Information on supporting a student’s application for student finance
| This article has been written by the experts at Student Finance England (SFE), who regularly review and update the information here. |
In this article...
While at university or college your child or partner will have 2 main costs – tuition fees and living costs. They can apply for student finance to help with both.
All eligible students can get:
- a Tuition Fee Loan to cover the full cost of the fees charged by their university or college, and
- a basic rate of Maintenance Loan to help with living costs, such as rent and bills.
The Tuition Fee Loan and the basic rate of Maintenance Loan don’t depend on your household income but students can apply for more that does.
Any loans they borrow have to be paid back but not until they’ve finished or left their course and their income is over the repayment threshold (external link).
There are also grants available for students who have a disability, including a long-term health condition, mental-health condition or specific learning difficulty, or students who have children or an adult who depends on them financially. These don’t usually have to be paid back.
A student’s university or college may also offer bursaries, scholarships or other kinds of financial help – so it’s always worth checking with them too.
How to support a student’s application
You might need to give SFE information about your income if your child or partner has applied for student finance that’s based on your household income.
Once your child or partner has applied for student finance that depends on your household income, you’ll get an email within 24 hours with a link to submit your details.
You’ll need to create an account if you haven’t already got one. You must use your own account – you can’t use the same account as your child or partner.
Student Finance England (SFE) will ask for your National Insurance number (NINO) to support an application. This allows them to get your income details from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
You’ll need to supply your National Insurance number (NINO) and tell SFE if you have:
- paid into private pensions
- made additional voluntary contributions
- children (other than the student) who depend on you financially
If you don't have a NINO, then you’ll need to complete a paper form (download this paper form at Gov.uk) and may need to provide supporting documents to show how much you’ve earned.
Household income from the following tax years will be used:
- 2023-24 if you’re supporting a student’s 2025 to 2026 application
- 2022-23 if you’re supporting a student’s 2024 to 2025 application
Details of the previous tax year are used because this is the most recent full tax year.
Your information will be used to work out if your child or partner can get extra Maintenance Loan on top of the basic Maintenance Loan.
You should only give Student Finance England (SFE) your own details. If you live with a partner, SFE will ask for their details separately.
If you've given SFE your details close to your child or partner's course starting, find out more about what will happen next.
Evidence of household income
You usually don't need to send Student Finance England evidence of your household income as they check your details with HMRC. But they may contact you to ask for evidence of your:
- marital status – if you've supported an application in a previous academic year and your status has changed
- income – if you're living abroad or finalising your current year income assessment
- private pension – if you have one
- additional voluntary contributions – if you’ve made any
Don’t worry if this happens – it’s part of SFE’s checks to make sure your child or partner gets the correct amount of funding they’re entitled to.
You can upload a digital copy of your evidence through your online student finance account on the Gov.uk website.
If you upload evidence, such as a P60, when it’s not been requested, this will cause delays to the student getting their money. Don’t send SFE a P60, unless you’ve been asked for it.
If your income in the current tax year is likely to be at least 15% lower than the previous tax year, SFE can assess your household income on what you estimate your income to be. Find out more about Current Year Income assessments (external link).
It will take 4 weeks to process applications, so it’s important that you submit any evidence needed as soon as possible. This will help to make sure your child or partner gets the right amount of money in time for the start of their course.
Supporting your child's application
If you’re supporting your child’s application, your household income is the total income of you and your spouse/partner.
If you’re married, SFE will need your spouse’s information even if you don’t live together or they’re not the student’s parent.
If you live with your partner, they’ll need to give SFE their information even if you weren't living together during the tax year being asked about.
If you’re separated or divorced, your child should tell SFE who they live with or have most contact with. If they spend an equal amount of time with both of their parents, they’ll be asked to pick who will support their application.
| Remember, household income is based on your circumstances at the start of the academic year. This means that if you get married or start living with your partner before the start of the academic year, Student Finance England will need their details. |
Household income doesn’t include any income the student might have from working themselves.
Supporting a continuing student
Your child or partner needs to re-apply for student finance each year, you need to provide your details every year of your child or partner’s course.
When they re-apply, you’ll get an email within 24 hours. The email will have a link to log into your account, where you can support their application and give SFE details such as:
- your marital status (you may be asked to send evidence if this has changed since the previous academic year)
- any changes to the information you submitted the previous year
Supporting your spouse or partner's application
If your spouse or partner is applying for student finance, the household income is made up of your income only.
Household income doesn’t include any income the student might have from working themselves.
What happens next
Once your part is complete, it will take 4 weeks to process applications.
Your child or partner will be able to track the progress of their application by logging into their online account and using the application status tracker.
