Are you a student funded by NSFAS and you're interested in applying for the Special Relief of Distress (SRD) grant? Wondering if you qualify? SASSA has now provided some clarification as many questions like this has flooded in.
In response, SASSA has plainly said:
If you are currently funded by NSFAS, you do not qualify for the R350 Social Relief Grant.
In order to be eligible for the SRD grant, you need to not be receiving any other incomes, grants or financial support which includes any money from UIF, SASSA or NSFAS.
You also have to be a 18 to 59 year old South African citizen or permanent resident, asylum seeker or a holder of a special permit to be in the country to qualify for the grant.
The agency continued to say, "NSFAS does not take the R350 grant into account when processing applications for funding as such a grant does not form part of the eligibility criteria for the NSFAS Bursary".
This means that should you be asking the reverse question of 'will NSFAS fund me if I receive the R350 grant', you'd be happy to know that they don't look at the grant.
Instead, you have to meet the other NSFAS requirements such as the main one which is to have a household income that comes to less than R350 000 per annum.
Should you however be receiving any other SASSA grants besides the R350 grant, you will immediately qualify to be funded by NSFAS.
Another fact to remember is that the R350 grant has an age limit of 59 but the NSFAS bursary does not.
R350 grant applications are now open and will close at the end of March 2022. Click here to find out how to submit your SRD grant application.
If you are currently funded by NSFAS, you do not qualify for the R350 Social Relief Grant.
Furthermore, NSFAS does not take the R350 grant into account when processing applications for funding as such a grant does not form part of the eligibility criteria for the NSFAS Bursary pic.twitter.com/5RK1pNSq0j
— NSFAS (@myNSFAS) August 18, 2021
