How To Fix Some Common Issues On The Student Loan Portal

Students applying for student loan might encounter some issues when applying for the student loan on the student loan portal. Here are some ways to rectify some common issues when applying for the student loan on the student loan portal:

Q. BVN is bringing another person's name on the student loan portal how can I rectify this?

A. Students should please ensure they input the correct BVN. If the problem continues on the student loan portal, the applicant should please contact his or her bank.

Q. I could not register on the student loan portal because of this missing information "Student Records" prompt on the student loan portal. What should I do?

A. Please contact your Director ICT through email and explain the challenges you are facing on the student loan portal.

Q. Please about the student loan I want to apply but I want to be sure if the student loan application is for the next academic level I am in 300 level now and I have paid my fees and currently I am resuming for second semester.

A. Please go ahead and apply for the student loan the fees will be paid for your next session, not your current level.

Q. The school fees for the next academic session will be paid for with the student loan and not the current session as most students would have already paid for this session or missed the deadline, for the applicants that want to apply for the upkeep with the school fees.

A. Students will start receiving monthly upkeep upon disbursement of institutional fees.

Q. Successfully created and verified my account on the student loan portal but when I want to login into the student loan portal it says invalid login credentials, I try to reset password but the password reset email never comes.

A. Ensure to provide the correct email address and JAMB registration number on the student loan portal.

Q. I Have not seen anyone approved since for the student loan.

A. Students that applied for the student loan will begin to get approval notification from 25th June. After approvals, the next step is disbursement of the student loan. Everything is step by step.

Q. Some students were only being offered admission by the university not JAMB,

so they could not pass jamb details verification on the student loan portal. How can they resolve this on the student loan portal?

A. They should kindly regularize their admission with JAMB and re-apply for the student loan.

Q. I could not apply for the student because my school name is not on the student loan portal.

A. kindly try again

Q. I keep getting invalid institutional fee charges on the student loan portal.

A. Kindly contact the ICT directorate in your university to upload your institution charges to the NELFUND SVS. Your university is yet to upload your fees schedule.

Q. Can I cancel the student loan and leave the upkeep? Is it possible?

A. You can only get the upkeep if you applied for institution fees. However, you can decide not to take the monthly upkeep by opting for the fees alone.

Q. Incase the name on the BVN is not the same as the name on NIN, is there any solution?

A. Please ensure that the name on your BVN matches the account name and NIN you provided on the student loan portal.

Q. Will the institution fee paid to the school directly or to my bank account? And what will happen if I already paid my school fees and just want to return to the source?

A. The institution fee will be paid directly to the institution while the upkeep will be paid directly to the student’s bank account. There is no provision for reimbursement of already paid school fees as NELFUND will pay only for subsequent sessions.

Q. There is no provision for postgraduate students in federal higher institutions to apply for the student loan because jamb number is compulsory and post graduate students do not have jamb registration number.

What is the fate of the postgraduate students on the student loan?

A. The Student Loan Program is only open to undergraduate students of public tertiary institutions for now.

NELFUND Commence Verification And Approval of Student Loan Application

NELFUND has started verifying and approving student loan applications. According to NELFUND, once the student's loan application is verified and approved, disbursement of the student loan follows soon. The student loan is only for students in federal government owned institutions and universities.

According to NELFUND student loan application for state owned universities will commence by June 24th, applicants in private universities and national open universities are not eligible to apply for the student loan at the moment but the student loan application might be extended to these institutions in future. 

The student loan will be used to support students in universities to relieve the financial burdens on tution and other educational levies incurred by students during their course of study so that they can achieve their academic aspirations and educational pursuit. 

The student loan will be repaid after two years of completing the mandatory NYSC program and the student loan is interest free. Applicants without jamb registration number and matriculation number will not be able to complete the student loan application successfully, as jamb registration number and matriculation number is an important requirement to applying for the student loan. Students enrolled in part time programmes without jamb registration number will not be eligible to receive the student loan. Applicants yet to complete the student loan application are advised to complete their student loan application quickly in order to receive the student loan when disbursement commences.

Federal Government Requests Eighteen-Month Extension on World Bank's $800,000,000 Palliative Loan To Fund Conditional Cash Transfer

The Federal Government of Nigeria has reportedly requested an Eighteen-month extension on the closing date of the World Bank’s $800,000,000 palliative loan, initially set for June 30, 2024, to December 31, 2025.

The palliative loan is part of the federal government’s effort to foster its social safety net programmes; which includes conditional cash transfer, and to provide conditional cash transfer support to Nigerians affected by high inflation, following the removal of fuel subsidies and other macroeconomic challenges.

According to a World Bank restructuring paper, about 3,000,000 poor and vulnerable households have benefited from the $800,000,000 palliative loan. Of these beneficiaries, seven hundred thousand households were from rural areas and about 2,500,000 households were from urban areas.

“Since its start, about 30,000,000 beneficiaries have been covered by social safety net programs, and about 3,000,000 poor and vulnerable households have received shock-responsive conditional cash transfers as of May 2024. Of these beneficiaries of the conditional cash transfer, seven hundred thousand households were from rural areas and about 2,500,000 households were from urban areas, one thousand six hundred and fifty seven urban wards have been covered through the targeting system developed under the project,” the document read.

The extension also reportedly seeks to realign project timelines and improve the efficacy of the National Social Safety Net Programme-Scale Up, with the project’s targeting system covering one thousand six hundred and fifty two urban wards.

The Federal Government of Nigeria intends to use this palliative loan to fund a monthly conditional cash transfer programme for poor and vulnerable Nigerians who have been disproportionately affected by recent policies such as the elimination of fuel subsidies.

The document read: “This paper seeks approval from the Country Director for a Level II restructuring of the National Social Safety Net Program Scale-Up project (NASSP-SU, P176935, Credit No. 7019-NG), an US$800,000,000 Investment Project Financing (IPF).

“The restructuring will extend the project closing date by 18 months from June 30, 2024 to December 31, 2025. The benefit size and duration of the conditional cash transfers under component 1 will also be changed.

“Despite earlier delays, the project remains central to the government’s ambitious plan to provide temporary cash transfer support to the population affected adversely by high inflation, particularly in the wake of the fuel subsidy removal and other macroeconomic reforms the government is undertaking.

“No financial or audit reports are pending, and there are no changes in the audit requirements. There have been some delays in procuring key service providers, and contract management practices are being improved by building the capacity of the PIU’s procurement team. The World Bank will keep providing embedded support to the project to improve the financial management and procurement practices.

“Finally, the chairmanship of the project’s national steering committee will be changed from the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation to the Minister of Finance. This is the first restructuring and extension of the project’s closing date.”

Source: https://guardian.ng/nigeria-seeks-18-month-extension-on-world-banks-800m-palliative-loan/

NELFUND Student Loan

The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) student loan is more than a financial aid program, the NELFUND student loan scheme was established by the Federal Government of Nigeria, the student loan is a beacon of hope for Nigerian students pursuing higher education. Through the provision of interest-free student loans,

NELFUND is basically restructuring the educational landscape.

The Federal Government of Nigeria through the NELFUND student loan scheme strives to revolutionise higher education accessibility in Nigeria by providing interest-free student loans to eligible students in tertiary institutions of learning, thereby breaking down financial barriers, burdens and limitations and empowering Nigerian students to pursue their academic aspirations.

Aims of The NELFUND Student Loan 

The following are the aims of the NELFUND Student Loan: 

1) To provide accessible interest-free student loans for higher education.

2) To ensure equal access to quality education for all eligible students in tertiary institutions in Nigeria.

3) To foster a knowledge-driven economy through education.

Objectives of The NELFUND Student Loan

The following below are the objectives of the NELFUND Student Loan:

1) Foster financial access to higher education.

2) Partner and collaborate with stakeholders for Impact.

3) Enable equal opportunity for all Nigerian students in tertiary institutions.

4) Promote education for national and economic growth and development.

Simple Steps To Secure NELFUND Student Loan 

The following steps below can be used by students in tertiary institutions in Nigeria to apply for the student loan: 

Step 1: The applicant should register on the NELFUND student loan application portal by pressing the “APPLY NOW” button to get started.

Step 2: The applicant should press the "Request for Student Loan" button and complete the student loan application steps and click the submit button.

Step 3: The student's loan application will be reviewed. After successful verification, the student loan will be paid to the student's university for institutional charge, while the upkeep loan will be paid to the bank account the student have provided on the NELFUND student loan portal.

Frequently Asked Questions Regarding The NELFUND Student Loan

The following below are everything you need to know about the NELFUND student loan and repayment process:

Q.Under what circumstances would NELFUND deny a student loan application?

A. NELFUND can deny a student loan application if such an applicant is: 

i) Proven to have defaulted in respect of any previous loan granted by any license financial institution

ii) Found guilty of submitting fake/fraudulent documents

iii) Dismissed or expelled for exam malpractices by any school authority

iv) Convicted of fraud and forgery, drug offences, cultism, felony, or any offences involving dishonesty

Q. Are there any documents to upload during the student loan application process?

Yes. 

i) Scanned admission letter for new students, this is compulsory 

ii) Scanned Student Identification Card this is not compulsory

Q. Is there any appeal process when an student loan application is denied?

A. A complaint can be raised from the student loan portal, or the applicant can send an email to the NELFUND

Q. What are the consequences of defaulting on the student loan?

A. Deliberate default could result in penalties, legal action, and potential damage to the beneficiary's credit score.

Q. Do students require a guarantor to access the student loan?

A. No. The student loan application process do not require a guarantor.

Q. How do I repay the student loan when I am relocating abroad?

A. Beneficiary of the student loan will contact the NELFUND and sign an agreement with modalities to repay.

Q. What if I have the money to pay back the student loan before I get a job

A. The beneficiary can repay the student loan once he or she has the money to pay back the student loan, even before he or she gets a job. 

Q. How will the student loan repayment process work?

A. The following are ways in which the student loan repayment process works:

i) 10% of the beneficiary’s salary will be deducted at source by the employer. 

ii) Self-employed beneficiaries are required to remit 10% of their monthly profit to NELFUND. The beneficiary is at liberty to seek to repay the student loan beyond the statutory 10% monthly repayment by his or her employers or by his or herself if he or she is self-employed.

Q. What happens if a beneficiary does not have job after 2 years post-NYSC?

A. The beneficiary should notify NELFUND by sworn court affidavit every 3 months after 2 years post NYSC if the beneficiary is still unable to get a job.

Q. When is the student loan due for repayment?

A. The student loan is due for repayment 2 years after the completion of NYSC