GOVERNMENT LOAN SCHEMES

The Tuition Fee Loan (MOE TFL) and Study Loan (MOE SL) which are funded by the government and administered by DBS Bank are extended to eligible students who are pursuing MOE-subsidised undergraduate and diploma programmes in LASALLE.

The loan principals for MOE TFL and MOE SL schemes are fully funded by MOE.  The loan is interest-free during the student’s course duration.

Eligibility criteria

• Full time Singapore Citizen (SC) and Singapore Permanent Resident (PR) undergraduates and diploma students pursuing MOE-subsidised programmes in LASALLE are eligible to apply for the MOE TFL and MOE SL, subject to the maximum loan quantum.
• International students (IS) are not eligible to apply.
• Students who are awarded fee subsidy or loan by an organisation registered with a government agency or have applied for the MOE TFL in full or a mixture of both, provided the total subsidy or loan is not below 75% of subsidised fees payable (for diploma students) or 90% of subsidised SC fees payable (for undergraduates), shall be considered for the MOE SL. The maximum limit of the MOE SL is 10% of subsidised SC fees payable (for undergraduates) or 25% of subsidised fees payable (for diploma students) plus a living allowance loan of $2,000 per annum (for diploma students) or $3,600 per annum (for undergraduates). GST on fees is not covered by the MOE TFL and MOE SL.
• Students who have obtained loans amounting to 100% of the subsidised tuition fees payable from either the CPF Education Scheme or a combination of the MOE TFL and the CPF Education Scheme can borrow up to the maximum living allowance loan quantum only under the MOE SL Scheme.
• Students who are awarded the Mendaki fee subsidy or loan can borrow up to the maximum living allowance loan quantum under the MOE SL Scheme only.
• Students holding scholarships that fully cover the tuition fees payable for the year will not be eligible.

LASALLE will exercise discretion on the quantum of the loan to be granted based on its assessment of the candidate’s needs for financial assistance.

Guarantor requirement

These loans require a guarantor. A person acting in the capacity of guarantor must meet the following conditions:

• must be between the ages of 21 and 60 years old.
• must not be an undischarged bankrupt.
• acknowledges that he/she is aware of his/her financial obligations as a guarantor. To avoid any doubt, the guarantor shall be jointly and severally liable with the borrower for the loan including any amounts due and owing by the borrower under the loan. LASALLE and DBS Bank, may at its discretion, review the application and acceptance of a person to act as guarantor, including this loan at the date of this MOE TFL application.
• must be a Singapore citizen for an applicant who is a Singapore citizen.
• can be either a Singapore citizen or a Singapore Permanent Resident for an applicant who is a Singapore Permanent Resident.

Loan quantum

*Students with PCI ≤ $950 are eligible for the interest-free MOE SL. They are eligible to take up the maximum loan under MOE TFL to cover up to 80% of subsidised SC fees and a corresponding MOE SL to cover the remaining 20% of subsidised SC fees.

Terms of award

There is no qualifying income for the MOE TFL.

MOE SL is awarded on a means-tested (i.e. needs analysis) basis as follows:

Loans are interest-bearing, except for MOE SL for students with PCI ≤$950, where MOE SL will be interest-free.

Interest rates (from 1 April 2024)

The following interest rates will be applicable to all new government education loan (i.e. Tuition Fee Loan, Study Loan) agreements signed on and after 1 April 2024.

* not applicable to interest-free Study Loan.

The interest rates will be revised on a half-yearly basis based on the 3M SORA published on the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s (MAS) website on 1 March (for the period 1 April to 30 September) or 1 September (for the period 1 October to 31 March of the following calendar year)³.  You can visit the DBS website for the applicable interest rates on every 1 April and 1 October.

¹SORA is the volume-weighted average rate of borrowing transactions in the unsecured overnight interbank SGD cash market in Singapore between 8am and 6.15pm. The 3-month compounded SORA is the rolling compounded average of daily SORA over the past respective period.
²https://eservices.mas.gov.sg/statistics/dir/DomesticInterestRates.aspx
³If 1 March or 1 September falls on a weekend and/or a public holiday when the 3M SORA rates are not published by MAS, we will take the 3M SORA published on the MAS website on the last preceding business day in Singapore. For example, if 1 September is a Saturday, we will take the 3M SORA published on MAS website on 31 August.

Repayment

The repayment of the MOE TFL and MOE SL can be made either by a full lump sum payment or monthly instalments of a minimum $100 per month per loan.

Repayments can commence 1 year (for MOE TFL for diploma students) or 2 years (for MOE TFL for undergraduates) and 6 months (for MOE SL) after graduation.  During this grace period, standard interest will apply but no late payment interest will be charged.

For withdrawn students, their loans become due for payment repayment in full immediately.  However, they can request to arrange for a monthly repayment instalment plan.

Application period

There are two application periods during the year:

1. 1 May to 30 June
2. 1 November to 31 December

How to apply?

1. All students who wish to apply for the Tuition Fee Loan (MOE TFL) are required to complete the online application form on the DBS Bank website.  Please follow the instructions on the website and prepare the documents required to upload with the application.
2. All students who wish to apply for the Study Loan (SL) are required to complete the MOE SL application form.

Please refer here for more information on the MOE Tuition Fee Loan Scheme.

For further enquiries, please contact:

1. LASALLE Division of Finance at finance@lasalle.edu.sg or 6496 5270
2. DBS Bank Ltd at 6333 0033