Responsibilities of Applicants & Indemnifiers

• You must complete the application documents fully and truthfully. Any misrepresentation or omission may lead to disqualification from the application and / or full recovery of loan(s) already offered to you, and court proceedings. Read More
  • It is an offence to obtain property or pecuniary advantage by deception. Any person who does so commits an offence and shall be liable on conviction upon indictment to imprisonment for 10 years under the Theft Ordinance (Chapter 210 of the Laws of Hong Kong).
  • If any person being required or authorised by law to make any statement on oath for any purpose and being lawfully sworn (otherwise than in a judicial proceeding) wilfully makes a statement which is material for that purpose and which he knows to be false or does not believe to be true, he shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction upon indictment to imprisonment for seven years and to a fine under the Crimes Ordinance (Chapter 200 of the Laws of Hong Kong).
• If you have previously applied for any financial assistance schemes for post-secondary studies from the SFO (including TSFS, NLSFT, Financial Assistance Scheme for Post-secondary Students (FASP), Non-means-tested Loan Scheme for Post-secondary Students (NLSPS), Extended Non-Means-Tested Loan Scheme (ENLS) and Student Travel Subsidy (STS) for Tertiary or Post-secondary Students), your correspondence address under the above mentioned financial assistance schemes will also be updated in accordance with the correspondence address provided in your latest application for financial assistance in the 2022/23 academic year.
• You should check the information printed on the NLSFT notification of result, especially your personal particulars, institution, course of study, tuition fee payable and bank account number. Should there be any discrepancies, you should immediately notify the SFO the amendments required in writing by using Form TSF/C/18A(E) (applicable to change of applicant’s personal particulars) or Form TSF/C/18B (applicable to change of institution / course data), which can be downloaded at the WFSFAA’s website.
• Once your loans have been drawn down, should there be any changes in your study status (such as change in expected graduation date, withdrawal of study, continuing study after completion of the programme which has been granted the loans, etc.), you should immediately notify the SFO by submitting the duly completed “Notification of Study Status” form [SFO297_E], which can be downloaded at the WFSFAA’s website. Timely provision of updated information is important as it may affect the activation date of your loan repayment and interest to be incurred.

• You are required to complete a declaration for your NLSFT application, declaring whether or not you:
  • have been declared bankrupt;
  • have applied for Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA); or
  • aware that legal proceeding(s) has / have been started (or being threatened) against your bankruptcy or for the appointment of a receiver, administrator, administrative receiver, trustee or similar officer over any or all of your assets.

• You should notify the SFO in writing immediately if there is any change of your status or personal information. Read More
  You should notify the SFO immediately if

  • a bankruptcy petition is filed by you or presented against you or a bankruptcy order is made against you or you have applied/are applying for an IVA or legal proceedings have been commented (or are pending or being threatened) against you or any of your assets or for the appointment of a receiver, administrator, administrative receiver, trustee or similar officer over any or all of your assets;
  • you intend to leave Hong Kong for a period longer than three months or to emigrate. Upon receipt of such notification, unless the SFO has otherwise come to an agreement with you concerning the repayment schedule of the loan or unless the SFO is satisfied that you shall be able to continue to repay the loan based on the original repayment schedule, the SFO could demand your immediate repayment of all outstanding balance of the NLSFT loan, interest, overdue interest (if any), and administrative fee (if any) and any recovery expenses. Under whatever circumstances, you have to repay the instalment due on or before the due date; if the repayment is not made after the instalment becomes due, you will be required to repay with the Government the amount of the overdue instalments, interest, overdue interest (if any), administrative fee (if any) and any recovery expenses; or
  • there are subsequent changes in your name, residential address, correspondence address, bank account number, residential phone number or other contact phone number that will affect your loan applications/ disbursements/ repayments before full settlement of your loans. You should use the amendment form [TSF/C/18A(E)] (applicable to change of applicant’s personal particulars) for the purpose.

• You must notify the SFO in writing immediately for follow-up action, including but not limited to withholding the payment of the NLSFT loan to your institution when there are changes in your study information. Read More
  • You must notify the SFO in writing immediately if you:
    
    
    1. cease to be a registered full-time student;
    2. decide to withdraw from, suspend or defer studies or apply for leave of absence for any reasons;
    3. change course / institution; or
    4. are not required to pay the full amount of tuition fees in the respective academic year.
  • In the event that the NLSFT loan has been paid to your institution, you will be liable to the NLSFT loan paid and the interest accrued thereon and to repay the SFO the NLSFT loan so paid and the interest accrued thereon, plus any recovery costs incurred by the Government in one lump sum / by instalments.
  • Any overpayment of the NLSFT loan shall be refunded immediately upon demand.

• You should notify the SFO in writing immediately if there is any change in the status of the indemnifier after he / she signs the Deed of Indemnity (for your accepted loans) by using the Notification of Change of Indemnifier’s Personal Particulars TSFS/IDM/INFO/E, which can be downloaded at the WFSFAA’s website. Read More
  • You should notify the SFO in writing immediately if he/she:
    • for any reason he/she becomes incapable of fulfilling the obligations required under the Deed;
    • was deceased;
    • is aware that a bankruptcy petition will be filed by him/her or presented against him/her; or
    • has applied/is applying for an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA); or
    • is aware that a receiver, administrator, administrative receiver, trustee or similar officer has been appointed over any or all of his/her assets; or
    • is involved in any litigation, arbitration or administrative proceedings (whether inside or outside Hong Kong) or there is any claim (whether inside or outside Hong Kong) presently in progress or pending or being threatened against him/her or any of his/her assets; or
    • intends to leave or has already left Hong Kong for a period longer than three months or to emigrate or has already emigrated.
  • You are required to procure immediately an alternative indemnifier located in Hong Kong and acceptable to the Government to execute the indemnity in favour of the Government in light of the occurrence of any of the above circumstances, failing which the SFO has the power to demand you immediate repayment of all outstanding balance of the NLSFT loan, interest, overdue interest (if any), administrative fee (if any) and any recovery expenses.

• The SFO has the right to administer the payment arrangement and determine the execution of the financial assistance schemes. The indemnifier is required to notify the SFO immediately whenever there are any changes in his / her financial or legal status, or when he / she intends to leave / has left Hong Kong for three months, which procurement of an alternative indemnifier to execute the indemnity will be required. He / she is also required to furnish the SFO with copies of his / her Hong Kong Identity Card. Read More
  • In case of any breach of any of the terms and conditions of the NLSFT loan or late repayment of any instalment due, the SFO has the power to demand the applicant and / or indemnifier immediate repayment any arrears (including but not limited to grant(s), loan(s), interest, overdue interest, administrative fee and any recovery costs (including legal costs and related expenses in the course of legal recovery action), etc.) under any financial assistance/loan scheme(s) administered by the SFO. The SFO also has the power to withhold the consideration and processing of your other financial assistance / loan applications and / or various applications relating to loan repayment under different financial assistance / loan schemes administered by the SFO; and to demand you and /or your indemnifier(s) immediate repayment any arrears (including but not limited to grant(s), loan(s), interest, overdue interest, administrative fee and any recovery costs (including legal costs and related expenses in the course of legal recovery action), etc.) under any financial assistance/loan scheme(s) administered by the SFO in relation to other course(s) taken by you notwithstanding that they have not become due under the terms of such loan(s).
  • You should notify the SFO in writing immediately if he/she:
    
    
    • for any reason he/she becomes incapable of fulfilling the obligations required under the Deed;
    • is aware that a bankruptcy petition will be filed by him/her or presented against him/her; or
    • has applied/is applying for an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA); or
    • is aware that a receiver, administrator, administrative receiver, trustee or similar officer has been appointed over any or all of his/her assets; or
    • is involved in any litigation, arbitration or administrative proceedings (whether inside or outside Hong Kong) or there is any claim (whether inside or outside Hong Kong) presently in progress or pending or being threatened against him/her or any of his/her assets.
    Under these circumstances, the SFO may require the applicant to procure immediately another alternative indemnifier located in Hong Kong and acceptable to the Government to execute the indemnity in favour of the Government in light of the occurrence of any of the above circumstances, failing which the SFO has the power to demand the applicant to repay all outstanding balance of the loan, interest and administrative fee (if any). However, prior to the acceptance of an alternative indemnifier, the original indemnifier would still be liable for all duties and obligations under the Deed of Indemnity.
  • In accordance with Section 3.2.1.2 of the Code of Practice on Identity Card Number and other Personal Identifiers issued by the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data, the indemnifier is requested to furnish the SFO with copies of his / her Hong Kong Identity Card.
  • The indemnifier is required to notify the SFO in the event that he / she intends to leave or has already left Hong Kong for a period longer than three months or to emigrate or has already emigrated. Under such circumstance, the SFO may require the applicant to procure immediately or otherwise upon the first repayment notification of SFO an alternative indemnifier located in Hong Kong and acceptable to the Government to execute the indemnity in favour of the Government, failing which the SFO has the power to demand him / her immediate repayment of balance of the NLSFT loan, interest, overdue interest (if any), administrative fee (if any) and any recovery expenses. However, prior to the acceptance of an alternative indemnifier, the original indemnifier would still be liable for all duties and obligations under the Deed.