Student loan repayment thresholds confirmed for 2026/27
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Plan 2 loans start repaying at £29,385 a year from April 2026; Plan 5 at £25,000. Repayments are 9% of income above the threshold — they do not appear on credit files and do not affect mortgage affordability like commercial debt.
By Money Guide editorial team
Published:
The Department for Education confirmed repayment thresholds for English student loans in the 2026/27 academic year. Plan 2 borrowers repay 9% of income above £29,385; Plan 5 borrowers above £25,000. Plan 1 and Plan 4 thresholds are set separately for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Repayments are collected through PAYE alongside tax and National Insurance once earnings exceed the threshold. Self-employed graduates repay through Self Assessment. Loans are written off after 30 years (Plan 2) or 40 years (Plan 5), depending on the plan.
Student loan repayments do not appear on credit files and are not treated like commercial debt by most mortgage lenders, although some use a flat percentage of income in affordability calculations.
Graduates considering overpaying should compare the loan interest rate with other priorities such as building an emergency fund or paying expensive commercial debt. The Money Guide student loan repayment guide explains the maths for each plan.