Student Financial Aid in Manitoba: Loans, Grants and How to Apply

How Manitoba Student Aid works

Manitoba Student Aid is the province's student aid office, and it handles a single application for both the federal Canada Student Financial Assistance program and Manitoba's own provincial grants and loans. You do not apply to canada.ca separately. Manitoba Student Aid assesses your family income, assets, program costs and study period, then issues a combined funding package covering both governments' contributions.

Grants for the 2025-26 school year

For the 2025-26 school year, full-time students in an eight-month study period qualify for a Canada Student Grant of up to $4,200 , with additional amounts available for students with disabilities and for students with dependants. Part-time students qualify for a separate, smaller part-time grant. Indigenous students apply separately for the Indigenous Education Award, which needs its own application on top of the standard Manitoba Student Aid form.

Starting with the 2025-26 application, full-time applicants choose between the standard grant-plus-loan package and grants only, with no loan attached. Picking grants only lowers your total funding compared to the full package, but it means you graduate with less debt, so weigh the trade-off against your actual costs before you pick this option.

Loans stay interest-free

Manitoba Student Loans carry no interest at any point. Canada Student Loans are also interest-free, after the federal government permanently eliminated interest on Canada Student Loans from April 1, 2023 , including on loans already in repayment. Neither loan charges interest or requires payment while you study full time.

Repayment

Repayment on both loan types starts six months after you stop being a full-time student, whether you graduate or leave your program early. If your income makes the standard payment hard to manage, apply to the Repayment Assistance Plan through Manitoba Student Aid or the National Student Loans Service Centre, which reduces your monthly payment based on income and family size and extends your repayment period.

How to apply

1. Gather income and asset information for yourself, and for your parents if you are considered a dependent student.

2. Confirm your program is eligible and that you will pass at least 60% of a full course load each term at your college or university.

3. Complete the online application at Manitoba Student Aid, which covers federal and provincial assessment in one submission.

4. Submit any requested supporting documents, such as a tuition invoice or proof of income.

5. Receive your funding estimate and, once classes start, your loan and grant disbursement.

Apply early, before your program starts, since assessment and disbursement take time. The final deadline to submit a full-time application for a given school year is July 22, and the part-time deadline is July 31, after which Manitoba Student Aid will not process an application for that year.

Funding limits

Manitoba Student Aid funds full-time study for a maximum of 340 weeks across your academic career, combining undergraduate and graduate study. Track your remaining weeks if you plan more than one credential, since running out of eligible weeks partway through a program leaves you covering the rest yourself.

Provincial residency

Manitoba Student Aid requires you to be a Manitoba resident to qualify. The exact residency test is not published in simple terms on the general eligibility page, so if you moved provinces recently, or you study outside Manitoba, contact Manitoba Student Aid directly to confirm which province you apply through before you submit an application.

The Manitoba Bursary

Full-time students assessed with financial need also receive the Manitoba Bursary through the same Manitoba Student Aid application, on top of federal Canada Student Grants. You do not submit a separate application for it. It gets calculated automatically as part of your regular assessment, based on the same income and cost information you already provided.

Extra support for students with disabilities

Students with a documented disability access the Canada Student Grant for Students with Disabilities and a separate Canada Student Grant for Services and Equipment for Students with Disabilities, both assessed through the same Manitoba Student Aid application. These grants cover costs a standard grant does not, such as adaptive technology or note-taking support, so declare your disability status on your application even if you are unsure whether you qualify.

Part-time student funding

Part-time students, generally those below the 60 percent full course load threshold, qualify for a separate Canada Student Grant for Part-Time Studies, and a Canada Student Grant for Part-Time Students with Dependants if you support a child or other dependant. Both run through the same Manitoba Student Aid application as full-time funding, assessed against part-time program costs and income.

Re-apply every year

Manitoba Student Aid assesses you fresh for each school year, so submit a new application before every Fall term rather than assuming last year's approval carries forward. Update your income, program and course load information each time, since a change in any of these shifts your funding amount up or down.