DUO takes time out as it switches to new ICT system
Adjusting the amount of your student loan or paying fees online at DUO, the national regulatory agency for student grants, will not possible from 29 March to 30 April.
DUO has been working with the same student finance system since 1986 and it is long overdue. According to minister Van Engelshoven, the switch-over will take so long because that's how long it will take to process the ‘Massive amounts of data’ involved. DUO will go offline during this time.
DUO spokesman Tea Jonkman adds: ‘All our data is linked with other data. For instance, when determining a grant, we need to look into factors such as parents’ income and whether students have any siblings who are studying.’
Students will not be able to adjust their student loans, see an overview of debts or make loan re-payments via iDeal during this downtime. However, DUO’s most important processes will continue to run, including the payment of monthly student grants. Students will also be able to continue to switch between weekend and week subscriptions for public transportation and direct debits will still be processed.
On 1 May, DUO will need to be fully accessible says Jonkman. Minister Van Engelshoven is a little more cautious and states that possible teething problems may continue into the start of the new system. DUO will remain accessible by telephone, mail or social media and there will be a help line for emergencies.
