Nzimande: NSFAS applications open until January
Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande says applications for the National Student Financial Aid Scheme NSFAS have officially opened for the 2024 academic year.
Nzimade briefed the media in Pretoria on Tuesday afternoon.
The applications will open until 31st January. Currently, the scheme is funding over one million students.
He said NSFAS will continue to fund students directly, despite criticism over the implementation of the direct payment system, which has led to student protests at several universities.
The introduction of the system has been mired in controversy, with students complaining of excessive fee charges, inaccessibility of service providers, and lack of clarity on how to access funds.
"The reason we are opening the application period now, is that NSFAS was awaiting SARS completion of the tax period, which is very important to enable NSFAS to have the necessary and updated information available during the application season.
“Furthermore, this is done to afford the beneficiaries shorter turnaround times for decision making, which is aligned to NSFAS financial eligibility assessment, which requires updated SARS information.
“I implore all students who wish to study in any of the public universities and TVET Colleges to apply timeously and not to wait until the last day. Students do not have to wait for matric results in order to apply for NSFAS.
“NSFAS is mandated to make funding available to poor and working-class families, and in adhering to this mandate, they will continue to make immediate funding decisions for SASSA First Time Entering (FTEN) students," added Nzimande.
The minister said there would be no supporting documents required at the time of application.
"The reason for this is due to our improved third-party relations. These third parties include SASSA, SARS and the Department of Home Affairs. They will be providing NSFAS with information to verify what the student would have declared in the application.
“The only time supporting documents will be required is when prompted by NSFAS in case where they cannot verify the parental relationship. Communication will be sent directly by NSFAS to a student to initiate this process.
“In the case where a student is submitting an appeal, the documents required will be based on the NSFAS declaration form available on the NSFAS website," he said.
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