The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) has confirmed its funding for students with disabilities, including coverage for assistive devices in 2025.
NSFAS provides comprehensive bursaries and student loans to deserving students enrolled in approved courses at universities and TVET colleges. NSFAS funding covers tuition and registration fees, as well as several allowances for food, accommodation, and learning materials.
The government bursary scheme aims to improve access to higher education for students with disabilities, including additional funding for assistive devices.
NSFAS Assistive Devices for 2025
Students with disabilities qualify for the living allowance (including meals), learning materials, assistive devices, repairs and maintenance of assistive devices, human support, and assessment costs.
NSFAS funding for assistive devices and human support is not automatic; students must apply and meet specific criteria outlined in the policy. Funding is subject to approval.
An annual spending limit applies to assistive devices, even if a student changes institutions. NSFAS does not fund duplicate devices.
NSFAS will pay all the above allowances, provided they are not funded by another provider.
NSFAS reminded students that payments are conditional and require relevance to the disability. Suppliers of assistive devices must be accredited, and students must provide proper documentation.
Students with disabilities do not automatically qualify for allowances for assistive devices, or their repairs and maintenance. These are granted only if the student's application is approved and all conditions and criteria are met, as set out in the policy.
Assistive Devices Covered by NSFAS
Examples of assistive devices include those used for physical disabilities, visual impairments, hearing impairments, and learning disabilities.
NSFAS also funds human support, but this also requires application and approval. A healthcare professional must recommend the support, and the institution must confirm the need. Students are responsible for appointing their carers.
Examples of human support include guide dogs, scribes, and sign language interpreters. Carers can be chosen by the student or provided by the institution under specific conditions, including opt-in agreements and cost-sharing arrangements.
If the human support is a carer, they may be anyone selected by the student with the disability and approved by the institution, provided all supporting documents are ratified by NSFAS before funding is approved.
Institutions can provide carers to multiple students. However, students must opt in to the shared arrangement for a full academic year and understand that their institution will retain the full human support allowance allocated by NSFAS.
The cost of the shared carer is covered by NSFAS, up to the individual student allowance cap. Any expenses exceeding this cap must be absorbed by the institution. If the actual cost is less than the combined allowance of the participating students, the savings are distributed equally among those NSFAS-funded students.
"Students currently funded by NSFAS will be eligible for Disability bursary funding if they become permanently disabled during their studies," NSFAS said
