As a student with what feels like a million and one responsibility resting squarely upon your shoulders, the knowledge that NSFAS could cancel your financial assistance for the reason that you don’t fully understand is a terrifying thought.
We’ve written this article to bring answers and clarity to any questions you may have regarding the cancellation of your NSFAS funding.
Will NSFAS Fund Me If I Deregister?
If you have deregistered from your place of study and are concerned about whether or not you can still receive funding from NSFAS, the answer is a tad more complicated than a simple yes or no.
If you were to register for another course that is also covered by NSFAS directly after registering, then NSFAS should still cover your studies. However, if you were to deregister from your approved course and fail to register for another course or otherwise register for one not covered by NSFAS, then it would be counted as a cancellation of your NSFAS account, and you would no longer receive funding.
Do I Have To Pay Back NSFAS If I Drop Out?
Whatever the reason, students sometimes drop out of university or college. It happens. And if it happens to you, a major concern will undoubtedly be whether or not you still need to pay NSFAS back. Well, there’s good news and bad news; unfortunately, if you drop out, you do, in fact, need to pay NSFAS back. But the good news is that you are only required to start making payments after you are employed and making an annual salary of over R30 000.
What Happens If I Cancel My NSFAS Application?
So maybe you made an error when filling out your application, or maybe you just didn’t like how you came across it. Before you know it, you’ve cancelled your application, and that’s that. It’s cancelled. Done. Finished and klaar.
But is that it? Absolutely not; now you get to do the whole process again and resubmit that application, but this time you’ll ace it! Bear in mind, though, that if you’re hoping to get a faster result by resubmitting your application, it is very unlikely to work; instead, your application will simply be sent to the back of the queue and potentially take longer to get an answer.
How Do I Cancel my NSFAS Application?
If you have decided to cancel your application but aren’t sure how to go about it, we’ve got you. The simplest way to do it will be to log into your myNSFAS portal, go to the “track application” tab and click on “cancel application”. Pretty easy, huh?
Can NSFAS Stop Funding A Student?
Yes, NSFAS can stop funding a student if the student no longer meets their requirements.
What Would Cause NSFAS To Stop Funding A Student?
There are a number of reasons that NSFAS may deem it necessary to halt a student’s funding. Common causes of funding cancellations include failing over 50% of prescribed modules, taking a gap year, and inability to meet the school’s minimum academic performance criteria.
Can NSFAS Fund You For A Second Undergraduatetime Degree?
Sadly NSFAS does not fund second undergraduate degrees, generally speaking. They do, however fund some postgraduate degrees.
How Many Times Can NSFAS Fund You?
NSFAS generally won’t fund the same student for multiple undergraduate courses, but through a partnership with the NRF, they may now fund a student for a postgraduate degree if the student meets their requirements.
How Do You Know When NSFAS Has Stopped Funding You?
The most surefire way to check if NSFAS has stopped funding you is to get hold of them. You can do this by sending an email to info@nsfas.org.za or by calling their toll-free phone number at 08000 67327.
Alternatively, you can check your balance on the day you would normally receive your allowance or otherwise check the “funding progress” on your myNSFAS account.
How Do I Check My Balance?
You have two possible options for checking your balance;
Cellphone
If you’re using a cellphone, dial *134*176#, enter your password and click send. When prompted, select the second option; “query”. From there, you can view your balance and transactions.
Browser
If you’re using your internet browser, go to https://celbux.appspot.com and log in using your phone number and password. Then select the “more” option, and go to transactions. From there, you can view your cash balance.
How To Check Your “Funding Progress”
To check your funding status, log into your NSFAS account with your username and password. Then click on the Track Funding Progress tab, and check your result.
When Does NSFAS Stop Funding You?
NSFAS reserves the right to cancel funding of any student who doesn’t meet the requirements of their tertiary institution. These differ depending on where the student is enrolled. In more general terms, a student who achieves a pass rate below 50% on their modules throughout the school year or who takes a gap year will have their funding cancelled.
We hope these answers have been useful and brought you some peace of mind.
