In December 2017, the President announced that NSFAS will offer bursaries as a form of free education rather than loans that need to be paid back. Students who received a NSFAS loan before the president's address need to repay the loaned amount as per the agreement form that was signed. If you only started being funded by NSFAS in 2018, there is no need to pay back any money as you received a bursary. 

You will only need to start paying back the bursary once you have a salary of R30 000 or more per year. The repayments will not be place a great burden as it is based on the salary of the person. 40% of the loan is considered a bursary if you pass all the courses that you were registered for in that year and so the other 60% of the loan needs to be repaid. Final Year students can also have their final year loan converted into a complete bursary if they pass all their final year courses and qualify to graduate. If students do not complete their studies, they are still required to repay the loan once they start earning R30 000 or more per year. 

There are various ways to pay money to NSFAS. 

1. Debit order 

You submit an electronic debit order form and email it to [email protected] You can find the form here. This method doesn't require you to remember to pay every month. 

2. Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) 

You can EFT NSFAS each month using the following details.

• Name of Account: NSFAS
• Branch Code: 210554
• Bank: First National Bank
• Account Number: 500 600 28203
• Please use your ID Number (6711165000000) as a reference when making payments

Alternatively, if you bank with Standard Bank, Capitec, FNB or ABSA, NSFAS is a beneficiary that you can find by searching in the list of beneficiaries. 

3. Salary Deductions 

The other method is a salary deduction where your employer makes deductions from your income and pays it to NSFAS for you. You will need to submit this form and submit it to your employer.