Financial options and aid

Higher Education Student Loan (HESL)

For undergraduates

The Higher Education Student Loan (HESL) provides loans to students who need help to finance their tertiary studies when they pursue approved MOE-subsidised undergraduate programmes in SUTD.

From 1 July 2026, the following groups of students who wish to apply for the HESL can do so via the StudentLoanSG (SLSG) Portal (https://go.gov.sg/slsg), which will also be launched on 1 July 2026, 10AM. As a start, the portal will accept HESL applications from the following students who can use their Singpass account:

1. Newly matriculated students in Academic Year 2026/2027 intake; and
2. Existing students (AY2025/2026 intake and before) who do not have an existing MOE Tuition Fee Loan (MOE TFL) and/or MOE Study Loan (MOE SL).

NOTE: New applications for existing loan schemes (i.e., MOE TFL and/or MOE SL) will NOT be accepted from 18 May 2026.

The Higher Education Student Loan (HESL) comprises 2 components:

1. Base provision
   For eligible Singapore Citizens (SC), Singapore Permanent Residents (SPRs) and International Students (IS), HESL covers up to 90% of the subsidised tuition fees payable, depending on your citizenship.
2. Means-tested provision
   (i) For eligible Singapore Citizen (SC) – covers the balance of their subsidised tuition fees not covered by the base provision, loan for living allowance, and cost of overseas student programmes.
    
   (ii) For eligible Singapore Permanent Resident (SPR) and International Student (IS) – covers loan for living allowance only.

HESL scheme

The loan is tenable for the entire undergraduate programme duration. Re-application is not required.

Please find the overview of the HESL scheme below:

* To be eligible for means-tested provision, you must be:

• SC or a SPR with gross monthly household per capita income (PCI)¹ of $3,500 or less.
• IS with gross monthly household PCI of $1,875 or less.

¹ Gross monthly household PCI = Total monthly gross household income (GHI) divided by number of family members living in the same household as the student loan applicant.

Note:

• The HESL does not cover compulsory miscellaneous fees, hostel fees and GST.

Eligibility

• All full-time undergraduate students paying subsidised tuition fees are eligible for the loan scheme, with the maximum loan amount capped at the HESL Base Provision, depending on student’s citizenship.
• International undergraduate students who are paying full fees from the point of admission or had withdrawn from the Tuition Grant scheme during their course of study, are not eligible for the loan scheme.
• Existing students who have taken up Tuition Fee Loan (TFL) and/or Study Loan (SL), no action is required from you. However, if you wish to apply for new or additional loan provision under the HESL scheme, you should approach scholarships_financialaid@sutd.edu.sg for advice and needs assessment from Tuesday, 1 September 2026.
• Existing students who have taken up Tuition Fee Loan (TFL) and/or Study Loan (SL) will be assessed if your current loans meet your financing needs and whether there are any available financing options including financial aid that you can tap on, instead of taking up loan provision under HESL. You may apply for HESL in the SLSG portal from Tuesday, 1 September 2026, if you are found to need the additional aid by SUTD.

Guarantor

• Must be between 21 and 60 years old at point of loan application.
• Must not be an undischarged bankrupt.
• 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.
• Can be of any nationality for an applicant who is an International Student.

Loan repayment and interest rate​

• Repayment: Not later than 1 year after graduation.
• Minimum repayment amount: S$100 per month
• Maximum repayment period: up to 10 years.
• Interest rate: 3-month compounded Singapore Overnight Rate Average (3M SORA) plus 1.5 percentage points or such other rates as may be determined from time to time by the bank.
• Late payment interest for overdue and unpaid loans/loan instalment: 3M SORA plus 4.5 percentage points or such other rates as may be determined from time to time by the bank.
• The interest rates will be revised on a half-yearly basis based on the 3M SORA² published on the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s (MAS) website³ 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)⁴. You can visit DBS website at go.dbs.com/sg-moeloanrates for the applicable interest rates on every 1 April and 1 October.
• Interest and loan sum are paid directly to the bank.
• The loan is interest-free during the course of study, i.e. interest will only start accruing after graduation or upon leaving the institution.
• Student should follow up with the appointed local bank in writing for the repayment of the loan amount if the student withdraws from studies or has his/her studies terminated.

² SORA 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.

³ eservices.mas.gov.sg/statistics/dir/DomesticInterestRates.aspx

⁴ If 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.

How to apply

Students can apply via the StudentLoanSG (SLSG) portal (https://go.gov.sg/slsg) from 1 July 2026, 10AM. The bank administering HESL scheme for SUTD is DBS.