Student loan plans compared

How student loan repayments work

You repay a fixed percentage of income above a threshold that depends on your plan — not a percentage of your whole income. Repayments are collected through PAYE alongside tax and stop automatically once the loan is cleared.

The plans at a glance (2026/27)

Plan 1: 9% of income above £26,900. Plan 2: 9% above £29,385. Plan 4 (Scotland): 9% above £33,795. Plan 5: 9% above £25,000. Postgraduate Loan: 6% above £21,000.

Which undergraduate plan you are on depends on where and when you started your course. English students who started on or after 1 August 2023 are on Plan 5; those who started between 1 September 2012 and 31 July 2023 are on Plan 2; earlier English students are on Plan 1. Plan 4 is for borrowers who applied through the Student Awards Agency Scotland.

Holding more than one plan

If you have both an undergraduate plan and a Postgraduate Loan, you repay each one separately and the deductions stack. The salary calculator lets you tick every plan you hold to see the combined repayment.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• gov.uk — Repaying your student loan: how much you repay
• gov.uk — Repaying your student loan: when you start repaying
• gov.uk — Which repayment plan you are on
• gov.uk — Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027 (student loan plan thresholds)
• gov.uk — Tell HMRC about a student loan in your tax return

Related guides

• The UK tax year explainedWhy the tax year runs 6 April–5 April, and what 2026/27 changes.
• National Insurance bands explainedClass 1 NI thresholds and rates, and why NI works differently to Income Tax.
• Salary sacrifice explainedHow giving up gross pay for a benefit can lower your tax and NI.