From this year students sitting scholarship exams will need to pay $30 per exam.

Previously, students could sit up to three scholarship exams for free if they paid a $76 fee for NCEA exams.

The New Zealand Qualifications Authority says the change in driven by the large number of students entering the scholarship scheme but not turning up to exams.

Labour education spokesman Chris Hipkins says it's putting another barrier before teenagers in poorer communities.

"I understand that they may have had some concerns about kids not showing up to scholarship exams, but increasing the costs to kids that do isn't the way to solve that problem."