HESLGB student loan
How Malawi’s Higher Education Students’ Loans and Grants Board decides who gets a loan, how to apply on SFMIS, the documents and affidavit you need, and how the loan is paid back.
- Apply fee: MK10,000
- Upkeep: up to K560,000/yr
- Window: 30 days
Quick answer: The Higher Education Students’ Loans and Grants Board (HESLGB) lends tuition and upkeep money to needy Malawian students at accredited universities and colleges. You apply online only at sfmis.heslgb.mw, once a year, during a 30-day window (for 2026/27 it closed on 24 June 2026). You need your National ID, a guarantor and their ID, a signed guarantor consent form, a stamped affidavit and, for first-years, your admission letter, and you pay a MK10,000 fee by mobile money. Upkeep is up to K560,000 a year. Repayment starts two years after you finish, at 15% interest a year.
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Who can get a HESLGB loan?
From the board’s loan pages and its 2026/27 window notice.
You must be a needy Malawian with a National ID, selected for or already studying an accredited generic degree programme at an accredited public or private institution (the NCHE list). You need six credits at MSCE or equivalent where it applies, and continuing students must have passed the year.
You cannot be fully funded by someone else, and if you went to an elite school you must show evidence that you are needy. The board also asks for good conduct, commitment to your studies and a commitment to pay the loan back. Every application is scored on the information you give, so be accurate.
- Who
- Needy Malawian students
- Study
- Accredited generic degree
- Grades
- Six MSCE credits
- Renewal
- Apply again every year
How to apply for a HESLGB loan
Applications are entirely online at sfmis.heslgb.mw, the board’s Student Financing Management Information System. No paper copies are accepted.
Watch for the window to open
The board opens applications once a year and keeps them open for 30 days only. For 2026/27 it announced the window on 24 May 2026 and closed it on 24 June 2026. Watch heslgb.mw news and the board’s Facebook page for the next one, and trust only the board’s own channels.
Register on SFMIS
Go to sfmis.heslgb.mw, tap Register and create an account with a working email address. Your names must match your National ID exactly. Forgot the password? Use Forgot password on the sign-in page and follow the reset link the system emails you.
Get the affidavit and guarantor form stamped and signed
Download the Affidavit/Solemn Declaration (SFMIS > Downloads, or Documents inside your profile) and the Guarantor Consent Form. Print and fill the affidavit, then have it certified and stamped by the District Commissioner’s office, a magistrate or a lawyer. In 2026 the Malawi Law Society and the Women Lawyers Association did this free for loan applicants; take your National ID.
Fill the form and upload everything
Complete the application and upload the documents. Applications without every required document are not processed.
Pay MK10,000 by mobile money and submit
From 2026/27 the MK10,000 non-refundable application fee is paid by mobile money inside SFMIS; the old bank deposit slip is gone. Submit, and check your inbox for the email confirmation. The board asks applicants to submit early to avoid last-minute problems.
Beware of fake ‘orientations’. In April 2026 HESLGB warned that people posing as the board were charging students for loan application orientations. The board does not charge for its orientations. Never pay anyone to apply for you.
Documents for a HESLGB loan application
The 2026/27 notice lists what every applicant must upload.
Everyone: your National ID; a signed Guarantor Consent Form; your guarantor’s National ID; and an affidavit or solemn declaration sworn before a commissioner for oaths. The affidavit is needed every year, by first-years and continuing students alike, because each year’s application is treated as new.
First-years: your student ID or admission letter. Private university and ODeL students: your MSCE certificate. No National ID yet? See our National ID guide.
- Fee
- MK10,000, mobile money
- Affidavit
- Every applicant, every year
- Guarantor
- Form + their National ID
- MSCE
- ODeL and private HEIs
What happens after you apply
The board runs the same seven stages every year.
Screening
HESLGB and your university or college check every application against the eligibility rules.
Provisional approval and lists
The board’s directors approve a provisional list, which is published for public scrutiny. The 2026/27 lists are on the board’s Resources page, one PDF per institution. Left out? Past cycles had an appeal window on SFMIS; watch the board’s notices.
Vetting
The board and the institution remove students who have a scholarship or other funding, or who are repeating or were withdrawn on academic grounds.
Bonding
If you are approved you sign the loan contract.
Disbursement
Tuition goes straight to the university or college. Upkeep (up to K560,000 a year, according to the board) goes to the student’s account.
ODeL loans and grants
Open, Distance and e-Learning (ODeL) students can get loans too (supported by the World Bank SAVE project, priority fields education, health, agriculture, energy, ICT and industry). For 2026/27 every ODeL student, including those already on SAVE, had to submit a new application with an MSCE certificate.
Grants do not need an application: from second year, university registrars send the board lists of academically outstanding students (a distinction for the whole year), and the board picks grant winners with gender balance in mind. You stay on a grant only while your results stay outstanding.
- ODeL
- Reapply every year
- Grants
- From 2nd year, by merit
- Funding 2026/27
- MK42 billion budget
- Target 2026/27
- About 38,000 students
How to pay back a HESLGB loan
From the board’s repayment page and its April 2026 notice on the Higher Education Students’ Loans and Grants Act.
Repayment is due two years after you finish your studies (or stop them). Interest is 15% a year and starts after that two-year grace period, and you have five years to clear the loan. Employed? Your employer deducts it from your salary each month. Self-employed? Pay the board monthly. You can also pay the whole balance at once.
Pay by cash, cheque or online transfer to National Bank account 1002261808 (Higher Education Loans Recovery Account, City Centre branch) or NBS Bank account 21942219 (HESLGB Recoveries), then email the proof to [email protected] for a receipt and, at the end, a completion letter.
Check your balance on the SFMIS quick statement or by emailing [email protected] (or calling 0992 349 160 / 0885 890 520) with your full name (maiden name if married), years of study, college, student registration number and National ID number. Employers must tell the board within 30 days when they hire a former beneficiary and remit deductions within 15 days of the month end, or face fines.
- Starts
- 2 years after studies
- Interest
- 15% a year
- Term
- 5 years
- Balance
- SFMIS quick statement
HESLGB links
HESLGB loan FAQ
When does the HESLGB loan application open?
Once a year, for 30 days. The 2026/27 window was announced on 24 May 2026 and closed on 24 June 2026. The next date is announced on heslgb.mw and the board’s Facebook page.
How much is the HESLGB application fee?
MK10,000, non-refundable, paid by mobile money inside the SFMIS application (no more bank deposit slips).
How much upkeep does HESLGB give?
Up to K560,000 a year, according to the board’s 2026 affidavit FAQ. Tuition is paid directly to the institution.
Do continuing students need an affidavit?
Yes. Every applicant needs a new stamped affidavit every year, because each year’s application is treated as new.
Where can I get the affidavit stamped for free?
In 2026 the Malawi Law Society asked its members to commission loan affidavits free of charge, and the Women Lawyers Association did the same at its Lilongwe and Blantyre offices. The District Commissioner’s office or a magistrate can also stamp it.
Is my loan renewed automatically?
No. Loans are processed every year; continuing students must apply again in each window.
How do I check if I got the loan?
Provisionally approved students are listed by institution on the HESLGB Resources page. Then comes vetting and bonding (signing the loan contract).
How do I check my loan balance?
Use the quick statement on sfmis.heslgb.mw, or email [email protected] with your name, years of study, college, registration number and National ID number.
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GuideOpen a bank accountBring your National IDSources: Higher Education Students’ Loans and Grants Board, heslgb.mw (tuition and upkeep loans, grants, ODeL, repayment and contact pages; 2026/2027 application window, affidavit and fraud notices, May to July 2026) and sfmis.heslgb.mw. Checked October 2026.
