By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The 2027 National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) application cycle is officially opened and will close on 18 November 2026 for the 2027 academic year.
Higher Education and Training Minister Buti Manamela launched the application cycle at the Mining Qualifications Authority offices in Parktown, Johannesburg.
Manamela said, successful applicants are expected to receive funding outcomes in December, ahead of registration for the upcoming academic year.
He said, NSFAS had undergone significant institutional change during the past four months, moving from administration back to a board-led governance structure.
The changes were aimed at strengthening the organisation’s stability, governance and ability to provide financial assistance to students who depend on the scheme to enter and complete higher education and training, he said.
“The stability of NSFAS is not an end in itself,” Manamela said, stressing that each application represented a young person’s prospects of accessing further education.
The 2027 cycle will introduce several technological and administrative changes intended to address longstanding problems in the processing of student funding.
These include the direct extraction of student information from institutional systems, automated document verification, electronic document signing and a modernised student-support environment designed to improve response times.
Student registration and banking details will also undergo strengthened verification through collaboration with the Department of Home Affairs, according to the minister.
NSFAS has also been working to improve its appeals system following historical weaknesses, with the aim of providing clearer communication and ensuring appeals are processed according to defined rules and timelines.
The overhaul comes as demand for financial assistance continues to increase, with NSFAS recording a record number of applications during the 2026 funding cycle, Manamela said.
Manamela said work had begun on a Loan Management System to strengthen the administration of loans for these students, as government seeks to establish an additional funding route for those who do not qualify for NSFAS bursaries.
NSFAS is receiving an annual budget of R56 billion from the government, Manamela said NSFAS faces a R15 billion shortfall.
Manamela said this deficit could double within the next three years unless the government intervenes to reassess the scheme’s funding model.
“We are in talks with Treasury about a R15 billion shortfall,” Manamela said. “Last year it was R13 billion. The year before it was R7 billion, and the year before that it was R5 billion.”
Manamela said this funding gap should not be attributed solely to the scheme’s administrative problems, but also to the structure of its funding policy.
According to Manamela, discussions around more sustainable funding solutions have included the potential introduction of an income-based loan system.
There has been an urgent review of the NSFAS Act and for the decentralisation of student funding administration, so that institutions are more responsible for delivering their own funding directly to students.
Manamela’s decision to dissolve the NSFAS board in May 2026 and appoint an administrator to oversee the scheme was overturned by the Pretoria High Court in August.
The seven-member board was subsequently reinstated, while Manamela’s appointment of Professor Hlengani Mathebula as NSFAS administrator was suspended.