Relief for job seekers as HELB waives Sh1000 compliance certificate fee

Job seekers will no longer need to pay Sh1,000 for the issuance of a compliance certificate.

This is after the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) waived the fee, following a public outcry.

In a statement, HELB CEO Charles Ringera (pictured) said: “It has repeatedly come to our attention that the charges for non-loanee compliance certificate are perceived to be punitive, especially to the many unemployed youths who did not benefit from the student loans.”

The compliance certificates will now be free and can be accessed from the HELB Website (www.helb.co.ke) or the E-Citizen portal.

HELB says some of the major concerns raised by Kenyans include:

•Unemployment and Under-employment challenges,

•Slow economic growth and escalated cost of living, and

•Retrenchment and downsizing affecting all sectors which have been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The institution says it now has faith that the waiver will motivate Kenyans to seek their HELB certificates as they search for jobs.

Usually, most potential employers require the HELB compliance certificate, even if you did not get a loan from HELB.

In some government institutions, lack of a compliance certificate could deny you a promotion.

Apart from HELB, job seekers are also required to get compliance certificates from the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC).

Others are a certificate of good conduct from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, and a letter from Credit Reference Bureau (CRB) indicating the applicant doesn’t owe any financial institution money.