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Work out your compulsory repayment for 2026-27 on any study or training support loan — HELP, VSL, SFSS, SSL, ABSTUDY SSL or AASL. They all share one threshold of $69,528, and the marginal system charges only on the income above it.
Updated 28 July 2026 — 2026-27 thresholds applied.
The minimum repayment threshold for 2026-27 is $69,528, up from $67,000 in 2025-26. Since 1 July 2025 the rates apply marginally, so only the income above the threshold is charged.
| Repayment income (2026-27) | Rate | How it's calculated |
|---|---|---|
| $0 – $69,528 | Nil | No compulsory repayment |
| $69,529 – $129,717 | 15% | 15c for each $1 over $69,528 |
| $129,718 – $186,050 | 17% | $9,028 plus 17c for each $1 over $129,717 |
| $186,051 and over | 10% | 10% of total repayment income |
Repayment income is wider than your salary. The ATO adds together:
That is why salary sacrificing into super does not drop you under the threshold — the contributions are added back. The threshold is indexed every year: it was $67,000 in 2025-26, and one set of thresholds covers HELP, VSL, SFSS, SSL, ABSTUDY SSL and AASL alike.
| Repayment income | Compulsory repayment | Per week |
|---|---|---|
| $75,000 | $821 | $15.79 |
| $85,000 | $2,321 | $44.63 |
| $100,000 | $4,571 | $87.90 |
| $130,000 | $9,076 | $174.54 |
| $190,000 | $19,000 | $365.38 |
ATO, Study and training loan repayment thresholds and rates. Enter your own income in the calculator above for the exact figure.
There is no separate HECS calculation. The ATO states that all study and training loan types are covered by the same set of thresholds and rates for each financial year, so the figure above is your compulsory repayment whichever of the six loans you hold — and it is a single repayment even if you hold several.
| Loan | What it covers | Repaid in order |
|---|---|---|
| HELPHigher Education Loan Program | University student contributions and tuition fees. Includes HECS-HELP, FEE-HELP, OS-HELP and SA-HELP. | 1 |
| VSLVET Student Loan | Diploma-level and above vocational education and training with an approved provider. | 2 |
| SFSSStudent Financial Supplement Scheme | Closed to new loans on 31 December 2003. Existing balances are still collected through the tax system. | 3 |
| SSLStudent Start-up Loan | Higher education students receiving Youth Allowance or Austudy. | 4 |
| ABSTUDY SSLABSTUDY Student Start-up Loan | Students receiving the ABSTUDY Living Allowance. | 5 |
| AASLAustralian Apprenticeship Support Loan | Australian apprentices, paid over four years. Previously the Trade Support Loan (TSL). A 20% discount applies to the amount borrowed on successful completion. | 6 |
ATO, Study and training loan repayment thresholds and rates and Types of loans. Loan fee and lifetime limit rules differ by scheme and are set by the Department of Education, not the ATO — check Study Assist before relying on a fee figure.
You make one compulsory repayment, worked out on your total repayment income. The ATO then applies it to your loans in the fixed order in the table: HELP first, then VSL, SFSS, SSL, ABSTUDY SSL and AASL last. Holding two loans does not double the repayment; it only changes which balance falls first.
The overseas obligation is narrower than the repayment rules. It applies to HELP, VSL and AASL debts only. If you reside outside Australia for 183 days or more in any 12-month period you must lodge an overseas travel notification within 7 days of leaving, then report your worldwide income by 31 October each year. If your worldwide income is at or below 25% of the minimum repayment threshold, you lodge a non-lodgment advice instead. The same thresholds and rates then apply to that worldwide income.
Full detail: ATO, Overseas obligations when repaying loans.
($85,000 − $69,528) × 0.15 = $2,321 per year
Weekly impact: $44.63 per week
Use our Pay Calculator to see the repayment inside a full after-tax breakdown with income tax, the Medicare levy and superannuation.
Between $75,000 and $120,000, the compulsory repayment costs $15.79 to $145.60 a week.
| Repayment income | Repayment | Per week | Take-home (with) | Take-home (without) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $65,000 | $0 | $0.00 | $53,705 | $53,705 |
| $69,528 | $0 | $0.00 | $56,759 | $56,759 |
| $72,000 | $371 | $7.13 | $58,069 | $58,440 |
| $75,000 | $821 | $15.79 | $59,659 | $60,480 |
| $80,000 | $1,571 | $30.21 | $62,309 | $63,880 |
| $90,000 | $3,071 | $59.06 | $67,609 | $70,680 |
| $100,000 | $4,571 | $87.90 | $72,909 | $77,480 |
| $120,000 | $7,571 | $145.60 | $83,509 | $91,080 |
Nothing is payable at $65,000 or at the $69,528 threshold itself. Moving to $72,000 costs $371 for the year ($7.13/week) — the marginal system removed the old cliff, where a dollar over the line triggered a percentage of your entire income. Take-Home Pay Calculator gives the full net pay breakdown.
The amount withheld each pay is an estimate. Employers withhold an additional PAYG component — shown as STSL on most payslips — from ATO withholding schedules, based on that pay period's earnings alone.
Your actual compulsory repayment is only worked out when you lodge, using full-year repayment income. If your pay varied, or you had investment losses, reportable fringe benefits or reportable super, the two will not match, and the difference is settled through your refund or tax bill.
See STSL on your payslip for a worked payslip example and how to stop the deduction once the loan is cleared.
Study loans carry no interest. Instead the ATO applies indexation on 1 June each year to the part of the balance unpaid for more than 11 months, at the lower of CPI or the Wage Price Index. On 1 June 2026 the rate was 2.8000000000000003% — read more on HECS indexation 2026.
That cap — the lower of CPI or WPI — was introduced after the June 2023 indexation came in at 7.1% under a CPI-only formula. It was backdated, and the ATO recalculated both 2023 and 2024, crediting the difference to affected balances.
| Applied 1 June | Indexation rate | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2.8% | — |
| 2025 | 3.2% | — |
| 2024 | 4% | recalculated from 4.7% |
| 2023 | 3.2% | recalculated from 7.1% |
| 2022 | 3.9% | — |
| 2021 | 0.6% | — |
ATO, Study and training loan indexation rates.
One quirk matters for timing. Compulsory repayments made through PAYG during the year are not credited to your loan until your return is assessed — usually after 1 June. So the balance that gets indexed is often larger than the balance you think you have. Separately, every study and training support debt that existed on 1 June 2025 received a one-off 20% reduction; the ATO has finished processing it, and accounts left in credit were refunded.
A voluntary repayment only reduces the indexed amount if it lands before 1 June. Beyond that timing point the case for paying early is a straight comparison: 2.8000000000000003% indexation against what the money would earn or save elsewhere. Credit cards, car loans and personal loans all cost more, so they come first.
Where a voluntary repayment does stack up:
Timing beats amount. A payment on 31 May reduces what gets indexed; the same payment on 2 June does not. Allow processing time — BPAY to the ATO is not instant. Detail: ATO, Voluntary repayments.
Weighing it against super instead? See extra super vs HECS repayment.
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| Census date | Set by your university, per teaching period. Withdraw before it and no debt is incurred; withdraw after and the full subject cost is added. |
| Before 1 June | Last useful moment for a voluntary repayment to reduce the balance that gets indexed. |
| 1 June | Indexation applied to the part of the balance unpaid for more than 11 months. |
| 1 July | New income year. Thresholds and rates are re-indexed for the year ahead. |
| 31 October | Self-lodgers’ return deadline, and the deadline for reporting worldwide income from overseas. |
On repayment income of $80,000 the compulsory repayment is $1,571 for the year, about $30.21 a week, in 2026-27. It is 15c for each $1 of the $10,472 above the $69,528 threshold.
All of them. The ATO applies one set of thresholds and rates to HELP (including HECS-HELP, FEE-HELP, OS-HELP and SA-HELP), VET Student Loans, the Student Financial Supplement Scheme, Student Start-up Loans, ABSTUDY SSL and the Australian Apprenticeship Support Loan. If you hold more than one, a single repayment is applied to them in that order.
Nil up to $69,528; 15c for each $1 over $69,528 up to $129,717; $9,028 plus 17c for each $1 over $129,717 up to $186,050; and 10% of total repayment income from $186,051.
Yes, if you told your employer about the loan on your tax file number declaration. The employer withholds an extra PAYG amount that appears as STSL on your payslip. It is an estimate; your actual repayment is assessed on full-year repayment income when you lodge.
STSL withholding is worked out from each pay period's earnings using the ATO withholding schedules, as though you earned that amount all year. Your assessed repayment uses full-year repayment income, which also adds back reportable fringe benefits, net investment losses and reportable super. The difference is settled in your refund or tax bill.
Taxable income plus reportable fringe benefits, total net investment loss, reportable super contributions and exempt foreign employment income. It is wider than salary, so a wage below $69,528 can still produce a compulsory repayment.
Barely. Salary sacrificing into super cuts taxable income, but reportable super contributions are added straight back when repayment income is worked out. The repayment income test was designed to close that gap.
Yes, for HELP, VSL and AASL debts. If you reside overseas for 183 days or more in any 12 months you must lodge an overseas travel notification within 7 days of leaving, and report your worldwide income by 31 October each year. If your worldwide income is at or below 25% of the minimum repayment threshold you lodge a non-lodgment advice instead.
2.8000000000000003%, applied on 1 June 2026 to the part of the balance unpaid for more than 11 months. Indexation is the lower of CPI or the Wage Price Index, so a study loan cannot grow faster than wages.
$69,528. Repayment income at or below $69,528 attracts no compulsory repayment. Above it you repay 15c for each $1 over $69,528, rising to $9,028 plus 17c per $1 over $129,717, then 10% of total repayment income from $186,051.
Very little. At $75,000 the repayment is $821 for the year. The marginal system charges 15c only on income above $69,528, so crossing the line no longer triggers a repayment on your whole income.
No. The government charges no interest on study and training support loans. The balance is adjusted once a year by indexation instead, at the lower of CPI or the Wage Price Index, which keeps its real value steady rather than growing it.
Compulsory repayments withheld through PAYG are not credited to your loan until your tax return is assessed, which is usually after 1 June. So the balance indexed on 1 June can be higher than the balance you expected. Voluntary repayments, by contrast, are applied when the ATO processes them.
There is no discount or bonus for voluntary repayments, so it is purely a rate comparison: 2.8000000000000003% indexation against what the money would earn or save elsewhere. Higher-cost debt like credit cards and car loans should come first. The strongest cases for paying early are an imminent mortgage application, a nearly-cleared balance, or moving overseas.
No. The ATO specifically excludes repayments under HELP (including HECS-HELP and FEE-HELP), SFSS, SSL, AASL and VET Student Loans from work-related self-education deductions. Other self-education costs such as textbooks or course fees you pay yourself may still be deductible.
HECS-HELP covers the student contribution for a Commonwealth-supported place. FEE-HELP covers tuition for full fee-paying students who do not receive Commonwealth support. Both sit under the HELP umbrella and are repaid under identical thresholds and rates. Loan fees and lifetime limits differ and are set by the Department of Education, not the ATO.
Sign in to ATO online services through myGov, or use the ATO app, and open your study and training loan account. It shows the current balance, repayments credited and indexation applied. The balance updates after each year's assessment, not during the year.
Income tax, Medicare, study loan and super in one calculation.
Pay CalculatorLast verified: 28 July 2026. Our content is based on the latest information from official Australian government sources.
Senior Tax & Payroll Analyst
CPA, Registered Tax Agent (25787011)
James is a CPA-qualified tax professional with over 14 years of experience in Australian taxation and payroll systems. He spent six years at the Australian Taxation Office working on PAYG withholding and individual tax return processing before moving into financial publishing. He now leads the tax content at Pay Calculator Australia, translating complex ATO legislation into clear, actionable guidance.
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