E EDUFINGovernance and compliance

Terms and Conditions

Partum EDUFIN funding administration · Version 2026.09 · Effective 1 September 2026

1. Purpose

These Terms and Conditions sit with the Terms of Use and describe how funding is administered on EDUFIN. They apply to funders, institutions, and Partum when a funding round is opened.

2. Financial year

Each funder has its own financial year end month. EDUFIN calculates the open funding period as the last day of that month that is still in the future. Example: on 2 September 2026, a February year-end is 28 February 2027; a June year-end is 30 June 2027; a December year-end is 31 December 2026. Partum may close a period only after every round on that date is closed. New funders are assigned an open period whose end date is in the future.

3. Funding types

Each round is SED, FUNDISA / similar, or Skills Development Bursaries. Evidence requirements follow the type. The funder or Partum selects the type when the round is created. SED and FUNDISA follow the SED process. Skills Development follows the Skills process, including bursary agreements and additional per-student evidence.

4. SED process

  1. Funder agreement is issued and signed.
  2. Partum invoices the funder.
  3. The funder uploads proof of payment, linked to the agreement, financial year, and round.
  4. Partum selects students from institutions (unless a cycle is expressly opened for funder selection).
  5. The institution invoices Partum on the selected balance, from the institution portal, linked to the round.
  6. Partum uploads proof of payment to the institution.
  7. The institution uploads student settlement statements.
  8. Partum issues the funding-support declaration to the institution (upload or generated template).
  9. Partum issues the funder statement (system generated).
  10. Partum issues the funding report to the funder (system generated).
  11. Partum generates the funding declaration.
  12. An evidence pack is assembled from Partum-issued documents.
  13. Partum closes the cycle. It is locked, stored, and audited.

5. Skills Development process

  1. Funder Skills Development agreement is issued and signed.
  2. Partum invoices the funder.
  3. The funder uploads proof of payment linked to the agreement, year, and round, and sets race, gender, and disability filters for selection.
  4. Partum selects students matching those filters. A bursary agreement is required per student.
  5. The institution invoices Partum on the selected balance.
  6. Partum uploads or generates proof of payment to the institution.
  7. Partum provides bursary agreements for the institution to complete per student.
  8. The institution uploads Skills evidence per student: ID copy, signed bursary agreement, settlement statement, and declaration of unemployed status (EA1). A medical certificate is required if the student is marked disabled. The portal shows complete or outstanding for each item.
  9. The institution submits the funding declaration to Partum.
  10. Partum generates the funding declaration to the funder.
  11. An evidence pack is assembled.
  12. Partum invoices the funder for funding fees.
  13. Partum closes the cycle. It is locked, stored, and audited.

6. Money movement

Bursary funds are paid to institutions, never to students through EDUFIN. Invoices and proofs of payment must match the round. Partum’s administration fee, where charged, is shown to the funder as Agreed Amount, Direct Funding, and Admin Fee. Internal allocation between Direct and ring-fence pools is a Partum operations matter and is not a public product term.

7. Selection

Unless a budget is marked to allow funder selection, Partum selects students. A selection batch is limited to one institution. Skills Development selection must honour the funder’s recorded filters.

8. Evidence and close-out

A round cannot be closed until the staged evidence for its type is on file. After close, files remain available for download to authorised users until retention rules purge them. Audit logs of close and prior actions are retained with the round.

9. Fees and invoices

Partum invoices according to the signed agreement. Skills Development rounds include a funding-fees invoice before close. Late or missing proof of payment delays later stages. Chargebacks or unpaid invoices may result in suspension of the round.

10. Institutions

Institutions must keep student records accurate, capture student POPIA consent, and obtain institutional consent to share personal information with Partum before using student modules. False settlement statements or missing Skills evidence may delay payment recognition and close-out.

11. Dispute and records

The portal record, including signed agreements, invoices, proofs, generated statements, and the audit log, is the primary record of the round. Notify Partum promptly of any discrepancy.