The NSFAS is a financial aid scheme for students by the government of South Africa. Like all other financial aid schemes, the NSFAS also has eligibility criteria. It is a great initiative for needy students to pursue their careers in public universities and institutes.

Have you applied for NSFAS? Many students who submit their NSFAS applications online have no idea how to check their NSFAS status. If you are also going through the same situation then this article is for you. In today’s article, we will talk about the NSFAS status check or what you need to do after submitting your NSFAS application online. So let’s get started.

My NSFAS Status Check

Before we start discussing NSFAS steps to check the status of your application, there are a few things that I think you should know about this financial aid scheme. Like many other governments, the South African government has announced NSFAS for needy students.

  • Any student applying for this scheme should not have a gross income of more than R35,000 per annum.
  • It was a non-profitable scheme till 2000. But they have changed their policy lately. Now, whoever takes this financial aid has to return the loan as soon as they start making at least R 80,000 annually.

How To Know If NSFAS Will Be Funding Your Education?

Many people after submitting an NSFAS application online wonder how they will know if in the future they will be funded by the NSFAS or not. Well, the simple answer to this question is to check your application status on your NSFAS account. The NSFAS portal allows you to keep a track of your application status.

Steps To Check NSFAS Status

Now coming back to the topic have you applied for the NSFAS and wondering what the status of your application is? If yes, then continue reading this article. After submitting your NSFAS application all you can do is wait until they accept or reject your application. To know whether NSFAS is funding your application you need to keep a track of your application. Follow below-mentioned steps:

  • Log in to your NSFAS account on their official website.
  • Enter your account information like username and password.
  • Click Sign in or press enter.
  • Once your NSFAS student portal is open just click on “Track Funding Progress”.

NSFAS Application Statuses and Their Meanings

Keep in mind you will not get this aid the moment you submit your application. The process takes time as they need to cross-check your information whether it is correct or not. This is why students are advised to keep a track of their funding progress. If you want to know the meanings of status messages on your portal then read the points below.

Application Submitted

“Application Submitted” will be shown when you have filled in all your information in the online application to apply for the NSFAS and your application is saved in their system.

Filtering

If your NSFAS application status is showing “Filtering” it means the system is verifying your application’s academic information.

Validation

Validation is when NSFAS cross-checks your information with the Department of Home Affairs and SASSA.

Evaluation

If your application status is ‘evaluation’ it means that NSFAS is verifying all your information if it’s correct or not.

Funding Eligibility

“Funding Eligibility” will be shown when NSFAS will be verifying your household’s gross income if it matches the one you mentioned on the application then it will be forwarded for the next steps.

Awaiting Academic Results or Admission

“Awaiting Academic Results or Admission” will be shown on your portal when NFSAS is checking the admission status and academic results of the institute of your choice to make sure it is fulfilling the eligibility criteria of NFSAS.

Awaiting Registration

If your application status is “Awaiting Registration” it means that NSFAS is waiting for the agreement response from your institute.

Signing of Agreement

“Signing of Agreement” when your application has gone through all the above-mentioned procedures then NSFAS will send you an agreement to sign to get funding from NSFAS.

Payments

“Payments” is an indication that you are getting the allowances from NSFAS. It can be sent directly to your NSFAS wallet or the institute.

Thousands of students apply for NSFAS every year and each application goes through several channels to complete the procedure. Just like much other funding aids NFSAS also has its requirements that need to be met to get the funding. Congratulations if your application has successfully made to payments step because not all applications end up being funded by NSFAS.

Why My NSFAS Application Is Rejected?

Just like other financial aid schemes, NSFAS also rejects applications if they fail to meet the criteria. It will be shown on your portal as a “rejected/unsuccessful” application status. The following are the reasons why an NSFAS application is rejected along with its application status on the portal.

  • “Application is deceased” the application is submitted in the name of a deceased person or the DHA ( Department of Home Affairs) information is not correct.
  • “Application received after closing date” if you have applied after the last date of the application submission then your application will be automatically rejected.
  • “DHA Error” when NSFAS finds no information about the applicant on the DHA database.
  • “Missing supporting documents” in this case applicant with no parents can submit a declaration form and appeal again for eligibility.
  • “Not eligible for funding” if you are receiving financial aid from other sources your NSFAS application will be rejected.
  • “Income more than R350k” is one of the major requirements for NSFAS fund. If the income of your household is above R350k then your application will be rejected by NSFAS.
  • “Report 191 in academic career” if TVET students fail to follow the NSFAS rule their application will be rejected.
  • “Did not meet the 50% academic progression requirements” if you are a returning student and do not meet the NSFAS eligibility criteria then your application will be rejected.
  • “Highest qualification level already achieved” NSFAS does not finance postgraduate courses so if you are applying for NSFAS with a postgraduate course they will reject your application.




Your NSFAS application can be rejected based on any of the above-mentioned reasons. NSFAS has very strict rules and eligibility criteria to make sure only needy students get the funds. Moreover, if you think there is some mistake in the process then you can appeal within 30 days of receiving the unsuccessful application status on your portals.

FAQs

How do I check my status on myNSFAS account log-in?

You can check your status on your NSFAS account in just three simple steps.
Go to the NSFAS log-in page.
Enter your username and password to sign in.
After signing in click on Track Funding Progress to check the status of your application.

How do I check if NSFAS has funded me?

NSFAS sends a response to all applicants after the confirmation from the institute of your choice. After the confirmation, NSFAS can either accept your application or reject it. You will be informed through an SMS or an email either way. You can also confirm it from your NSFAS account.

Does NSFAS send money to my bank account?

No, NSFAS has no such policy of sending money to the bank account. They will either send the funds to your NSFAS wallet or directly send the money to your institute.

Can NSFAS reject you?

Yes, NSFAS does reject applications. It happens in case of forged information, or documents or the applicant has failed to meet the eligibility criteria set by NSFAS.

Final Thoughts

Many needy South African students get financial help from their government in the form of NSFAS. All you have to do is submit your application online and they will send you funds to continue your studies if you meet their eligibility criteria. To check your application status follow the below-mentioned steps.

  • Go to the NSFAS log-in page.
  • Enter your username and password to log in.
  • Click on Track Funding Progress to check the application status.

Many students miss the opportunity because they fail to sign the agreement sent to them on their portal by the NSFAS. This is why you should keep a track of your application to know if you will get NSFAS funds for your education or not. I hope after reading our article you will be able to check your NSFAS status without any difficulty. Thank you for your time.