The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) is a government student bursary scheme which receives its funding budget from, and reports to the Department of Higher Education and Training. NSFAS will cover more than just your tuition fees, should you qualify.
The scheme was established in terms of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme Act 56 of 1999.
NSFAS provides financial assistance in the form of bursaries to eligible students at public universities and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Colleges in South Africa.
The requirements to be funded are as follows:
Must be a South African citizen
All SASSA grant recipients qualify for funding
Applicants must have a combined household income of not more than R350 000 per annum
Person with disability: Combined household income must not be more than R600 000 per annum
You started studying before 2018 and your household income is not more than R122 000 per annum.
If you wish to study or are already studying at a public university or TVET college and come from a family with an income of R350 000 or less, you qualify to be funded by NSFAS.
NSFAS will cover your tuition fees, accommodation fees as well as give you transport, living and book allowances to make sure that your higher education is covered far beyond what you expect.
Prior to 2018, NSFAS was a loan scheme which required students to pay back their loan when they were able to do so and in 2018, they then became a bursary scheme. Anyone who started being funded by NSFAS before 2018 will need to repay the loan even if they were funded after NSFAS transformed into a bursary scheme.
For more information on NSFAS, click here.
