141.—(1) A person (the “applicant”) must apply for support in connection with each academic year of a designated part-time course by completing and submitting to the Secretary of State an application in such form as the Secretary of State may require.
(2) The application must be accompanied by—
(a)a declaration under regulation 142 completed by the academic authority; and
(b)such additional documentation as the Secretary of State may require.
(3) The Secretary of State may take such steps and make such inquiries as he considers necessary to determine whether the applicant is an eligible part-time student, whether he qualifies for support and the amount of support payable, if any.
(4) The Secretary of State must notify the applicant of whether he qualifies for support and, if he does qualify, the amount of support payable in respect of the academic year, if any.
(5) The general rule is that the application must reach the Secretary of State within a period of six months beginning with the first day of the academic year of the course in respect of which it is submitted.
(6) The general rule does not apply where—
(a)one of the events listed in paragraph (3) of regulation 133 occurs after the first day of the academic year in respect of which the applicant is applying for support, in which case the application must reach the Secretary of State within a period of six months beginning with the day on which the relevant event occurred;
(b)the applicant is applying for the disabled part-time students’ allowance, in which case the application must reach the Secretary of State as soon as is reasonably practicable; or
(c)the Secretary of State considers that having regard to the circumstances of the particular case the time limit should be relaxed, in which case the application must reach the Secretary of State not later than such date as he specifies.