The first phase of Nigeria’s interest-free student loan scheme has commenced today, Friday 24 May 2024, with federal tertiary institutions being the first set of beneficiaries across the country.
The loan website, www.nelf.gov.ng became active midnight Friday, now allowing students to visit and promptly apply for the loan.
The Managing Director of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Akintunde Sawyer, during an earlier pre-application sensitisation media briefing, said the portal will be opened for applicants, with Federal tertiary institutions being the first set of beneficiaries while state Tertiary Institutions and those seeking Skills acquisition will benefit in a later batch.
Subsequently, the fund provided step-by-step guidelines on how to apply for the student loan.
CREATING AN ACCOUNT
Step 1: visit www.nelf.gov.ng
Step 2: Click on the “Apply Now”
Step 3: Click on “Get Started”
Step 4: Answer the questions on this page to continue by clicking on “Yes, I am a Nigerian”
Step 5: Verify your educational information. You would be required to select your school from a dropdown and provide your matric number to check if your school has uploaded your details.
Step 6: Click the “Verify with JAMB” and enter your JAMB details in the screen.
(Students whose NIN has not been registered with JAMB will have an input field where they can enter their NIN for validation.)
Step 7: Create an account by entering your Email address, Password and Confirm Password in the fields provided and click “Create Account”.
Step 8: Click the email verification link sent to your email.
This concludes the process of creating an account.
HOW TO COMPLETE YOUR PROFILE
After successful registration, log in by clicking the “Log in” button.
Step 1: Enter your email address and password to Login.
Step 2: Click on the “Proceed to Contact Details” button.
Step 3: Update contact details with the current information of your Phone Number, Full Residential Address, State of Residence and Local Government Area of Residence and click “Proceed to Educational Details”
Step 4: Update your educational details by selecting your Higher Institution and inputting your Matric Number, then click “Proceed to Account Details”
Step 5: Verify your BVN by entering your BVN, select your Bank Name and enter your Account Number. Click “Save Changes” to complete your profile.
LOAN APPLICATION
Step 1: Click on the “Request for Student Loan” button at the top right of the screen on the home or loans page after logging into the application.
Step 2: If you want an upkeep loan, click the check box, and click Continue, if all you need is the institutional charge, click the “Continue” button.
Step 3: Upload supporting documents. The admission letter is compulsory which the Student ID and Institution Invoice are optional.
Click the checkbox for the policy and declaration and click “Continue”
Step 4: Read the loan overview and click the check boxes for both the Terms & Conditions and GSI Mandate then click “Submit Application”
Step 5: Click on the “Loans” button to view the status of your application.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, while signing into law the re-enacted students loan scheme Bill last month, promised that all eligible Nigerians students in the country will benefit from the scheme as it is meant to take off the financial burden from parents and students.
By tenets of the Act, a student’s school fees will be paid by the federal government including a monthly stipend for upkeep.
