Credit Line for Higher Education Students | DGES

goal
The Human Capital Operational Program (POCH) and the Foundation for Science and Technology, IP, made available, in partnership with the Portuguese Mutual Guarantee System and the banking system, a new Credit Line for Higher Education Students with Mutual Guarantee, aimed at to support the promotion of access to Higher Education, improving the levels of attendance and completion of higher education courses, with a view to increasing levels of participation and qualifications.
for whom

Students (EES) of Public and Private Higher Education of University and Polytechnic Education, in order to finance their Bachelor's, Master's, Doctoral or technological specialization courses in Portugal.

Conditions

Eligibility conditions of final recipients:

  • Be natural persons;
  • They are 18 years of age or older, or in case they are under 18 years of age, the contract will be formalized with their parents or other family members with a degree of kinship up to the 2nd degree;
  • Be nationals or holders of a valid permanent residence permit in Portugal, or be in any other situation, provided that they are legally provided for the purpose of entitlement to training and co-financing from the European Social Fund;
  • To be students of Public and Private Higher Education of University and Polytechnic Education;
  • Assume the commitment to continue and take advantage of the course on the date of contracting the loan during the term of the financing agreement;
  • Disadvantaged students, with grants awarded as a grant, may, under this line, finance additional expenses;
  • The EES should allow and facilitate access to documentation related to all entities involved in this line, donor agencies and representatives of the European Commission duly authorized to carry out control and audit activities;
  • They must meet the applicable eligibility criteria set out in article 13 of Decree-Law no. 159/2014, of 27 October, in its current wording, as well as those referring to specific Community and national regulations for financial instruments;
  • Have their tax and contributory situation regularized before, respectively, the tax administration and social security, to be verified until the contract is signed;
  • Have the situation regularized in terms of replacements, within the scope of financing from the ESI Funds.

Line of Credit for Higher Education Students with Mutual Guarantee
Credit Amount

Between €1,000 and €5,000, per year of course, considering completion of the course without failure, with a maximum of €30,000 (thirty thousand euros) for 6-year courses.

If students are already enrolled in higher education, the maximum period of use and the amount of credit to be granted correspond to the number of years/months necessary for the normal completion of the course, that is, considering its duration without failure.

Term of use of credit

Between 1 to 6 years, adjusted to the duration of the course.

repayment term

Between 6 and 10 years, and should tend to be set for twice the duration of the course, starting from the date after use. The deadline to be set will result from the negotiation between the EES and the Bank.

Grace period

The grace period for capital will be during the entire period of use of the credit plus up to 2 years, to be defined between the EES and the Bank. During the capital grace period, only interest will be paid.

Form and conditions of use of credit

The credit will be made available in monthly tranches of the same amount, by crediting the student's current account, with the first transfer being made on the date of conclusion of the financing agreement. The availability of the tranches, after the 1st year, is subject to the student's good performance (transferring the year), which must be proven, with the Bank, with a document to be issued by the educational establishment.

Interest rate

In the fixed rate modality, for the total term of the contract (including grace period and reimbursement), it is calculated as follows:

  • Euribor swap rate for the term corresponding to the term of the transaction, rounded to the nearest multiple of the year, plus a maximum spread of 1.25%;
  • This spread will be reduced by 0.25% for “disadvantaged” students who prove that they benefit from a scholarship;
  • The rate will be rounded to the nearest thousandth, rounding up when the fourth decimal place is equal to or greater than five and by default when the fourth decimal place is less than five, under the terms of the legislation in force.
  • The Euribor swap rate will be the one published on the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) page, reported to the 11:00 am fixing on the second business day prior to the contracting date.
Decision Circuit of Operations and Deadlines

Financing requests are the subject of a decision by the Bank, taking into account its current credit risk policy, which will inform SPGM, the entity managing the line, of the contracting of the operation.
In case of refusal of the transaction, the BANK will only need to inform the customer of its decision.

default

In the event of non-compliance with the financing agreement and activation of the guarantee provided by the Portuguese Mutual Guarantee System, the Bank will ensure the full recovery of the credit from the Student.

Line Management Entity

SPGM – Sociedade de Investimento, SA
www.spgm.pt

 

For more information about this Line of Credit, or other financing solutions that we have available, click here. on here.