How to Qualify for a PTPTN Loan Repayment Exemption

The PTPTN loan is by far the most popular option among students who look for financial assistance to help fund their tertiary education. But first of all, what is PTPTN? PTPTN stands for Perbadanan Tabung Pendidikan Tinggi Nasional. It is a government body that offers study loans for higher education for Malaysian students. Because their loans have a relatively low interest rate, this makes the PTPTN loan one of the top choices for students who are looking for study loans. Most people apply for student loans or a PTPTN loan because they might not be financially stable to cover the expensive tuition fees themselves at the time.

So what are the pros and cons of the PTPTN loan and other student loans? For starters, student loans allow you to afford college or university. The tuition fees of university courses can be very expensive depending on the course. A PTPTN loan can allow you to afford to pay those expensive fees. Secondly, you can also use your loan to pay for important university expenses like textbooks, a laptop and required software for your course. Lastly, paying off your PTPTN loan can help you build good credit scores. Having a good credit score is essential when you want to apply for a credit card, finance your home purchase, and even when you apply for jobs.

Now let’s talk about the cons of PTPTN loans and student loans. First of all, applying for loans like PTPTN means you are starting out your adult life with debt. As soon as you graduate you are going to worry about finding a job that pays well enough for you to pay back your PTPTN loan. Secondly, student loan debt can get in the way of other financial and lifestyle goals. If you keep having to pay off your student loans every month, you might not have enough to spend on things you really want to spend on, such as your long term financial goals. Lastly, defaulting on your PTPTN loan can tank your credit score. The penalties for defaulting also include added fees, added interest and wage garnishment.

 While many are aware of the existence of a PTPTN loan repayment exemption, not many know what the actual requirements are for a student to qualify for a PTPTN exemption, nor do they know the proper procedure one has to go through to get approval. Let's take a look at the answers to both.

Speaking of PTPTN, you might want to find out some reasons why PTPTN loans are withdrawn or cancelled and 4 ways to check if you’ve been blacklisted by PTPTN.

If you have taken a loan from PTPTN, you will eventually have to do your PTPTN loan repayment and you might be familiar with the PTPTN loan repayment schedule as well as the PTPTN loan repayment calculator. However, you may have an option of getting a PTPTN loan repayment exemption. To get this exemption, one must make a PTPTN exemption application and must fulfill the PTPTN waiver requirement. Even if you don’t manage to get an exemption, you still have a chance of getting a PTPTN loan repayment discount. Let’s check out the requirements to qualify for a PTPTN loan exemption.

Borrower is from B40 or M40 group and earns First Class Honours for their Bachelor's Degree programme

The above requirement is the most important pre-requisite of all and should not be confused with any fixed CGPA. While a First Class Honours degree generally requires a CGPA of 3.7 and above, it must be noted that this will differ depending on the institution and course studied. Therefore, students must first check with their university as to what CGPA is required for them to receive First Class Honours. Having successfully obtained a First Class Honours distinction, the student will also need to meet the following criteria: 

• Attended a full-time course.
• Successfully graduated within the period that had been stipulated in the PTPTN loan offer document
• The PTPTN loan does not overlap/coincide with any other sponsorship.
• The borrower shall submit a fully completed application to PTPTN within twelve (12) months from the date of graduation during convocation.
• If course was taken up at an IPTS, it must be accredited by the MQA

 Documents that must be attached 

• Completed Borrower's Declaration.
• Copy of First Class Honours Bachelor's Degree or its equivalent
• Copy of transcript with certified examination result.
• Certified copy of Certificate of Accreditation from MQA (for IPTS borrowers).
• First Class confirmation letter (if it is not stated "First Class" on borrower's degree).

 Reminders

a) Copies of supporting documents shall be authenticated by authorised officers as stipulated by PTPTN, the Academic Division of the IPT or the Issuing Division of the Transcript and the scroll from where the student pursued their programme.

b) The verification stamp shall contain the name of the officer, position and the name of the department.

c) For transcripts in which the scoring/grading information is not specified, note of the calculation and declaration of marking/grading from HEIs should be included.

Once you’ve gathered all the required documents, you can apply for the exemption online on PTPTN’s website.

The process of granting a loan repayment application for obtaining a First Class Bachelor's Degree will take 60 working days from the date all documents are received. 

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