What is OSAP

The Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) is a financial aid program that can help you pay for college or university.
OSAP offers funding through:

• grants: money you don’t have to pay back
• a student loan: money you need to repay once you’re done school

When you apply for OSAP, we automatically consider you for both grants and a loan. If you don’t want to take a loan, and you’re a full-time or part-time student, you can decline it after your application is approved.

What OSAP can help with

OSAP can help you pay for:

• tuition
• books and equipment
• fees charged by your school
• living expenses (full-time students only)
• child care (for full-time and part-time students with children)

Who can get OSAP

OSAP is open to Ontario residents of any age who are:

• Canadian citizens
• permanent residents, or
• protected persons

Who is not eligible

You may not be eligible for OSAP if you:

• don’t meet the academic progress requirements
• have enough financial resources, including other forms of government aid, to cover your expenses allowed by OSAP
• report income on your OSAP application that’s significantly different from what you reported to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA)
• have defaulted on a student loan
• have grant or bursary overpayments or multiple outstanding loan overpayments
• failed a credit check
• filed for bankruptcy, made a consumer proposal, obtained a consolidation order or filed a document seeking relief for the orderly payment of debts
• have reached your lifetime limit of student loan funding (340 weeks of funding, 400 weeks of funding for doctoral studies, up to 520 weeks of funding for students with disabilities)
• are an international student
• are not a resident of Ontario

Students receiving social assistance

Before you begin your studies, you need to:

• report the amount of social assistance you receive on your OSAP application
• let your caseworker know how much OSAP you receive

Search for OSAP approved schools

You can use OSAP to go to a private or public college or university anywhere in the world, as long as it’s been approved.

Micro-credentials

If you’re in a micro-credential program, you can only receive OSAP for OSAP approved micro-credentials offered at a postsecondary institution in Ontario.

How much you can get

The amount of money you can get depends on your:

• education expenses – the amount of money you need for tuition, books, child care (for full-time and part-time students), personal living expenses (full-time students), supplies and equipment
• course load – whether you’re a full-time or part-time student
• program hours – for students in micro-credential programs only
• personal financial situation – based on you and your family’s income, family size, dependants and other factors

If you use money from your Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP), it won’t affect how much OSAP you can get.
Additional funding may be available if you are:

• Indigenous
• youth in or from Extended Society Care
• a person with a disability

If you receive social assistance, speak with your caseworker.

Note:

This is not a Government of Ontario website the only purpose of this website is to provide information and support to individuals seeking education and career development in Ontario.