Government · Contact details
Funza Lushaka Contact Details
Funza Lushaka enquiries go to inquiries.funzalushaka@dbe.gov.za or 012 357 3000. Note the spelling of that address carefully: it is inquiries with an i, not enquiries. Applications are not made on the Funza Lushaka website at all; they go through the e-Gov portal at eservices.gov.za. We read this on education.gov.za and funzalushaka.doe.gov.za on 24 September 2026.
Official contact details
| Bursary enquiries email | inquiries.funzalushaka@dbe.gov.za |
|---|---|
| Telephone | 012 357 3000 |
| DBE hotline, toll-free | 0800 202 933 |
| Bursary website | www.funzalushaka.doe.gov.za |
| Application portal | www.eservices.gov.za |
012 357 3000 is the Department of Basic Education switchboard rather than a dedicated bursary line, so ask for Funza Lushaka when it answers. The department’s toll-free hotline on 0800 202 933 costs nothing and can also route you.
Two spellings that will lose your email
This is worth slowing down over, because a bursary query that bounces may not be noticed until the closing date has passed.
The address begins inquiries, spelled with an i. South Africans overwhelmingly write enquiries with an e, so the natural spelling is the wrong one here. Copy the address rather than typing it from memory.
There is a second trap in the web address. The bursary site works at www.funzalushaka.doe.gov.za, with the www. Without the www it does not resolve at all: we checked, and the plain domain has no working record. If you dropped the www and got nothing, the site has not moved.
Note also that it is a doe.gov.za address, the department’s older domain, while the enquiries mailbox is on dbe.gov.za. Both are genuine government addresses.
You do not apply on the bursary website
This is the single biggest source of wasted effort, and it is why people end up phoning.
The Funza Lushaka site explains the scheme, but the application itself is made on the national e-Gov portal, www.eservices.gov.za. The department publishes it as a nine-step process:
- Open the e-Gov portal at www.eservices.gov.za
- Register with your personal information
- Log in with the username and password you created
- Select Funza Lushaka Bursary Scheme from the e-Services menu
- Enter the one-time PIN sent to your chosen channel
- Accept the terms and conditions
- Click the application button for the relevant year on the dashboard
- Complete the required fields
- Accept the declaration to confirm what you have captured
The one-time PIN step matters: make sure the phone number or email you register with is one you can actually access, or you will be locked out mid-application.
The age limit rules many people out
The department states it plainly: all first-time applicants must be 30 years or younger.
That is a hard eligibility rule, not a preference, and it is the most common reason an application is rejected. If you are over 30 and applying for the first time, the bursary is not available to you and phoning will not change that.
It applies to first-time applicants. Existing and returning bursars re-apply through a separate route with its own, earlier closing date.
Check the dates before you rely on them
The bursary site publishes its opening and closing dates prominently, and the pattern is worth knowing: applications open in early October for the following academic year, re-applications for existing bursars close at the end of November, and new applications close at the beginning of February.
Re-applications close roughly two months before new ones. Returning bursars who assume they have until February will miss it.
When we checked, the dates displayed on the site were those of a cycle that had already closed, so confirm the current cycle’s dates before relying on what is shown. Email inquiries.funzalushaka@dbe.gov.za if the site’s dates look out of step with the year you are applying for.
What else the site offers
Besides the application routes, the Funza Lushaka site publishes a brochure on initial teacher education, the bursary agreement form, a page on bursary placement, and a facility to update your personal information.
Read the placement page before you accept. Funza Lushaka is a service-linked bursary: it carries an obligation to teach, and the agreement form sets out what you are committing to. That is the part people most often query afterwards, and the time to understand it is before signing.
Every genuine address for this scheme ends in @dbe.gov.za. Nobody can sell you a bursary, and the application costs nothing.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Funza Lushaka contact number?
The numbers listed on this page for Funza Lushaka are 012 357 3000 (Telephone) and 0800 202 933 (DBE hotline, toll-free).
What is the Funza Lushaka email address?
The email address listed on this page is inquiries.funzalushaka@dbe.gov.za (Bursary enquiries email).
How do I know these Funza Lushaka details are correct?
We only list details read from the official website or channels of Funza Lushaka, and this page shows the date they were checked. Confirm on the official site before you share personal information or make a payment.
Sources
- Department of Basic Education Funza Lushaka Bursary Scheme page, education.gov.za, for the contact and support email address and telephone number (read 24 September 2026)
- Funza Lushaka bursary website, www.funzalushaka.doe.gov.za, for the nine application steps, the e-Gov portal address, the age limit, the application and re-application closing date pattern and the other published resources; and a direct check showing the address without www does not resolve (read 24 September 2026)