Student loan in La Réunion: how to fund your studies, at home or on the mainland

A student loan in La Réunion: what it covers and who it is for

A student loan in La Réunion is a bank loan taken by someone enrolled in higher education to pay for living costs, rent, travel and course expenses, usually repaid only once studies are over or while the student is still partly in education. On an island of the Indian Ocean, the loan serves two very different journeys: staying in Saint-Denis, Le Tampon or Saint-Pierre for a degree, or flying to mainland France because the chosen programme is not taught locally.

Borrowing seldom works alone. It sits beside a Crous grant, a flight subsidy and often some help from relatives, and the most sensible order is to claim every public aid first and borrow only the part of the budget nothing else covers.

Studying at home: what the island offers

University of La Réunion

The university spreads its teaching across the Moufia campus in Saint-Denis, the Terre-Sainte campus in Saint-Pierre, the Le Tampon campus and several other sites, including the Technopole in Sainte-Clotilde, the business institute IAE and the teacher-training institute INSPE. Its website lists over 200 training options and more than 18,400 students. Terre-Sainte also hosts the technology institute IUT and ESIROI, an engineering school with a tropical focus.

Other routes

Alongside the university, the island has vocational diplomas, preparatory classes, art schools in Le Port, nursing institutes, a physiotherapy school in Saint-Pierre and a social-work institute in Saint-Benoît. Some health and engineering paths still require leaving, and that decision changes the size of the loan completely.

Public aid to claim before borrowing

Crous grants and housing

The Crous de La Réunion et de Mayotte handles the single social file used for both a means-tested grant and university housing. Its residences are in Sainte-Clotilde, Saint-Pierre and Le Tampon, and an online simulator estimates grant rights before applying. The 2026-2027 campaign opened on 2 March 2026, so an early application gives a clear picture of the amount left to borrow. How grant bands work is covered under student scholarships.

Distance matters in the grant formula. A journey of 3,500 to 12,999 kilometres, such as La Réunion to mainland France, adds three extra points that raise the family income ceiling, so some households qualify who would not otherwise.

The LADOM mobility passport

The overseas mobility agency LADOM pays for one round-trip flight each year for students whose course is unavailable in their home territory. First-year students who have just passed the baccalaureate may obtain a second round trip under the PME+ extension. In 2025 the agency supported 10,546 students, including 1,068 newly qualified school-leavers through PME+. The published household ceiling is 26,631 euros per tax share. LADOM books the tickets itself and they cannot be freely changed, so dates should be settled before applying.

Support for study abroad

University students going abroad may combine an Erasmus+ allowance, a Regional Council grant for under-28s whose tax household has been on the island for over two years, and a mobility aid reserved for grant holders. The Erasmus+ travel lump sum ranges from 211 to 1,735 euros according to the distance between campuses. For a full degree overseas, a student loan for studying abroad is a separate topic.

The State-guaranteed loan for islanders

Rules of the scheme

The scheme allows borrowing up to 20,000 euros with no parental guarantor and no income test. The applicant must be under 28 at signature, French or from the EU or EEA with two years of lawful residence in France, and enrolled at a French higher-education institution. The State guarantees 70 percent of the principal through a fund run by Bpifrance, while the bank carries the rest. A bank can still refuse, because the scheme gives no automatic entitlement. Deferred repayment, partial or total, is allowed for up to ten years after signing.

Which banks to approach locally

The partner list includes BFCOI, a bank rooted mainly in La Réunion and Mayotte, together with La Banque Postale, CIC, Crédit Mutuel and Société Générale. Other institutions on the island, among them the regional Crédit Agricole, BNP Paribas Réunion and BRED, run their own student offers without the public guarantee, which makes a comparison worthwhile. The guarantee is explained in detail under government-guaranteed student loan.

Worked example: borrowing to study on the mainland

The figures below are a hypothetical case only. They assume 9,000 euros borrowed at a fixed 3.0 percent a year, with two years paying interest only and then four years of full repayments. Real rates depend on each bank and on the applicant.

While studying the burden is light, only 22.50 euros a month, but the payment jumps to roughly 199 euros once salaried work begins. Borrowing less, for instance to cover only the move, lowers that later payment accordingly.

Budgeting for a move to mainland France

Studying thousands of kilometres from home produces costs bunched at the start: a rental deposit, the first rent, furniture and kitchen basics, winter clothing and home insurance. A housing allowance may offset part of it, and student housing aid (APL) sets out who can claim. Two further sums apply to those who qualify: 500 euros under Parcoursup for accepting an offer outside the home academy, and 1,000 euros for changing academic region between the third year of a bachelor's degree and the first year of a master's.

Before signing anything, list every income stream: grant, flight aid, regional help, part-time work and family support. The loan then fills the remaining gap instead of paying for the whole plan.

Preparing the application

1. Map out the public aid and obtain the Crous grant notification.
2. Gather an enrolment or pre-enrolment certificate, identity document, proof of address and bank details.
3. Prepare a budget covering the full course, stating the amount requested and when funds are needed.
4. Compare offers, including borrower insurance, which is optional at several banks.
5. Check the length of deferral and the date of the first instalment before signing.

Many banks ask the borrower to be an existing customer, sometimes for a few months, so opening an account while still at school can save time later. After the offer is accepted, a legal withdrawal period of fourteen days gives a chance to reconsider.

When the family cannot act as guarantor

Plenty of households on the island cannot stand as guarantor. In that situation the State-backed loan remains the main option, and some banks also lend to adults without parental surety once they have been a customer for a set time.

Frequently asked questions