters of space for our schools, learning centers and bookstores in various cities in China. We lease all of our facilities except for our Yangzhou school and part of the premises for our headquarters in Beijing and our schools in Xi’an and Tianjin.

None.

You should read the following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and the related notes included elsewhere in this annual report on Form 20-F. This discussion may contain forward-looking statements based upon current expectations that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including those set forth under “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors” or in other parts of this annual report on Form 20-F.

A.Operating Results

General Factors Affecting Our Results of Operations

We have benefited significantly from favorable demographic trends, the overall economic growth and the demand for high- qualityhigh-quality private education and English language training in China. The overall economic growth and the increase in the GDP per capita in China have led to a significant increase in spending on education in China. At the same time, China’s integration into the global economy has continued, resulting in more career opportunities for Chinese citizens who are able to communicate effectively in English. We anticipate that the demand for private education and English language training in China will continue to increase as the economy in China continues to grow and as disposable income of urban households continues to rise. However, any adverse changes in the economic conditions or regulatory environment in China may have a material adverse effect on the private education industry in China, which in turn may harm our business and results of operations.

Specific Factors Affecting Our Results of Operations

While our business is influenced by factors affecting the private education industry in China generally and by conditions in each of the geographic markets we serve, we believe our business is more directly affected by company-specific factors such as the number of student enrollments, the amount of course fees and our operating costs and expenses. The number of student enrollments is in turn largely driven by the demand for our courses, the effectiveness of our marketing and brand promotion efforts, the locations of our

schools and learning centers, our ability to maintain the consistency and quality of our teaching, and our ability to respond to competitive pressure, as well as seasonal factors. We determine course fees primarily based on demand for our courses, the targeted market for our courses, the subject of the course, the geographic location of the school, cost of services, and the course fees charged by our competitors for the same or similar courses.

Our future results of operations will depend significantly upon our ability to increase student enrollments at existing schools and learning centers and further expand our school network throughout China, as well as offer a greater variety of courses, including smaller-size classes. Specifically, we opened seven new schools and 56 new learning centers in fiscal year 2009. In addition, we have offered and plan to continue offering an increasing number and a greater variety of smaller classes, such as “Pop Kids” English classes for kindergarten through sixth grade students with 10 to 25 students per class and higher-end “Elite English” classes for adults and children of high-income families with one to 10 students per class. Our planned expansion will result in substantial demands on our management, operational, technological, financial and other resources. To manage and support our growth, we must improve our existing operational, administrative and technological systems and our financial and management controls, and recruit, train and retain additional qualified teachers and school management personnel as well as other administrative and sales and marketing personnel, particularly as we grow outside of our existing markets. We launched a computerized enrollment system in 2006 to timely track course enrollment and other relevant operating data across our school network. We will continue to implement additional systems and measures and recruit qualified personnel in order to effectively manage and support our growth. If we cannot achieve these improvements, our financial condition and results of operations may be materially adversely affected.

Due to certain restrictions and qualification requirements under PRC law that apply to foreign investment in China’s education industry, our education business is currently conducted through contractual arrangements among us, our wholly owned subsidiaries in China, and our consolidated affiliated entities in China, which consist of New Oriental China and its wholly owned subsidiaries. New Oriental China’s subsidiaries hold the licenses and permits necessary to conduct our educational services business in China and directly operate itsour schools, learning centers and bookstores, develop and distribute educational content, software and other technologies, and operate our online education business. We intend to own and operate schools and learning centers when PRC law permits us to do so.

Net Revenues. In the fiscal years ended May 31, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2009,2010, we generated total net revenues of US$132.6201.0 million, US$201.0292.6 million and US$292.6386.3 million,, respectively. Our revenues are net of PRC business taxes and related surcharges, as well as scholarships and refunds.

We currently derive revenues from the following sources:

Educational Programs and Services. Our educational programs and services consist of language training and test preparation courses, primary and secondary school education, online education and post-secondary education. Revenues from language training courses and test preparation courses accounted for 88.3%87.6%, 87.6%87.4% and 87.4%87.3%, respectively, of our total net revenues in the fiscal years ended May 31, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2009.2010.

We recognize revenues from course fees collected for enrollment in our language training and test preparation courses and post- secondarypost-secondary educational programs proportionally as we deliver the instruction over the period of the course. Course fees are generally paid in advance by students and are initially recorded as deferred revenues. Students are entitled to a one-week course trial period which commences on the date the course begins. Tuition refunds are provided to students if they decide within the one-week trial period that they no longer want to take the course. After the one-week trial period, if a student withdraws from a class, no refunds will be provided and any collected but unearned portion of the fee is recognized at that time. We recognize revenues from school fees collected for enrollment in New Oriental China’s primary and secondary schoolschools ratably over the corresponding academic year. We sell pre-paid online education cards primarily to distributors, who in turn sell them to students. We recognize revenues from sales of pre-paid cards in proportion to the actual time that students spend on our online courses. Course fees and school fees collected and amounts received from sales of pre-paid cards are recorded as deferred revenues until they can be recognized as revenues upon their use or expiration. Upon expiration of a prepaid card, which is six months to one year from the date of the sale of the card, we recognize the remaining amount of deferred revenues as revenues.

The most significant factors that directly affect our revenues from educational programs and services are the number of student enrollments and the amount of course fees. We believe our students are attracted to us primarily because of our established brand and reputation in the private education sector, especially in the areas of English language training and overseas admissions and assessment

test preparation, the quality of our instruction and the variety of our programs, services and products. For the past several years, our revenue growth has been driven primarily by increased enrollments in our English language training courses and test preparation courses and other programs and services. The number of student enrollments for our courses is affected by the demand for our courses, the effectiveness of our marketing and brand promotion, the demographic composition of the cities where we have schools and learning centers, our ability to respond to competitive pressure, as well as seasonal factors. To further penetrate the English language training markets for children and high-income individuals, we have offered and plan to continue offering an increasing number and a greater variety of smaller classes for children and adults, such as “Pop Kids” English classes for students in kindergarten through grade six with 10 to 25 students per class and higher-end personalized “Elite English” classes for high-income adults and children with 1 to 10 students per class. Meanwhile, we have also expanded the scope of our test preparation course offerings to cover non-English subjects, including through our New Oriental U-Can all subjects training program for middle and high school students, and plan to further expand our course offerings in the future to capture a larger share of the huge after-school training market in China.

Our courses generally have the largest student enrollments in our first fiscal quarter from June 1 to August 31 each year, primarily because many students enroll in our courses during the summer vacation to enhance their foreign language skills and/or prepare for admissions and assessment tests in subsequent school terms. In addition, we have generally experienced larger student enrollments in our third fiscal quarter from December 1 to February 28 each year, primarily because many students enroll in our language training and other courses during the winter school holidays. We expect this seasonality in enrollment pattern to continue, especially for most of our language training courses for college and middle school students and test preparation courses.

Although similar courses have comparable rates, course fees vary among our numerous courses. We determine course fees primarily based on demand for our courses, the targeted market for our courses, the subject of the course, the geographic location of the school, cost of services, and the course fees charged by our competitors for the same or similar programs. Our test preparation courses are generally delivered in class settings ranging from one1 student to 500 students per class and our English language training courses are delivered in class settings generally ranging from one1 student to 300 students per class. To further penetrate the English language training markets for children and high-income individuals, we have offered and plan to continue offering an increasing number and a greater variety of smaller classes for children and adults, such as “Pop Kids” English classes for students in kindergarten through grade six with ten to 25 students per class and higher-end personalized “Elite English” classes for high-income adults and children with one to ten students per class. We typically adjust course fees or school fees based on the market conditions of the city where the particular school is located, subject to the relevant local governmental authority’s advance approval, if required. We expect to continue to derive a substantial majority of our revenues from educational programs and services.

A significant portion of our revenues has been derived from test preparation courses. The success of our test preparation courses depends on the continued use of admissions and assessment tests by educational institutions and governmental authorities both in China and abroad. If the use of admissions and assessment tests declines or falls out of favor with educational institutions, government authorities and other entities, the markets for our test preparation courses will shrink and our business may be materially and adversely affected. For example, in early 2005, the PRC Ministry of Education started reforming the CET 4 and CET 6 exams, which, among other things, limits these exams only to college students starting from 2007. As a result, the total number of students who started our CET 4 and CET 6 exam preparation courses decreased from approximately 180,000 in 2004 to approximately 140,000 in 2005, and then decreased slightly further in 2006. The number of students who enrolled in our CET 4 and CET 6 exam preparation courses was approximately 190,000 in 2007 and 180,000 in 2008. We are currently not aware of any other proposed reforms by the PRC regulatory authorities concerning admissions and assessment tests that would materially and adversely affect our domestic test preparation business.

Books and Others. We distribute and sell books and other educational materials developed or licensed by us through our own distribution channels, which consist of our bookstores and websites, and also through third-party distributors. We normally provide books and other educational materials that are required for our courses and do not separately charge students for these items. We recognize revenues from sales of books and other educational materials when the products are sold to end customers. As we believe successful content development is important to the success of our business in China, we intend to continuously enhance the quality and breadth of our education content offerings and distribute more books and other educational materials through our own bookstores, as well as third-party distributors, including over 5,000 bookstores. Accordingly, we expect revenues from sales of books and other educational materials to continue to increase in the future.

We also provide consulting services to students regarding overseas studies and related processes, such as visa applications. We charge each student a fee based on the scope of consulting services requested by the student and recognize revenues when our consulting services are delivered. We expect that revenues from these consulting services will continue to constitute a small portion of our total revenues in the future.

Operating Costs and Expenses. Our operating costs and expenses consist of cost of revenues, selling and marketing expenses and general and administrative expenses. The following table sets forth the components of our operating costs and expenses, both in absolute amount and as a percentage of total net revenues for the periods indicated.

We rely on our teachers to deliver educational services. Our teachers consist of both full-time teachers and contract teachers. Full-time teachers deliver instruction and may also be involved in management, administration and other functions at our schools and other subsidiaries and affiliated entities. Their compensation and benefits primarily consist of teaching fees based on hourly rates, performance-linked bonuses based on student evaluations, as well as base salary, annual bonus and standard employee benefits in connection with their services other than teaching. Compensation of our contract teachers is comprised primarily of teaching fees based on hourly rates and performance-linked bonuses based on student evaluations and other factors. To attract and retain high- qualityhigh-quality teachers, we have granted equity incentives, including restricted shares and share options, to some of our teachers. We account for teaching fees and performance-linked bonuses paid to our teachers as cost of revenues as they are directly associated with the provision of educational services, and account for the other compensation and benefits to our teachers as general and administrative expenses.

Cost of Revenues. Cost of revenues for educational programs and services primarily consists of teaching fees and performance-linked bonuses paid to our teachers and rental payments for our schools and learning centers and, to a lesser degree, depreciation and amortization of property and equipment used in the provision of educational services, as well as costs of course materials. Cost of books and others primarily consist of printing costs of books and other materials, and licenses fees, royalties and other fees paid to content licensors, publishing companies and third-party distributors. We anticipate that our total cost of revenues will continue to increase as we continue to open new schools and learning centers and hire additional teachers.

Selling and Marketing Expenses. Our selling and marketing expenses primarily consist of expenses relating to advertising, seminars, marketing and promotional trips and other community activities for brand promotion purpose. We expect that our selling and marketing expenses will continue to increase as we further expand into new geographic locations and enhance our brand recognition.

General and Administrative Expenses. Our general and administrative expenses primarily consist of compensation and benefits of administrative staff, compensation and benefits of full-time teachers excluding teaching fees and performance-linked bonuses and, to a lesser extent, costs to develop curriculum, costs of third-party professional services, rental and utilities payments relating to office and administrative functions, and depreciation and amortization of property and equipment used in our general and administrative activities. We expect that our general and administrative expenses will increase in the near term as we hire additional personnel and incur additional costs in connection with the expansion of our business and with being a publicly traded company, including costs of maintaining and enhancing our internal controls.

Share-based Compensation Expenses. The following table sets forth the allocation of our share-based compensation expenses, both in absolute amount and as a percentage of total share-based compensation expenses, among our employees based on the nature of work which they were assigned to perform.

Prior to our initial public offering, we had issued a number of restricted shares to our employees, directors and consultants for services rendered to by them. Those shares vested immediately on the date of grant. In January 2006, we adopted the 2006 Share Incentive Plan, under which we are authorized to, starting from 2006, issue share options to purchase up to 8,000,000 common shares pursuant to awards (including options) granted under the plan to our employees, directors and consultants in 2006, as well as additional optionsshares in future periods. In fiscal years 2006 and 2007, we granted options to purchase a total of 12,766,000 common shares. Of those options, options to purchase 1,245,3001,234,808 commons shares had been forfeited as of May 31, 2009.2010. We have not granted any options since the end of our fiscal year 2007. We also granted 2,872,000, 487,248 and 487,248873,048 non-vested equity shares in fiscal years 2008, 2009 and 2009,2010, respectively, of which 774,4682,022,400 shares had been forfeited as of May 31, 2009. In December 2004, the Financial Accounting Standards Board, or FASB, issued statement of accounting standards, or SFAS No. 123(R) “Share-Based Payment,” effective January 1, 2006. Accordingly, we have adopted the provisions of SFAS 123(R)2010. We account for the share-based compensation awards granted since January 1, 2006. SFAS 123(R)expenses in accordance with an authoritative accounting pronouncement, which requires share-based compensation expense to be determined based on the fair value of our common shares as of their grant date.

For restricted shares granted to our employees, we record share-based compensation expense for the excess of the fair value of the restricted shares at the date of the grant over the purchase price that a grantee must pay to acquire the shares during the period in which the shares may be purchased. For options granted to our employees and directors, we record share-based compensation expenses based on the fair value of our common shares underlying options as of the date of option grant and amortize the expenses over the vesting periods of the options. For non-vested equity shares granted to employees and directors, we record share-based compensation expenses based on the quoted market price of our ADSs on the grant date and amortize the expenses over the vesting periods of the non-vested equity shares.

Taxation

We are incorporated in the Cayman Islands. Under the current law of the Cayman Islands, we are not subject to income or capital gains tax. In addition, dividend payments are not subject to withholding tax in the Cayman Islands.

Other than our primary and secondary school,schools, our subsidiaries and affiliated entities in China are subject to a 3% to 5% business tax on gross revenues generated from providing services and related surcharges, and a value-added tax at varying rates ranging from 4% to 17% on gross revenues from sales of books, educational software and other products. With regard to income tax, according to the Implementation Rules for The Law for Promoting Private Education (2004), private schools that do not require reasonable returns are entitled to the same preferential tax treatment as public schools, while preferential tax treatment policies applicable to private schools requiring reasonable returns shall be separately formulated by the relevant authorities under the State Council. To date, however, no separate regulations or policies have been promulgated by the relevant authorities in this regard. As a result, preferential tax treatments for our schools vary among different cities. In some cities, our schools are subject to a standard enterprise income tax rate of 25% (which was 33% prior to January 1, 2008), while in other cities, our schools are subject to a 2% to 3% tax on gross receipts in lieu of the standard enterprise income tax or are exempted from the enterprise income tax. Among our schools in the four major cities from which we derived a majority of our revenues in each of the past three fiscal years ended May 31, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2009,2010, our school in Wuhan has been subject to the standard enterprise income tax, and our school in Shanghai has been subject to standard enterprise income tax rate since the beginning of 2007. New Oriental China’s subsidiaries other than schools are either subject to the standard enterprise income tax rate, which was 33% through the end of 2007 and has been 25% since the beginning of 2008, or subject to various preferential income tax rates approved by local taxationtax authorities.

Under PRC laws and regulations in effect before January 1, 2008, New Oriental China and three wholly owned subsidiaries of our company in China, Beijing Judgment, Beijing Hewstone and Beijing Decision, were certified “new or high-technology“high and new technology enterprises” located in a high-tech zone in Beijing as their primary sources of revenues were educational software development and educational technology development and implementation. As a result, New Oriental China was exempted from enterprise income tax from 2002 to 2004, and was subject to a 7.5% enterprise income tax in 2005, 2006 and 2007. Each of the three wholly owned subsidiaries in China was established in 2005 and thus was exempted from enterprise income tax from 2005 to 2007. However, the implementation rules of the EIT Law promulgated by the State Council in December 2007 and other supplemental rules promulgated by the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation in April 2008 and July 2008, respectively, have provided new criteria for such “new or high“high and new technology enterprises” and all enterprises which had been granted such status before the effectiveness of the EIT Law are required to be re-examined according to such new rules before they can continue to be entitled to such preferential tax treatments. In December 2008, two of our wholly owned subsidiaries in China, Beijing Hewstone and Beijing Decision, were recertified as “new or high-technology“high and new technology enterprise” in Beijing. The enterprise income tax rate from 2008 to 2010 for those two subsidiaries, which has been set by the local tax authorities of Zhongguancun High and New Technology Industrial Zones of Beijing, is more favorable than the ones mandated by the national tax authorities. As a result, both of them are entitled to a 7.5% enterprise income tax rate from 2008 to 2010, followed by a 15% tax rate as long as they continue to qualify as a “new or high“high and new technology enterprise.” The enterprise income tax rate from 2008 to 2010 for those two subsidiaries, which has been set by the local tax authorities in Beijing, is more favorable than the ones mandated by the national tax authorities.

The deferred tax balance of Beijing Decision and Beijing Hewstone is calculated at a rate of 7.5%, as we expect Beijing Decision and Beijing Hewstone to continue to be qualified as “new or high-technology“high and new technology enterprise” after 2010, and the temporary differences are expected to be reversed prior to the expiration of the “3-year half rate” tax holiday ending December 31, 2010. The other wholly owned subsidiary of our company, Beijing Judgment, and New Oriental China did not seek recertification and consequently are subject to the standard enterprise income tax rate of 25% from 2008.

Preferential tax treatments granted to our schools by local governmental authorities are subject to review and may be adjusted or revoked at any time. In addition, if the government regulations or authorities were to phase out preferential tax benefits currently granted to “new or high-technology“high and new technology enterprises,” New Oriental China and our wholly owned subsidiaries in China would be subject to the 25% uniform statutory tax rate. The discontinuation of any preferential tax treatments currently available to our schools, especially those schools in major cities, and to New Oriental China and our wholly owned subsidiaries, will cause our effective tax rate to increase, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

Under the EIT Law, enterprises established outside of China whose “de facto management bodies” are located in China are considered “resident enterprises,” and will generally be subject to the uniform 25% enterprise income tax rate for their global income. Although the term “de facto management bodies” is defined as “management bodies which has substantial and overall management and control powerFor additional information on PRC regulations on taxation, see “Item 4. Information on the operation, human resources, accounting and assets of the enterprise,” the circumstances under which an enterprise’s “de facto management body” would be considered to be located in China are currently unclear. A recent circular issued by the State Administration of TaxationCompany—B. Business Overview—Education—Regulations on April 22, 2009 provides that a foreign enterprise controlled by a PRC company or a PRC company group will be classified as a “resident enterprise” with its “de facto management bodies” located within China if the following requirements are satisfied: (i) the senior management and core management departments in charge of its daily operations function mainly in the PRC; (ii) its financial and human resources decisions are subject to determination or approval by persons or bodies in the PRC; (iii) its major assets, accounting books, company seals, and minutes and files of its board and shareholders’ meetings are located or kept in the PRC; and (iv) at least half of the enterprise’s directors or senior management with voting rights reside in the PRC.Taxation.”

Our management is currently based in China and is expected to remain in China. Although our offshore holding companies are not controlled by any PRC company or company group, we cannot assure you that we will not be deemed to be a PRC resident enterprise under the EIT Law and its implementation rules. If we are deemed to be a PRC resident enterprise, we will be subject to PRC enterprise income tax at the rate of 25% on our global income. In that case, however, dividend income we receive from our PRC subsidiaries may be exempt from PRC enterprise income tax because the EIT Law and its implementation rules generally provide that dividends received by a PRC resident enterprise from its directly invested entity that is also a PRC resident enterprise is exempt from enterprise income tax. However, as there is still uncertainty as to how the EIT Law and its implementation rules will be interpreted and implemented, we cannot assure you that we are eligible for such PRC enterprise income tax exemptions or reductions.

Results of Operations

The following table sets forth a summary of our consolidated results of operations for the periods indicated. This information should be read together with our consolidated financial statements and related notes included elsewhere in this annual report. The operating results in any period are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for any future period.

Fiscal Year Ended May 31, 2010 Compared to Fiscal Year Ended May 31, 2009

Net Revenues. Our total net revenues increased by 32.0% from US$292.6 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009 to US$386.3 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2010. This increase was due to the increased revenues from both educational programs and services as well as from books and others.

Operating Costs and Expenses. Our total operating costs and expenses increased by 33.4% from US$231.6 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009 to US$309.0 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2010. This increase resulted from increases in all of our operating cost and expense line items.

Other Income, Net. Our other income, which consists primarily of interest income, decreased by 13.5% from US$7.2 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009 to US$6.2 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2010.

Provision for Income Tax. Our income tax expense decreased by 17.7% from US$7.3 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009 to US$6.0 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2010. Our effective tax rate was 7.15% for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2010, compared to 10.65% for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009. The decrease in effective tax rate was primarily due to an increase in the proportion of our profits contributed by the PRC subsidiaries with preferential tax rate.

Net IncomeAttributable to New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc. As a result of the foregoing, net income attributable to New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc. increased by 27.5% from US$61.0 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009 to US$77.8 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2010.

Fiscal Year Ended May 31, 2009 Compared to Fiscal Year Ended May 31, 2008

Net Revenues. Our total net revenues increased by 45.6% from US$201.0 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2008 to US$292.6 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009. This increase was due to the increased revenues from both educational programs and services as well as from books and others.

extent, the increase in average revenues per student in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009 as more students took smaller-size classes with higher course fees. The increase in revenues from language training and test preparation courses was mainly attributable to the increase in the number of students who completed our coursesstudent enrollments from approximately 711,0001,272,000 in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2008 to approximately 891,0001,519,000 in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009, and in particular, the increased number of students who completedstudent enrolments in our language training courses for children and middle school and high school students. The increase in revenues fromstudents and overseas test preparation courses was mainly attributable to an increase in the number of students who completed our test preparation courses from approximately 517,000 in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2008 to approximately 572,000 in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009.courses.

Operating Costs and Expenses. Our total operating costs and expenses increased by 48.8% from US$155.7 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2008 to US$231.6 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009. This increase resulted from increases in all of our operating cost and expense line items.

Other Income, Net. Our other income, which consists primarily of interest income, increased slightly from US$7.1 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2008 to US$7.2 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009.

Provision for income taxIncome Tax. Our income tax expense increased by 99.1% from US$3.6 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2008 to US$7.3 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009. This increase was primarily due to increased taxable income and increased income tax rate for New Oriental China due to the expiry of the preferential tax rate for “new or high-technology“high and new technology enterprise” on December 31, 2007.

Net IncomeAttributable to New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc. As a result of the foregoing, our net income attributable to New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc increased by 24.5% from US$49.0 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2008 to US$61.0 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2009 from US$49.0 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2008.

Fiscal Year Ended May 31, 2008 Compared to Fiscal Year Ended May 31, 2007

Net Revenues. Our total net revenues increased by 51.6% from US$132.6 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2007 to US$201.0 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2008. This increase was due to the increased revenues from both educational programs and services as well as from books and others.

students who completed our language training courses for children and middle school and high school students. The increase in revenues from test preparation courses was mainly attributable to an increase in the number of students who completed our test preparation courses from approximately 440,000 in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2007 to approximately 517,000 in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2008.

Operating Costs and Expenses. Our total operating costs and expenses increased by 46.2% from US$106.5 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2007 to US$155.7 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2008. This increase resulted from increases in all of our operating cost and expense line items.

Other Income, Net. Our other income increased by 69.9% from US$4.2 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2007 to US$7.1 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2008. This increase was primarily due to interest from our increased bank deposit balance of working capital and the increased interest income derived from the proceeds of our public offerings.

Provision for income tax. Our income tax expense increased by 99.1% from US$1.8 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2007 to US$3.6 million in the fiscal year ended May 31, 2008. This increase was primarily due to increased taxable income and increased income tax rate for New Oriental China, Beijing Hewstone and Beijing Decision due to the expiry of the preferential tax rate for “new or high-technology enterprise” on December 31, 2007.

Net Income. As a result of the foregoing, our net income increased to US$49.0 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2008 from US$28.6 million for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2007.2009.

Discussion of Segment Operations

In our management’s view, we operate through six operating segments that offer distinct educational services, consisting of language training and test preparation courses, primary and secondary school education, content development and distribution, online education, overseas studies consulting and post-secondary education. We have two reportable segments, namely, language training and test preparation courses and primary and secondary school education. We aggregate content development and distribution, online education, overseas studies consulting and post-secondary education as others as each of these operating segments does not exceed 10% of our total net revenues, net income or total assets.

Net revenues from our language training and test preparation courses accounted for 88.3%87.6%, 87.6%87.4% and 87.4%87.3%, respectively, of our total net revenues in the fiscal years ended May 31, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2009.2010. Net revenues from our primary and secondary school education accounted for 3.7%3.2%, 3.2%2.9% and 2.9%2.6%, respectively, of our total net revenues in the fiscal years ended May 31, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2009.2010. We recognize revenues from course fees collected for enrollment in our language training and test preparation courses proportionally as we deliver the instruction over the period of the course. We recognize revenues from school fees collected for enrollment in New Oriental China’s primary and secondary schoolschools ratably over the corresponding academic year.

Cost of revenues for our language training and test preparation courses primarily consists of teaching fees and performance-linked bonuses paid to our teachers, rental payments for our schools and learning centers and, to a lesser degree, depreciation and amortization of property and equipment used in the provision of educational services. Cost of revenues for our primary and secondary schoolschools primarily consists of compensation and benefits to school teachers and depreciation and amortization of property and equipment used in the provision of educational services.

Selling and marketing expenses for each of our reportable segments primarily consist of marketing and promotion expenses and other costs related to our selling and marketing activities for the corresponding reportable segment.

General and administrative expenses for our language training and test preparation courses primarily consist of compensation and benefits of administrative staff of our language training and test preparation courses segment, compensation and benefits of full-time teachers excluding teaching fees and performance-linked bonuses, rental and utilities payments relating to office and administrative functions of our language training and test preparation courses segment, depreciation and amortization of property and equipment used in the general and administrative activities of our language training and test preparation courses segment and, to a lesser extent, costs to develop our curriculum. General and administrative expenses for our primary and secondary school education segment primarily consist of compensation and benefits of administrative staff of our primary and secondary school,schools, depreciation and amortization of property and equipment used in the general and administrative activities of our primary and secondary school,schools and, to a lesser extent, costs to develop our curriculum.

The following table lists our net revenues and operating costs and expenses by reportable segment for the periods indicated.