In the following paragraphs, the word family refers to the person or people responsible for you financially. This may be your mother, father or both of them, or if not your parents, it may be your guardian (court appointed guardian with written proof or just someone such as a relative who is not appointed by the court, as long as they are the one taking care of you financially. It can also be your spouse/partner if you are married [including if your partner has only paid lobola for you]).
On this page you are going to learn how to qualify for NSFAS Bursary or NSFAS Loan, which documents you will need to submit according to your family's financial condition (who are you dependent on, do you receive SASSA grant, etc.).
NSFAS Bursary means NSFAS will pay for your studies and you will not have to pay back that money. You qualify for the NSFAS bursary if you receive SASSA grant but if you don't receive the SASSA grant, your family's financial condition/status must match the following paragraph.
To qualify for NSFAS bursary if you are not disabled, your family's total income must be R350 000 per year or less (which is R29 166 per month) which is the same thing, R350 000 divided by 12 months = R29 166 per month. If you are disabled, the total income of your family must be less than or equal to R600 000 per year or R50 000 per month.
If you receive SASSA grant or you recieved it before, you automatically qualify for NSFAS bursary.
If you have never received SASSA grant before, and your family's income is less than or equal to R350 000 per year (R29 166 per month), you also qualify for NSFAS bursary but you will have to submit extra supporting documents which you will learn about in a few paragraphs below. So, please keep reading.
NSFAS Loan is for people whose family income is more than R350 000 per year (R29 166 per month) or more than R600 000 per year for disabled people.
If you made a mistake and applied for the NSFAS bursary whereas your family's income is more than R350 000 per year (R600 000 for disabled people), NSFAS will reject your application but you will still get a second chance to apply for the NSFAS Loan.
REQUIRED DOCUMENTS for people who don't receive SASSA grant and disabled people
If you receive SASSA grant or once received it before, you DON'T have to submit any documents at all - not even your ID copy.
If one or both of your family (mother or father is deceased/dead/not alive, you MUST NOT submit any affidavit(s) to say that they are not alive. Read the following paragraphs to know what you are supposed to submit in this case.
- I can submit ID copies of both my biological mother and father - you have to submit NSFAS Consent form as well as ID copies of both your parents
- I can only submit an ID copy of one parent (either mother or father) - you have to submit NSFAS Consent Form, NSFAS Declaration Form and ID copy of the parent whose ID you can provide
- I cannot submit ID copies of both my biological parents (mother and father) because I don't know where they are, but I live with a guardian who was appointed by the court/Social Workers to take care of me - you have to submit NSFAS Consent Form, NSFAS Declaration Form, Guardianship Appointment Letter and ID copy of your guardian
- I cannot submit ID copies of both my biological parents (mother and father) because I don't know where they are, but I live with a guardian who was not appointed by the court/Social Workers to take care of me - you have to submit NSFAS Consent Form, NSFAS Declaration Form, and ID copy of your guardian
- I cannot submit ID copies of both my biological parents (mother and father) because I don't know where they are, but I live with a guardian who was appointed by the court/Social Workers to take care of me - you have to submit NSFAS Consent Form, NSFAS Declaration Form, Guardianship Appointment Letter and ID copy of your guardian
- I cannot submit ID copies of both my biological parents (mother and father) because they are dead/deceased/not alive, and there is no guardian living with me - you have to submit NSFAS Consent Form and Orphan/Vulnerable Child Form
- I am disabled - you have to submit NSFAS Consent Form, Disability Annexure, Letter signed by a professional health practitioner such as a doctor, optometrist etc. which confirms the nature or your disability, and ID copies of parent(s)/guardian as per the above scenarios or cases
- I am married - you have to submit NSFAS Consent Form and ID copy of your spouse or partner (you may have to submit marriage certificate if requested)
Click HERE to download these documents