HELB Loan Application Process for First Time Applicants

KCSE candidates successfully placed by  Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) are eligible for a Higher Education Loans Board education loan which can be applied through the HELB portal.

HELB gives undergraduate students a minimum loan of 35,000 Kenya shillings and a maximum of 50, 000 shillings, and a bursary of Ksh. 8,000 depending on their needs.

Higher Education Loans Board also gives loans to private-sponsored undergraduate students.

Students under TVET who are placed through KUCCPS can apply for a loan of up to 40,000 Kenya shillings.

All loans attract an interest rate of 4%, beginning from the time you receive the loan. So take caution to apply only for the amount of money you really need!

Once you have applied for HELB loan, you can check the loan status by following the steps here: How To Check if Your HELB Loan is Disbursed.

HELB Loan Application Requirements

To successfully apply for HELB loan, you must provide the following documents and information;

• Photocopy of your National ID card
• Your own KRA Pin, registered under your name
• Your Bank Account details (for convenience, use Equity)
• Photocopy of KCPE and KCSE documents
• Parents details including a photocopy of national ID cards/Death certificate if deceased.
• An email address for communication purposes
• Details of at least 2 guarantors already employed, including photocopies of their national IDs.
• One recent colored passport-sized photograph
• A photocopy of your admission letter

How to Apply for HELB Loan

Visit the HELB student portal and sign up for an account.

• Fill in your details as accurate as possible and avoid skipping any information
• Once you have logged into your account, click on the First Time Undergraduate Loan Application link.
• Carefully read and fill the First Time Undergraduate Loan Application Form (LAF).
• Now use the print button to print two copies of the duly filled Loan Application Form.
• Take your form to guarantors and relevant authorities and make sure relevant sections are filled, signed, and stamped.
• Sign your completed form and attach all the required documents as indicated on the last page of the Loan Application Form.
• Keep one copy of the completed form and submit the other form to HELB offices at anniversary towers or to the Huduma Centres.

Subsequent loan applications can also be done on the HELB app or USSD code *642#.

Here are the HELB application deadlines for various loan facilities:

First time undergraduate and TVET students have until December 31st, 2021 to make loan applications, accessed only through the HELB student portal.

Second and Subsequent times TVET applicants can apply for HELB loans through the HELB App or USSD Code *642# before the deadline of 31st December 2021.

Jielimishe Loan for employed students, and Civil Servants TRF loan, can be accessed through the Helb Student Portal on or  before 30th June 2022.

How Your Loan will be Disbursed

Please make sure you apply at least a month before the deadline for quicker processing of your loan.

For government-sponsored students under KUCCPS, Ksh. 4,000 is deducted per semester (total Ksh. 8,000) and sent to the university directly towards your tuition fees.

The rest is sent to your bank account for upkeep.

HELB will deduct Ksh. 500 per year from your loan as an administrative fee.

Some selected needy students receive a HELB bursary between Ksh. 4,000 to 8,000.This is sent directly to the university.

For students under private sponsorship, all the money is sent to the university.

How to Repay HELB Loan

Repayment starts one year after you complete your studies. However, you can repay part of the loan as you study or within this period to reduce the amount of your loan.

Take Note that late repayment of the loan, whether you are working or not, attracts a penalty of Ksh. 5,000 per month. Each penalty accrues interest until you start repaying the loan.

HELB loan is repayable up to a duration of 120 months, being charged at an interest of 4% per annum.

TVET Loans