Government Loans and grants
The Government of Canada works with all provincial or territorial governments to offer student grants and loans. In all situations, students apply with their province or territory of residence, which does not always coincide with the province in which they plan to study. The amount of funding that students can receive each term is calculated when they submit their application. Students are automatically considered for all grants and loans that they may be eligible for at the time of application.
The amount of funding a student can receive depends on many factors, including:
- Their province or territory of residence
- Their family income, which could include an expected contribution from parent(s)
- Their term-based tuition and mandatory fees and living expenses
- If they have a recognized disability
- If they have dependents
Government-issued student financial assistance, including loans and grants, is available to Canadian Citizens, Permanent Residents, or students that have protected person status based on your province of residence. US Residents can be considered for US Federal Direct Funding and other targeted resources. If you belong to a different student group, please see our International Students page.
Ineligible programs
Please review our list of programs that are not eligible for student loans and grants.
Loan Agreement
The Master Student Financial Assistance Agreement (MSFAA) outlines the terms of accepting and repaying student loans. Students only have to sign this agreement once as it covers present and future student loans.
When you complete your Master Student Financial Assistance Agreement (MSFAA) through the National Student Loan Service Centre, you must use your own personal bank account details to ensure that you receive your student loans and grants. If you have outstanding tuition and fees, Financial Aid and Awards will automatically deduct this outstanding amount and redirect them to your SFU student account. If you provide SFU’s banking information, SFU will both automatically deduct your outstanding tuition and fees from your student loans and grants, and receive any remaining funds as a deposit to our general bank account. This will cause unnecessary delays for you to receive your funding since we will not be able to match these funds to your SFU student account and SFU will return these funds back to the NSLSC to be matched to your original student loan and grant account.
The MSFAA will not show loan and grant amounts. Students will receive a Notice of Assessment from their province or territory that tells them how much student assistance they will receive per application.
Students will only have to re-sign a new MSFAA if they apply for government-issued student financial assistance after:
- taking a 2-year break from school, or
- permanently moving to another province/territory
Students can review the terms and conditions of their MSFAA on the National Student Loans Service Centre (NSLSC) website.
Student Loan Interest
Effective April 1st, 2023, the Government of Canada has permanently eliminated the accumulation of interest on all Canada Student Loans including loans currently being repaid.
Several other Provinces and Territories have also eliminated the accumulation of interest on loans issued from their jurisdictions including BC, Manitoba, and New Brunswick. Please check with your home Province or Territory for confirmation.
Student Loan Repayment
Have you been prompted by National Student Loan Service Centre (NSLSC) to start repaying your student loan funding?
Tuition Payment Process
We encourage students to apply for student loans early in order to receive their funding before the tuition deadline, as student loan applications may take 6-8 weeks to be fully processed.
In-Study Status
Learn how to keep previously-issued government student aid in non-payment status if you are enrolled as a full-time student.