NELFUND Sets October Date to Reopen Student Loan Portal

The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has announced the date to reopen the application portal for the 2025/2026 academic session.

This comes as the 2024/2025 academic session will officially close on Tuesday, September 30, 2025.

The announcement was made by NELFUND’s Managing Director, Akintunde Sawyerr, during a news conference in Abuja on Monday.

He explained that the closure was necessary to conclude the processing of pending applications and upkeep payments for beneficiaries.

Sawyerr also disclosed that the portal will reopen in the second week of October 2025 for new applications and remain open until January 2026, giving prospective applicants a three-month window to submit their requests.

“NELFUND remains committed to removing financial barriers for students and working with institutions to ensure that no eligible student is left behind. These timelines provide clarity for students, parents, and institutions to plan ahead and participate fully in the process,” he said.

The managing director directed institutions to update their students’ records on the Student Verification System (SVS) to enable applicants to access the scheme.

He warned that all unverified applications for 2024/2025 would be automatically cancelled after October 8, 2025, with affected students required to reapply under the new session. Sawyerr cautioned institutions against laxity in updating records, noting that schools that fail to comply will risk being publicly listed for non-compliance.

On upkeep stipends, Sawyerr explained that the payment for the 2024/2025 session would continue until November, adding that students were expected to reapply for 2025/2026 to continue receiving payments.

On repayment terms, he reiterated that the scheme remained interest-free while repayment would begin two years after completion of the National Youth Service Corps, with employers mandated to deduct 10 per cent of beneficiaries’ salaries.

He further expressed concern over arbitrary hikes in tuition and ancillary fees by some institutions, noting that a committee set up by the Minister of Education is working with regulators to harmonise and standardise fee structures across institutions.

Responding to concerns about upkeep stipends, he said the current ₦20,000 monthly allowance would not be increased immediately.

Sawyerr said an ongoing review of cost-of-living indices across different regions could, however, lead to weighted adjustments in the future.

Meanwhile, from the latest NELFUND Student Loan Disbursement Daily Status Report, a total of 839,465 applications have been received since the portal launched on May 24, 2024, with 581,878 students benefiting from the scheme so far.

As of September 26, 2025, N107.6 billion has been disbursed, which includes N61.3 billion for institutional fees and N46.3 billion for upkeep allowances.

The report also shows that 231 institutions have benefited from the payments.