Canada Student Loans: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Program Information and Cost Forms

My provincial student loan department is asking for the Mount to complete a form that confirms my studies and costs; what is this and who fills it out for me?

• Most provinces have some form that requires proof of cost and of attendance at the Mount. These forms are completed by Financial Aid (Evaristus 207E). These are the form names according to region:

NL – Program Cost Form
PE – Academic Information for Educational Institutions Outside of the Atlantic Provinces
NB – Request for Program Information
QU – Studying Outside Quebec – Proof of Admission or School Attendance
ON – Program Information Form
MN – Out of Province Program Information Form
SK – Program Information Form
AB – Confirmation of Registration Worksheet
BC – Appendix 3 (completed online)

Important: It is your responsibility to be registered fully for fall and winter terms (and spring/summer if applicable). If you have not already registered for your courses for the Fall/Winter, you need to indicate your plans to Financial Aid when you submit your form and your form will be completed based upon the information you provide. If you do not take all of the courses that you have indicated, your loan assessment will likely be reassessed, reduced and/or cancelled so ensure what you indicate is what you actually plan to take. For Spring/Summer courses, students must be enrolled in the courses prior to these forms being completed.

Year Off/Gap Year

I am going to take a year off from my studies. What will happen to my loan?

• Students go into repayment following their last day of full-time study. You will receive a six month, non-payment period called your Grace Period; however during this time, interest will build on your Federal (aka. Canada) loan. Following these six months, you must begin paying monthly on any existing student loans that you have borrowed. Find out more by clicking here.

When should I apply for my student loan?

Apply early! All students should apply for their government student at least 6-8 weeks before the first day of classes. Most provinces will have their annual loan application available on, or shortly, after May 1st for classes that start in the upcoming September. Remember, students must apply annually for loan funding!

Once you have submitted your online loan application, check on your loan status on your provincial student loan web site as most students will have to complete more steps prior to any money being released so read carefully to avoid funding delays!

If you need help with your student loan application or a student loan appeal, please contact the Financial Aid office by emailing: financial.aid@msvu.ca

Important Note: Full-time students do not have to be registered in classes when you apply for your student loans; however, make sure that you register for and complete the course load that you have indicated on your loan application or your loan may be reassessed and possibly reduced and/or cancelled if you are taking less of a course load than you originally indicated.

How Do I Apply?

Do I have to apply separately for a Canada student loan and a provincial student loan?

• No, full-time students fill out just one application form and both federal and provincial loan money are assessed. All students must apply to their province/territory of permanent residence. Find the website of your Provincial/Territorial loan office.

Dependent vs. Independent Status

I have just graduated from high school but do not live at home. My parents do not support me financially, can I list my status as independent?

• Unless you are out of high school for four years, are married, have a child or have been legally emancipated (this involves a lengthy and costly legal proceeding), you are considered dependent, regardless of where you live.

Residency

I moved from another province to Nova Scotia eight months ago. Should I apply to NS Student Assistance for my student loan?

• No, you must apply to the province you have last lived in for the past 12 consecutive months without attending post-secondary.

Will my student loan money be sent to me or to the school?

Most provinces electronically transmit loan money to the school.

Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, and Ontario use electronic loan communication. The Province of Prince Edward Island is transmitting the federal loan electronically; however the provincial loan is still in paper form. Alberta and British Columbia send their loans via email to the student. Students must then forward the loan to Financial Services for processing. These loans can be emailed to financial.services@msvu.ca . Any loans processed in paper form, not mentioned above, will be mailed to Financial Services. A listing will be posted providing the names of those students with items at Financial Services for pick-up (including student loans) on the bulletin board next to Financial Services. Listings are updated regularly as loans are received.

How is my loan processed by Financial Services?

We will confirm your course information including program of study, registration load and tuition amount. We will also request the amount due to the University for the fall fee instalment, which is calculated as the minimum of the fall fees owing plus 10% of the outstanding winter fees or the full year fees at your request. For the winter term, we request the remaining balance owing on the account. It is important that you are registered for all of your courses before we confirm registration and tuition information to the student loan agencies.

Note that not all students receive enough loan money to pay for all that is due; students are responsible for paying their outstanding balance, in full, and on time or will face late fees and interest charges. If you had more loan money than what was due to the school, the remainder of your loan money will be direct deposited into your bank account for you to spend on your various living expenses.

For paper loans, the University will process the loan. Then the student will need to take the loan to a designated postal outlet, along with their SIN Card or Notice of Assessment from Canada Revenue Agency if the SIN card is not available; a copy of your Driver’s License or other government issued photo ID such as a passport; and either a VOID cheque or the detailed banking information for the account to which you want any loan funds that you may receive deposited. A list of designated postal offices can be found here.

For distance students, arrangements can be made with Financial Services to deliver the loan to the National Student Loan Service Centre.

For electronic loans, you may notice on your student loan web site that your loan is “waiting on confirmation from your University”. This means that we have received the loan in our portal and are now able to confirm the loan as described above. Loans are processed as soon as possible, once you are either registered in five full units of credit or we have received confirmation from you that you have registered for all of your courses.

Full-Time Status

I have taken two courses in the Fall term and four in the Winter term. When averaged to three per term, is this sufficient to meet the 60% full-time requirement for the academic year?

• No, you must maintain 60% of a course load in both terms to keep your full-time status. The province of Newfoundland requires 80% per term or loan money will be reduced and/or cancelled.

Newfoundland and Labrador Full-Time Status

I am a NL student and started my program in a 60% course load thinking that was full time. I just found out I need 80% but it is too late to pick up another course. What will happen to my student loan?

• The portion of your loan that represents your Newfoundland Loan (usually 40% of total loan) is unavailable to you for the first term. You are still eligible for the portion of your loan that represents your Canada Student Loan (usually 60% of your total loan). If you choose to pick up a fourth half credit for your Winter term, you will have full-time status for both your Canada and Newfoundland Student Loan for that semester.

When will the payment from my student loan get posted to my student account?

Once your loan has been processed electronically through the above processes, funds should be received within 7-10 business days. Receipt of funds via paper loan will take longer due to the time allotted for mailing the forms and the time for the receiving department to process the loan. Closer to 10 to 14 business days seems the norm. Loan funds are not released by the government until after Sept 1st (fall) and Jan 1st (winter).

It may take several weeks for your payment to appear on your student account once it has been sent for processing (or processed in person). You will be able to review your account in myMount to ensure that the payment does get received and applied to your student account.

What should I do if my loan hasn’t arrived and the payment deadline is fast approaching?

If you haven’t received your loan by the payment deadline, you must fill out a student loan agreement and that will give you an interest-free extension of the deadline to September 30^th. You can complete the form online. Please note that you will need to fill out another payment-extension request in January if you haven’t received your winter funds by the January 11, 2017 payment deadline but please note that there is no interest-free period for the winter term.

Why do I have to complete a pre-study report or confirmation of earnings?

Your pre-study, or Confirmation of Earnings, report must be completed by the date on your notice of assessment or there will be no provincial installment of your loan, if you are due to receive one. Early completion of these forms will better ensure that you receive your provincial loan on time.

Part-Time Student Loans

• Part-time students who need financial help may apply for a Part-Time Canada Student Loan and students must apply via a paper application (online applications for part-time loans are not available). These interest-free loans are calculated on the basis of a student’s financial situation and cover basic university expenses such as tuition, fees and books/supplies.
• Repayment of these loans begins after the student has graduated or ceased studying. Part-time student loan applications can be downloaded from your provincial student assistance website (link to provincial websites). “Section E” of the application must be completed by the Financial Aid office at your institution. NOTE: You must be registered in your courses before your Financial Aid Office can complete this section.

What else should I know?

It’s important that you complete each step of this process in a timely manner because there are dates after which the loan is not negotiable. You should also regularly track the progress of your loan processing to avoid delays.

Once your loan has been processed, the amounts indicated on the loan as owing to the University will be paid directly to the school and you will receive the balance of the funds. This step can get stalled if you have interest outstanding on previous loans or if the National Student Loans Service Centre shows that you are in “repayment status” or if you are in default, so make sure your account is in good standing. All these items can be monitored through your NSLSC account.

Students with previous loans who do not receive their loans before the end of September, or, are not receiving a student loan this year but have in the past, can complete a Confirmation of Enrolment (Schedule 2) request by following these easy steps:

1. Go to: www.canlearn.ca
2. Go to the Student Loans and Grants tab and click: NSLSC’s On-Line Services
3. Select: New User? Register and login, or create an account
4. Select: Confirmation of Enrolment Request
5. Enter study dates and program, then click: Submit

A Schedule 2 will suspend interest on your loans while you are studying full-time.

Note: We can ONLY confirm your enrolment within your study period; not before or after. Students who need manually confirmed forms may send requests to: financial.services@msvu.ca.