Adding NSFAS Bank Accounts to Universities
All recipients of bursaries will begin receiving their allowances via the NSFAS bank card as part of the organization’s digital transition. All hands must be on deck to transition to the new NSFAS bank card.
The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) has provided more than R100 billion in financial aid to more than 38 million tertiary students since it was established in 1991 and will continue to do so until the year 2022.
Following this, the government bursary program introduced the new NSFAS Mastercard, which will be used by public university and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) College students who have been funded to begin receiving their allowances and making purchases as of the 2023 academic year.
Recently, NSFAS has been working with universities to directly pay monthly stipends, and meetings with universities to get their support have been held.
In order to onboard onto the NSFAS Bank Account, students will need to visit official website or follow updates on official NSFAS social media pages.
The NSFAS bank card (virtual or real), which allows users to conduct transactions just like they would with regular bank accounts, will be provided to supported students when they have been onboarded onto the new system.
Prior to a comprehensive roll-out in a phased-in strategy at all financed universities and colleges, the new payment mechanism was first piloted in a few TVET Colleges.
To deliver student allowances via the NSFAS mastercard, the bursary program collaborated with Coinvest, Tenet Technology, eZaga, and Norraca.
Additionally, according to the NSFAS CEO, payments will no longer be made through third parties or institutions of higher education but rather will be made directly to student accounts.
With this method of payment, students will have control over when they are paid and assurance that they will be.
The ability to conduct business utilizing a banking system that is more secure and that also helps students stretch their money by offering discounts is another advantage of using this payment option.
How Do Student Grants Function?
The NSFAS student allowances provide financial support to bursary recipients for their tuition, housing, and other study-related fees.
The Scheme limits the amount of money provided to housing to not exceed R45,000 and spends more than R10 billion on student housing.
However, in the upcoming years, the government bursary pledges to improve allowance payments and housing for students.