StudyDesk Scholarships
About the scheme
The scheme was launched in November 2024 to remove the two barriers that most often stop a good student from borrowing for higher education: the demand for property as security and the demand for a guarantor. Under Vidyalaxmi, a student admitted on merit to a top Quality Higher Education Institution can apply for an education loan that needs neither. The government portal, pmvidyalaxmi.co.in, has been operational since 25 February 2025, and from the launch on 6 November 2024 to 21 July 2026 a total of 1,12,817 collateral-free and guarantor-free loans were sanctioned under the scheme. That figure comes from the government’s own release, and it is the clearest sign that the scheme is actively lending rather than merely announced.
Two different subsidy layers sit on top of the loan, and they are easy to confuse. Students from families earning up to Rs 4.5 lakh a year receive full interest subvention during the moratorium period under the existing Central Sector Interest Subsidy component. Students from families earning between Rs 4.5 lakh and Rs 8 lakh a year receive a 3% interest subvention on loans up to Rs 10 lakh under Vidyalaxmi itself. The subvention is paid from the second year of the course and is subject to satisfactory academic performance, so keeping your grades up is part of keeping the subsidy.
Benefits
- A collateral-free and guarantor-free education loan for a course at a top Quality Higher Education Institution.
- 3% interest subvention on loans up to Rs 10 lakh for students whose annual family income is up to Rs 8 lakh.
- Full interest subvention during the moratorium for students whose annual family income is up to Rs 4.5 lakh, under the CSIS component.
- A 75% government credit guarantee on loans up to Rs 7.5 lakh, which is what lets banks lend without collateral.
- One Common Education Loan Application Form (CELAF) that can be sent to up to three banks, instead of a separate application for each bank.
Who can apply
- You must have secured admission on merit to a top Quality Higher Education Institution (QHEI) identified by the Ministry of Education.
- For the 3% interest subvention, your annual family income must be up to Rs 8 lakh. Family here means the student plus father, mother and spouse where applicable.
- You must not be availing any other scholarship or interest subvention on the same loan — Vidyalaxmi subvention cannot be combined with CSIS on one loan.
- The subvention is limited to up to 1 lakh fresh students a year, and it is paid from the second year subject to satisfactory academic performance.
One point needs honest flagging: sources disagree on how many institutions count as QHEIs, with figures of 860 and 1,441 both in circulation. This article therefore does not state a single count as fact. Check whether your institution is on the QHEI list on the PM Vidyalaxmi portal before you apply, since that list — not any article’s number — decides eligibility.
Loan terms to know before you borrow
- The moratorium period is the course period plus one year; repayment begins after that.
- Life insurance is mandatory for loans above Rs 7.5 lakh.
- Aadhaar-based de-duplication is used to stop the same student drawing the subsidy twice.
- This is a loan, not a grant: the principal remains repayable. Only the interest subsidy is free money, and only for as long as you meet the academic and income conditions.
Documents required
Keep ready: Aadhaar details of the student, income proof issued by an authorised public authority of the State Government, proof of merit-based admission to the QHEI course, and the bank’s own loan documents. The portal and the lending bank’s checklist govern the final list, so confirm it there before submitting.
How to apply
- Open the PM Vidyalaxmi portal and check that your institution is on the QHEI list and that you meet the income condition for the subvention.
- Fill in the Common Education Loan Application Form (CELAF) on the portal.
- Send the single application to up to three banks of your choice through the portal.
- Complete the chosen bank’s verification and documentation, including Aadhaar-based de-duplication, and track the sanction on the portal.
FAQs
It is a loan scheme with an interest subsidy. You borrow the course cost and repay the principal; the government pays part or, for the lowest income tier during the moratorium, all of the interest.
3% on loans up to Rs 10 lakh if your family income is up to Rs 8 lakh a year. If your family income is up to Rs 4.5 lakh, you get full interest subvention during the moratorium under the CSIS component instead.
No. Loans under the scheme are collateral-free and guarantor-free, backed by a 75% government credit guarantee on loans up to Rs 7.5 lakh.
No. The subvention is for students not availing any other scholarship or interest subvention, and it cannot be combined with CSIS on the same loan.
After the moratorium, which is the course period plus one year.
No fixed deadline is published in the sources checked. The portal is open for applications; apply once you hold merit-based admission to a QHEI.
Verified 31 Oct 2026 against the Press Information Bureau release on the scheme (PRID 2290079: launched November 2024 as a new central sector scheme; 3% subvention on loans up to Rs 10 lakh for family income up to Rs 8 lakh; up to 1 lakh fresh students a year; Rs 3,600 crore outlay for 2024-25 to 2030-31 covering up to 7 lakh students; portal operational since 25 February 2025; 1,12,817 loans sanctioned from 6 November 2024 to 21 July 2026; Aadhaar-based de-duplication; subvention from the second year subject to satisfactory performance) and the Canara Bank PM Vidyalaxmi page (moratorium of course period plus one year; full moratorium subvention up to Rs 4.5 lakh income and 3% subvention for Rs 4.5-8 lakh on loans up to Rs 10 lakh; life insurance mandatory above Rs 7.5 lakh; Aadhaar details and State Government-authorised income proof; family definition). The 75% credit guarantee on loans up to Rs 7.5 lakh and the single CELAF to up to three banks are reported by scheme guides; the QHEI count is stated as disputed (860 versus 1,441) because sources conflict.
