This discussion is now closed.

Check out other Related discussions

Repaying your student loan by SLC

Student Money Week 2017

Got a question about repaying your student loan? Our experts are here to help.

Linsay has worked at the Student Loans Company for just over two years. She works in repayment and is passionate about guiding students through the repayment process.

Greg has worked at the Student Loans Company for almost two years. He also works in repayment and has a great knowledge of the repayment process.

Duncan is a member of the HMRC Student Finance Team. He is responsible for producing guidance relating to HMRC's part in the student loan repayment process. He works in partnership with colleagues from Student Loans Company to help make the process as smooth as possible.

Please be aware all answers will be posted on Monday 6 February.

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 1

Matt_1994

1

Hi I graduate soon, do I have to tell HMRC that I have a student loan or do they already know? How does HMRC know what my balance is?

Hey guys,

Are there any plans to have an online portal or something so we can see what our balance is? At the moment I just get my annual account summary but just wondered if this was on the cards?

Reply 3

ben344

hi how do I repay is it a direct debit? also if I go abroad for 3 months do I have to repay or not?

Reply 4

Linsay Frankish

Official Rep

Original post by ben344

hi how do I repay is it a direct debit? also if I go abroad for 3 months do I have to repay or not?

If you are working in the UK and earning over the threshold repayment will be taken through your salary. Your employer will calculate the repayment and pass the details to HMRC.

If you leave the UK for more than 3 months you will be classed as an overseas repayer and have to complete an overseas assessment form. If you are working overseas you may still be eligible for repayments based on your income.

Reply 5

Greg Leyden

Official Rep

Original post by CJ

Hey guys,

Are there any plans to have an online portal or something so we can see what our balance is? At the moment I just get my annual account summary but just wondered if this was on the cards?

Hi CJ

There is already an online repayment portal for customers. To log in, go to www.studentloanrepayment.co.uk. You will require your customer reference number as well as your secret answer and password.

The online balance calculator allows you to input your salary deductions to keep up to date with your balance. The online balance does not show the accrual of interest which means it is not the most accurate.

If you can't remember these details then please call our helpline on 0300 100 0611 to have these reset.

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 6

Immiprice

What's the connection between your student loan and interest rates, how drastically might these figures change and (generally) what is fixed when you apply for the loan and what might vary over time?

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 7

Linsay Frankish

Official Rep

Original post by Matt_1994

Hi I graduate soon, do I have to tell HMRC that I have a student loan or do they already know? How does HMRC know what my balance is?

You do not need to notify HMRC that you have a student loan as your national insurance number is linked to your student finance account. When you start working with a new employer and complete a starter checklist this is passed to HMRC who will confirm with your employer which threshold to use when calculating your repayments.

HMRC do not know your account balance, only that you have a loan that is in repayment.

Reply 8

Greg Leyden

Official Rep

Original post by Immiprice

What's the connection between your student loan and interest rates, how drastically might these figures change and what is fixed when you apply for the loan and what might vary over time?

Hi,

The interest rate on your student loan depends on the type of student loan you have.

Loans taken for courses that started before 1st September 2012 are referred to as Plan 1 loans and loans taken for courses starting on or after that date are referred to as Plan 2 loans.

Plan 1 loan interest is the same as the Retail Price Index (RPI) at this moment in time RPI is set at 1.25%

Plan 2 interest is variable based on your income. Earning below £21,000 would mean the interest rate is the higher rate of RPI, which is 1.6% at the moment.

Earning between £21,000 and £42,000 would mean that the interest would be variable between 1.6% (RPI) and 4.6% (RPI +3%) depending on earnings.

Earning over £42,000 would mean that interest would be at the highest rate of RPI + 3%, which at the moment is 4.6%

RPI is determined by the UK government and can change.

More information can be found at www.studentloanrepayment.co.uk

Reply 9

Pickles

20

Hey

I've seen there are now 2 repayment plans? Could you tell me what the differences between them are please and also, can you choose between them?

Thanks!

Reply 10

Linsay Frankish

Official Rep

Original post by Pickles

Hey

I've seen there are now 2 repayment plans? Could you tell me what the differences between them are please and also, can you choose between them?

Thanks!

Plan 1 loans are for student who took funding out prior to 1st September 2012. Any student who took funding out after this date are classed as Plan 2.

The main difference between Plan 1 and Plan 2 is the thresholds and interest rates. Plan 1 has an annual threshold of £17495.00 with a current interest rate of 1.25%.

Plan 2 has a £21000.00 threshold with interest rate based on your annual income. Customers who earn £21000.00 or under will be charged 1.6% per annum. Anyone earning between £21000.00 and £41000.00 are charged a variable interest rate based on earnings. Customers earning over £41000.00 will currently be charged 4.6%.

You cannot choose what plan type your loan falls under as it it based on when you took your funding out.

Reply 11

Redmonkey14

1

Hi there!

I've graduated now, is there an easy way to track my student loan payments and how much i'm paying off? (Rather then tallying it up with my payslips?)

and is it true there is interest on the interest of student loans?

Thanks,

Jess

Reply 12

Greg Leyden

Official Rep

Original post by Redmonkey14

Hi there!

I've graduated now, is there an easy way to track my student loan payments and how much i'm paying off? (Rather then tallying it up with my payslips?)

and is it true there is interest on the interest of student loans?

Thanks,

Jess

Hi,

Because your student loan repayments are done by your employer, the easiest way to track your repayments is through your payslips. You can use your online account to enter your payslip deductions which will help you track your balance.

You can log in at www.studentloanrepayment.co.uk

In short, yes, there is interest on the interest of student loans.

This is because it is compound interest. This is accrued daily on your account and applied monthly. Meaning the balance changes every month. For example the interest accrued in January will be applied to your account at the end of the month and will then accrue interest itself during February.

The interest is recalculated retrospectively when we receive your repayment file from HMRC.

(edited 7 years ago)

Thanks to everyone for their questions on repayments. And thanks to our experts for their answers.

For any more info you need on repayment, interest and repaying from overseas, visit www.slc.co.uk/repayment or www.thestudentroom.co.uk/studentfinance

Repaying your student loan by SLC

Related discussions

Latest

Trending

Trending

Articles for you