Student Credit Card, Advantages, Disadvantages, Eligibility and Rules

The state government has launched this student credit card scheme in 2021 to facilitate the students of West Bengal to get higher education, where students can take loans at low interest rates for studying. So the importance of this scheme is immense for the students planning for higher education.

This article provides all the information about what is student credit card, eligibility for this card, how to apply, advantages and disadvantages etc. and readers are requested to read the entire article carefully considering the importance of the issues.

What is a student credit card?

The Student Credit Card Scheme has been introduced to ensure that the students of the state are not deprived of higher education due to their financial situation. Through this credit card, students can take a maximum loan of up to 10 lakh rupees with only 4% annual interest without any deposit.

Under this scheme, students will avail loan facility from secondary level to higher secondary, graduation, post-graduation, and professional level studies as well. In this scheme, students can take loans from any school, madrasa, college, university in India and even for studying in institutions outside the country.

Under this scheme, students studying in various coaching centers for competitive exams like Engineering, Medical, Law, IAS, IPS, WBCS etc. can also take loans.

Student credit card details

A brief description of the Student Credit Card Scheme is given below:

Purpose of Student Credit Cards

The quality of education of the students of any state is very important for the development of that state and the entire country, because they are the future of the country. Therefore, one of the functions of the state government is to ensure that no student is deprived of the opportunity to pursue higher education due to financial weakness.

In order to achieve this objective, the West Bengal Government launched a scheme called ‘West Bengal Student Credit Card Interest Subsidy Arrangement’ in 2021, where post secondary education loans can be availed without any collateral or third party guarantee.

In this case the interest rate is only 4% and the repayment period is kept as 15 years, but if the borrower repays the interest in full within the study period, an additional 1% interest discount will be given.

The purpose of providing this facility through student credit card is mainly one so that the students do not have to compromise on their education.

Student credit card benefits

Students will get the following benefits from Student Credit Card:

• Under this scheme students get a loan of Rs 10 lakh at only 4% simple annual interest rate after interest subvention.
• Students can apply for this loan for pursuing any course like Medical, Engineering, Law, WBCS etc.
• Various courses can be taken not only in this country but also abroad through student credit card.
• Students can take loan through this card till the age of 40 years.
• Students can use this loan money for their hostel fees, purchase of study materials like books, tabs, laptops etc.
• No deposit is required for this loan.
• Students can apply for this loan at any time during their studies.
• Students can take this loan from any government or private bank, besides central, state or district cooperative banks.
• Students are given 15 years to repay this loan, so that they can repay it by working on their own after graduation.
• In case of student credit card, students will get 1 year moratorium period i.e. they will get 1 year after completion of studies and from then the loan repayment EMI will start deducting.

Disadvantages of Student Credit Cards

Although there are no disadvantages of student credit cards, it is an important question for students whether there are any disadvantages of taking a student credit card loan. So let’s see what we should keep in mind before taking a loan.

• Student credit card requires student to show admission receipt ie you have to add the cost of admission for higher education.
• A student credit card is a loan facility, meaning the amount must be paid back.
• You get a 1-year moratorium period on student credit card loan repayments, but you’ll still be charged 4% interest during that time.
• Repayment of this loan will not depend on whether the student gets a job or not.

So like any loan, you should apply for the loan only if you are sure of the future supply of money. If you get a great opportunity in the field of education, which will definitely return you more income in the future, you should apply for a loan for that education only, otherwise it can be more risky.

Student Credit Card Usage Rules

Important rules for using student credit cards are listed below:

• Students can pay course fees of schools, colleges, universities, professional institutes and coaching institutes through student credit cards.
• Among the fees that can be paid through this card are tuition fees, caution money deposits, refundable deposits, examination fees, library fees, laboratory fees, etc. Apart from this, the cost of staying in a hostel or house rent or the cost of staying as a paying guest can also be paid.
• Students can buy books, laptops, tablets etc. for their study material through this card.
• Students can use this card for necessary expenses like study tour, project work, thesis etc. to complete their course.
• Up to 20% of the total approved student credit card debt can be used as living expenses during the entire duration of a course.
• 30% of the total credit allowed on this card can be used for non-institutional expenses only.
• Tuition fees and course fees under this card, besides any other expenses payable to the educational institution will be directly transferred to the bank account of the concerned institution.
• In case of non-institutional expenses, the loan amount will be transferred directly to the student’s bank account.

Student Credit Card Eligibility

Students need to have following qualifications for West Bengal Student Credit Card:

• The student should be an Indian citizen and a resident of West Bengal for the last 10 years.
• The student must be enrolled in a school, madrasa, college, university or other institution within or outside the country for higher education or research such as IITs, IIMs, IISc, IIESTs, ISIs, NLUs, AIIMSs, NITs, XLRI, BITS, or students pursuing engineering, medical , Law, IAS, IPS, WBCS, SSC etc. to participate in various competitive exams one has to study in various coaching institutes like SPA, NID, IIFT, ICFAI Business School etc.
• The age of the student should be less than 40 years in applying for this loan.

Student credit card is the required document

Following documents are required for student credit card application:

• Identity Card of Applicant and Guardian (Aadhaar Card)
• Applicant’s Address Proof (PAN Card)
• Final Exam Marksheet
• Receipt of admission to new class
• Parent’s PAN Card or Income Proof
• Bank passbook of applicant and guardian
• Color passport size photograph of the applicant

Student Credit Card Application

You can easily apply for this card online in the following ways:

• You need to visit the official portal wbscc.wb.gov.in.
• You will see the ‘Student Registration’ button on the home page menu, click on it.
• You will have two options whether your educational institution is located in India or outside the country. Click on the one that is right for you.



• Then direct registration form page will open where you have to register with basic details, course details, password etc. You will get your ID only after registration.
• After that you need to login with that registration id and password, then the dashboard will open to you.
• Now click on the ‘Apply Now’ button to apply for student credit card, then the complete application form will open, where you have to provide details such as personal details, co-borrower or guardian details, course and income details and how much you want to borrow. You have to mention what you want to take.
• Then ‘Save & Continue’ with bank details and on the next page you have to upload documents like applicant’s photograph, guardian’s photograph, applicant’s signature, guardian’s signature, applicant’s aadhaar card, applicant’s pan card, address proof like voter card, guardian’s pan card , Receipt of admission to educational institution etc.
• Once the form is completely filled, click on ‘Submit Application’. Only then your application will be completed.

Student Credit Card Related Queries (FAQs):