Missing Middle Student Loan

Household R350k – R600k / yr Undergrad + TVET Income-contingent repayment 2027 first intake

Read DHET briefing

Loan, not bursaryRepayment when earningAbove NSFAS ceilingGovernment-backed

Who this is for

South Africa has two long-standing student-funding rails: the NSFAS bursary for households under R350,000 a year and private banks for families able to service a home-loan-style repayment. Between them sits the "missing middle" — households earning too much for NSFAS but too little to fund university out of after-tax income. The DHET Missing Middle Student Loan closes that gap. It is a concessional, income-contingent loan aimed at households earning between R350,000 and R600,000 per year, with the first cohort registering for the 2027 academic year.

Where the loan sits alongside NSFAS

Under R350k

NSFAS bursary

Fully funded: tuition, residence, meals, books, transport. Nothing to repay.

R350k – R600k

Missing Middle Loan

Government-backed loan for tuition and fees. Repayment kicks in only once you are earning above the graduate threshold.

Above R600k

Private / self-fund

Bank study loans, employer bursaries, or family contribution. No state-backed instrument.

Repayment: income-contingent, not bond-style

Repayment only starts once your gross annual income passes the graduate threshold (proposed at R100,000 a year). You then pay a percentage of income above the threshold, not a fixed monthly instalment. If you lose your job or drop below the threshold, repayment pauses automatically. Interest is charged at CPI, capped at the SARB repo rate. There is no penalty for early settlement.

Rollout timeline

Q4 2026DHET publishes the final loan regulations and pilots the online application form on the myNSFAS portal alongside the existing bursary cycle.
Jan – Feb 2027First cohort applies during the standard NSFAS window. Same portal, separate stream for missing-middle applicants.
Mar – Apr 2027Loan agreements signed at institutional registration. First tuition disbursement to universities and TVET colleges.
From 2028 onwardsCycle repeats annually. Repayment tracked through SARS once graduates enter the workforce.

Who qualifies

South African citizen or permanent resident
Household combined gross income R350,001 to R600,000 a year
Accepted at a public university or TVET college
Not currently on a NSFAS bursary or another government scholarship

Things still being finalised

The proposed R100,000 repayment threshold, the CPI-linked interest rate, and the annual loan ceiling are still moving between DHET, National Treasury, and Parliament. The 2027 launch date is confirmed, but numbers can move by a few percentage points before the final regulations are gazetted in Q4 2026. Bookmark this page and check back in early December for the final version.

Last verified: 15 September 2026Source: dhet.gov.zaReviewed by grantZA Editorial

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