Taking the frustration out of getting finance
When you apply for a personal loan, you may not want to wait for days to get your money. Perhaps you need it for an essential car repair, home upgrade or for another urgent expense. But if you don’t provide the right paperwork and supporting documents, your loan application could be delayed and you could wait to get approved
Whatever the reason or the size of a personal loan, you’ll always be asked to provide supporting documents when you apply to take out a loan. Changes to the National Credit Act have made the conditions for providing loans even stricter in the last few years.
By law, finance companies must confirm income and how much the customer can afford to repay before granting a loan. This may feel like burdensome paperwork, but it’s designed to protect you from unscrupulous lenders or from getting into debt you can’t afford to repay
Before starting your loan application, take the time to check the personal loan application requirements so that you know what documents you’ll need to provide to speed up the approval process.
Documents you’ll need when applying for a loan
When you apply for a personal loan, you’ll usually be asked to provide proof of income, proof of your identity and proof of residence.
● Proof of identity: In most cases, a South African barcoded identity document is all that is required. If you don’t have a South African ID or have lost it, a valid passport or driver’s licence is acceptable as long as it’s accompanied by a declaration certified by a commissioner of oaths.
● Proof of income:
○ If you’re employed, this is fairly straightforward. You’ll need to provide payslips for the past three months or bank statements going back three months with your income marked.
○ If you’re self-employed, you’ll need to provide bank statements for three months or an annual financial statement for the business, drawn up by an auditor or accountant.
○ If you’re a pensioner, you can provide three months’ recent bank statements or a pension, investment or retirement annuity statement covering at least three months.
● Proof of address: You’ll need to provide proof of residential address, which must include your name or initials, surname and address. These are considered acceptable documents to submit as proof of your address:
● Retail accounts.
● Utility bills for rates, water or electricity.
● Telephone or cellphone accounts.
● Bank statements on an official document or form.
These must be less than three months old. Mortgage statements are also accepted; these can be less than six months old.
Your proof of address must also be from an independent source. This means, for example, that DirectAxis cannot accept statements from FNB, Rand Merchant Bank or WesBank, as these companies are all part of the same group.
Many loans providers make it easy for you to submit your documents via email or by uploading them on their website as part of the loan application process. You can use the camera on your mobile phone to take photos of physical documents, or upload bank-generated PDF documents to a pin-protected web page. Whichever method you use, make sure the documents are legible and clear to ensure your loan application is not delayed.
If you need a personal loan, DirectAxis can help. Simply visit our personal loan page to learn more about available options.