View and print copies of annual statements
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• View up-to-date balance summaries for the current tax year • Establish the interest rates attached to any student loans • Update any personal details that need amending
In order to access their account, individuals will need their customer reference number and password. No action needs to be taken at this point in time, but the Student Finance Team wanted to make customers aware that the service is now available, and ready to use.
Annual paper statements distributed by post will be stopped, because real-time balances can be located online. However, if for any reason, anyone would still prefer to receive that paper statement then they can request this here.
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Annual updates to Student Loans thresholds 14 August 2020
The Department for Education (DfE) has announced the annual updates to the Interest Rates and Thresholds of Income Contingent Student Loans.
From 6 April 2021, the repayment threshold for Plan 1 loans will rise to £19,985 per annum. This is for any pre-2012 loans.
The repayment threshold for Plan 2 loans will rise to £27,295 from 6 April 2021, and this is for any loans provided post- 2012.
The repayment threshold for Postgraduate loans remains unchanged at £21,000 per year.
The announcement also details which interest rates will be applied to each type of loan.
The threshold is the point at which individuals will begin to repay their student loan, at a rate of 9% of eligible earnings for both Plan 1 and Plan 2, and at a rate of 6% for any postgraduate loans. There will also be a Student Loan Plan Type 4 introduced from 6 April 2021, for those students who have drawn down a loan in Scotland.
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Improvements to the Student Loan repayment process 18 August 2020
The Student Loans Company’s (SLC) Executive Director, Bernice McNaught, has put together an article, which discusses improvements that have been made to the service for individuals who are in repayment of their student loan.
The amendments have been made over the course of the last 18 months. More frequent data sharing (MFDS) has assisted in reducing the overall number of customers who end up over-repaying on their student loan and provides current balances for any individuals who repay via PAYE. Historically, repayment information was only shared between HMRC and SLC at the end of each tax year, meaning that those repaying could not access their up-to-date balance information. It also meant that some individuals ended up over-repaying their loans. As of April 2019, SLC and HMRC began to share repayment information each week. Those who are in the final stages of their repayment term are advised to switch to direct debit to avoid over-repaying their student loan. The SLC has been working to ensure that every person repaying their student loan knows when to switch to direct debit, but for those who do end up over-repaying, the refund process has been improved. In 2019-20, the SLC refunded £60 million to those who had over-repaid their student loans. Following on from the introduction of
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