The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) confirmed that most NSFAS loan applicants qualify for NSFAS bursaries. This follows the NSFAS eligibility review process, which found that thousands of students qualify for a change in their NSFAS funding.
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
Students whose household income exceeds the NSFAS bursary threshold of R350,000 per year may be eligible for an NSFAS loan. The income threshold for the NSFAS loan is R600,000 per year.
NSFAS received 17,517 loan applications for the 2025 academic year. These applications were received during the official 2025 NSFAS application window and the NSFAS TVET College student application window.
While evaluating NSFAS funding applications, NSFAS found that 16,013 loan applicants had a household income below R350,000 and therefore qualified for NSFAS bursaries. The scheme subsequently awarded these students NSFAS bursaries.
NSFAS found 16,013 applicants to be below the R350,000 threshold, and these applicants were all converted to bursary applications.
The government bursary scheme confirmed that the remaining 1,504 applications are still being evaluated.
NSFAS rejected 1,487 applicants and found only 52 potential loan recipients. 104 of these loan applicants were rejected as they exceeded the R600,000 income threshold for the NSFAS loan.
The scheme said it was currently evaluating applications received in the NSFAS TVET College student application window. This window allows TVET college students to apply for funding when they begin their studies at different times of the academic year. The last application window closed in January 2025.
NSFAS will continue reviewing applications until funding decisions have been made for all of them.
This NSFAS process of reviewing loan applications will continue until NSFAS has dealt with all of the 2025 loan applications received