Accommodation providers urged to end demanding deposit from NSFAS funded students
Accommodation providers urged to end demanding deposit from NSFAS funded students
Blog Article
The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) has urged landlords not to require a deposit or top-up payment from NSFAS-funded students.
This comes after NSFAS been given experiences about some accommodation vendors who require NSFAS-funded students to pay for a deposit or top-up payment as a way to get entry to the permitted private accommodation.
Friday, February 7, 2025
"NSFAS reminds accommodation suppliers on the obligatory conditions, as furnished by the Standardised Fixed-Term Lease Arrangement among the private accommodation suppliers and NSFAS funded students," NSFAS mentioned in a statement on Thursday.
The Standardised Fixed-Term Lease Agreement states which the lease are going to be paid every month to the accommodation provider (lessor) by NSFAS, on behalf of the lessee (NSFAS funded student), in accordance with the NSFAS conditions and terms for personal accommodation companies’ participation on the student accommodation portal.
"The lessor may not call for or allow the lessee to pay for a deposit, top-up payments, or another varieties of payment for the lessor, or some other person in connection with this arrangement, which include payment of lease, although awaiting payment from NSFAS. The lessor shall don't have any recourse towards the nsfas allowances lessee for any default inside the payment of rent by NSFAS," the agreement reads.
The NSFAS terms and conditions for private accommodation providers’ participation on the student accommodation portal also states that: "Where the NSFAS-funded student is defunded as a result of an incorrect selection by NSFAS, the scholar won't be accountable for payment of any arrear rent for the accommodation service provider, up until eventually the date of being defunded."
NSFAS spelled out that exactly where the NSFAS-funded student chooses to continue occupying the leased premises, notwithstanding becoming defunded by NSFAS, the student will be accountable for payment of rent towards the lessor from your date of being defunded.
"Where the student is defunded by NSFAS due to a misrepresentation by the lessee/guardian at any stage, the student must immediately vacate the leased property; and will be liable for payment of all rent due to the accommodation check here provider.
"Where here the student moves, accommodation providers without the prior approval of NSFAS, NSFAS may elect not to pay any rental to the new accommodation provider, and any such website rental payments will be for the student own account," the scheme said.
The scheme emphasised that any dispute arising between the parties regarding the interpretation or implementation of nsfas eligibility criteria the agreement, must be dealt with in accordance with any dispute resolution procedure determined by NSFAS for this purpose.
From: SAnews.gov.za