Receiving financial assistance
If all your documents are properly filled out, you'll receive a quick response. Here's what happens after you send in your application.
- If your application is approved, Aide financière aux études (AFE) will send you a Financial Assistance Statement. The statement will let you know how much you have been granted and how much you'll receive each month.
- A Guarantee Certificate will be issued a few days before the start of the term. You'll need the certificate to receive payment of the financial assistance granted to you. How you receive it differs according on your status.
Full-time students
Your Guarantee Certificate is available in your online Student Financial Assistance File - External link. (Obtaining your guarantee certificate). Print the Guarantee Certificate and the Loan Agreement that comes with it, sign and date the Loan Agreement and send them to the Desjardins Group Student Advisory Centre through the Send us your Guarantee Certificate and Loan Agreement link in the What to do after you send in your application section.Part-time students
Your Guarantee Certificate is available at your school's financial aid office (Obtaining your guarantee certificate). Retrieve the Guarantee Certificate and the Loan Agreement that comes with it, sign and date the Loan Agreement and send them to the Desjardins Group Student Advisory Centre through the Send us your Guarantee Certificate and Loan Agreement link in the What to do after you send in your application section.Quebec student studying outside Quebec
Your Guarantee Certificate is sent to you in the mail (Obtaining your guarantee certificate). Retrieve the Guarantee Certificate and the Loan Agreement that comes with it, sign and date the Loan Agreement and send them to the Desjardins Group Student Advisory Centre through the Send us your Guarantee Certificate and Loan Agreement link in the What to do after you send in your application section.
- Keep a copy of the documents on file. Remember that you must keep a copy of the loan agreement until your student loan is repaid in full.
- The Desjardins Group Student Advisory Centre identifies you with AFE and you can start receiving direct deposit payments.
Important note: The Guarantee Certificate is only sent to you once at the start of your studies and is valid for the duration of your studies, unless you interrupt your studies for more than 6 months. If you resume your studies after that, a new Guarantee Certificate will be sent to you provided you are still eligible under the Loans and Bursaries Program.
Financial assistance all year long
The financial assistance is paid out in the form of a loan for the full year. If you're entitled to a $2,000 loan and a $3,000 scholarship, you'll receive $5,000 as a loan during the school year.
At the end of the school year, your income will be checked by Revenu Québec and if your declaration matches, your financial institution will be reimbursed for the amount corresponding to the scholarship allocated. The process is called the loan-to-scholarship conversion.
If you move, lose your job or interrupt your studies
Until your loan is repaid in full, you must promptly inform the Ministère de l'Enseignement supérieur of any change, both during your studies and afterward. If, for example, your address on file is incorrect, your financial assistance payments may be suspended. Use our online services or fill out the Declaration of Change for on the AFE (Aide financière aux études) website.
Recap: 6 steps to your application
- Submit the Application for Financial Assistance to the AFE (Aide financière aux études).
- Receive the Financial Assistance Statement from the AFE.
- Receive your Guarantee Certificate and Loan Agreement.
- Submit the Guarantee Certificate and signed and dated Loan Agreement to the Desjardins Group Student Advisory Centre or the caisse.
- Your file is then registered by the Desjardins Group Student Advisory Centre.
- Receive financial assistance payments directly in your everyday account.
September and January: mark these months in your agenda!
Twice a year, in September and January, you need to fill out the Confirmation of Financial Resources form even is your income is the same as what you indicated on your Application for Financial Assistance.
When you confirm your income, make sure you haven't forgotten anything. If your file is up to date and the information you provided is correct, you'll avoid many problems. For example:
- your financial assistance may be suspended if the form isn't submitted by the deadline
- you would have to repay the overpayment immediately
- you wouldn't be eligible for the Loans and Bursaries Program or the Loans Program for Part-Time Students for the following 2 years
The Desjardins Group Student Advisory Centre and your Desjardins caisse: a well-balanced expertise
The Student Service Center starts the loan payment process when it receives the Guarantee Certificate and signed and dated Loan Agreement. The centre is made up of all the advisors who manage student members' financial assistance.
By phone or email, you can get sound advice and all the information you need to manage your government loan:
- disbursement and management of your loan
- terms for repayment
- Ministère de l'Enseignement supérieur's deferred payment plan