The Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) has temporarily taken down its online services just hours after opening the application window for the 2025/2026 academic year loans and scholarships.
According to an official statement released on Thursday, July 3, the Higher Education Financing Portal is undergoing maintenance and will be unavailable for at least 72 hours.
“The Higher Education Financing Portal is currently under maintenance to enhance service delivery. The system will be down for a minimum of 72 hours,” the board announced.
HELB clarified that this unexpected interruption will affect all applicants — both new students applying for the first time and those making subsequent applications. As a result, students will not be able to access the portal to apply for loans until at least Monday, July 7.
This service disruption comes shortly after several students from well-known universities and colleges across the country began reporting difficulties accessing the application system.
The complaints started pouring in despite HELB officially launching the loan and scholarship applications for undergraduate and TVET students on Wednesday, July 2.
“There’s been a lot of confusion and frustration among students trying to apply for HELB loans, both first-timers and those who are reapplying,” read a message shared in a popular public WhatsApp group for university students.
Adding to the confusion, some observers noticed that earlier social media posts by HELB encouraging students to apply had been deleted without explanation.
On Wednesday, July 2, HELB had issued a public advisory urging all eligible students to submit their applications early. The board emphasized the importance of avoiding last-minute delays to allow for smooth processing ahead of the September intake. The deadline for submitting applications remains August 31, 2025.
According to the earlier guidelines, first-time applicants for undergraduate and TVET loans and scholarships were instructed to apply through the Higher Education Financing portal at www.hef.co.ke.
Meanwhile, continuing students were advised to use the HELB App or dial *642# to access and apply for funding.
Although HELB has not provided a specific reason for the sudden portal shutdown, it is suspected that an overwhelming number of applications may have caused the system to crash, prompting the board to put the site under maintenance.
A similar situation occurred recently on June 30, when the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) website also went offline. The downtime was caused by thousands of Kenyans trying to file their tax returns before the deadline.
In response, KRA extended the filing deadline to July 5 and waived all penalties and interest charges for taxpayers who submitted their returns by the new date.
As HELB works to restore its services, students have been advised to remain patient and stay updated through official communication channels. Once the portal is back online, applicants will be able to resume their application processes.
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