Student loan repayments living in Australia: why saying nothing to SLC can cost £409.00 a month

Tips · 2026-10-31 · 8 min read

If you have a UK student loan and you are moving to Australia or New Zealand, you do not get to leave it behind. You must tell the Student Loans Company (SLC) if you will be away for more than 3 months, and you are still expected to repay unless you can show your overseas income is below the threshold. For 2026-27, the Plan 2 thresholds for both countries are £29,385.00 and £52,885.00, and saying nothing can lead to a fixed charge of £409.00 a month.

This guide covers who has to tell SLC, what the thresholds mean, what to do before you fly and the mistakes that cost people money. It is general information, not personal financial advice.

Why a loan follows you abroad

A UK student loan is a debt to the UK, not a benefit tied to where you live. Moving to Melbourne or Auckland does not pause it. What changes is how repayments are worked out: overseas there is no UK employer to deduct them, so SLC relies on you to report your income.

That is why the first rule is a simple one. gov.uk says you must tell SLC if you leave the UK for more than 3 months. It applies whether you are on a sponsored Skills in Demand (482) visa, an Accredited Employer Work Visa in New Zealand or a working holiday.

What changed for 2026-27

The overseas earnings thresholds are published each year, and the 2026-27 figures are now out. For Plan 2 borrowers living in Australia or New Zealand, gov.uk lists a lower threshold of £29,385.00 and an upper threshold of £52,885.00.

The same page sets a fixed monthly repayment of £409.00 for people who do not give SLC the information it needs. You can read the official figures on gov.uk’s Plan 2 overseas earnings thresholds for 2026-27. Thresholds are reset every year, so check the page again each spring rather than relying on last year’s numbers.

Figure (Plan 2, Australia and New Zealand, 2026-27)	Amount
Lower overseas earnings threshold	£29,385.00
Upper overseas earnings threshold	£52,885.00
Fixed monthly repayment if SLC has no information from you	£409.00

These figures are in pounds, so your Australian or New Zealand pay needs converting before you compare it with them. The Reserve Bank of Australia publishes daily rates, and they move, so use the rate on the day you check rather than a figure from an article.

Which plan are you on?

The thresholds above are for Plan 2 only, so find your plan first. Your online account with SLC or your loan statement shows it. gov.uk sets out how plans line up with where you borrowed:

Where you borrowed from	Plan
Student Awards Agency Scotland	Plan 4
Student Finance Northern Ireland	Plan 1
Student Finance England or Wales	Plan 1, Plan 2 or Plan 5, depending on when you started your course

If you borrowed in more than one place, for example a degree in Scotland followed by a postgraduate course in England, you may have more than one plan. Look at every loan on your statement, not just the first.

What to do before you leave: step by step

Log in to your SLC account and note your plan, your balance and your current repayment arrangement.
Check the date you expect to be away. If it will be more than 3 months, you need to tell SLC. A working holiday, a sponsored job and a long contract all count.
Tell SLC using the contact details on gov.uk’s repaying your student loan guidance, and give your overseas address once you have one.
Collect evidence of your overseas income when you start work, such as payslips or a contract, because SLC expects proof if you say you are below the threshold.
Diary a reminder to update SLC each time your pay, employer or address changes.
Keep your UK bank account open if you can, so a payment or repayment does not bounce.

Do this alongside the rest of your leaving-the-UK admin. Our guide to the P85 form for leaving the UK covers the HMRC side, and it is worth doing both on the same afternoon.

How the money side fits together

A student loan is one of several UK money questions that arrive at once. Your tax position, your National Insurance record and your State Pension all need a decision, and none of them replaces the loan. If you are building a budget, start with what the visa fee rise on 1 July 2026 and the move itself will cost, then add loan repayments as a regular outgoing.

The National Insurance and pension questions are covered in our post on voluntary National Insurance abroad in 2026 and in our explainer on why the UK State Pension is frozen in Australia. Younger readers weighing a working holiday first may also want our working holiday budget in pounds.

When your Australian pay arrives, you will also need to think about tax there. gov.uk says the UK has a double taxation agreement with Australia so you do not pay tax on the same income in both countries, and that you will need an Australian tax file number. Its Living in Australia guide is a good starting point, and gov.uk says the UK has a similar agreement with New Zealand.

Common mistakes UK borrowers make when moving abroad

Not telling SLC at all. This is the costly one. Without your information, SLC can charge the fixed £409.00 a month for Plan 2 borrowers in Australia and New Zealand, and arrears can build up.
Assuming a working holiday does not count. The rule is about being away from the UK for more than 3 months, not the type of visa.
Using last year’s thresholds. The figures change every year, so a number you saw in an old forum post may be out of date.
Quoting the wrong plan. Plan 4 and Plan 1 borrowers from Scotland and Northern Ireland cannot rely on the Plan 2 figures.
Not keeping evidence. If you say your income is under the threshold, you are expected to prove it.
Forgetting to update SLC after a pay rise. A new job in a higher-paid field such as accounting and finance can change what you are expected to repay.

Planning the first few months

The first pay slips from a new country take a while to arrive, and many people spend the first weeks living on savings. Put loan paperwork on the same list as a bank account and a tax file number. A short, early message to SLC is easier than sorting out arrears from the other side of the world.

Your CV matters too: employers in Australia and New Zealand may read a different format from the one UK employers expect, and a tool such as Build AI CV can help you set it out before you start applying.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to tell the Student Loans Company if I move to Australia?

Yes, if you leave the UK for more than 3 months. gov.uk says you must tell the Student Loans Company (SLC), and that you are expected to keep repaying unless you can prove your overseas income is below the threshold. Telling SLC early is far cheaper than explaining arrears later.

What happens if I do not tell SLC I have moved abroad?

You could build up arrears. For 2026-27, gov.uk says a fixed monthly repayment of £409.00 is charged to Plan 2 borrowers in Australia and New Zealand who do not give SLC the information it needs. Supplying your overseas income details is how you avoid that fixed charge.

Are the Australia and New Zealand thresholds the same?

For Plan 2 in 2026-27, gov.uk publishes one pair of figures for both countries: a lower threshold of £29,385.00 and an upper threshold of £52,885.00. Other plans have their own figures, so check the page for yours rather than assuming.

Which student loan plan am I on if I studied in Scotland or Northern Ireland?

gov.uk says Student Awards Agency Scotland borrowers are on Plan 4 and Student Finance Northern Ireland borrowers are on Plan 1. English and Welsh borrowers are on Plan 1, Plan 2 or Plan 5, depending on when they started their course. Your loan statement shows which plan is yours.

Can I just stop repaying while I am on a working holiday?

Not safely. The rule is about leaving the UK for more than 3 months, not about your visa type, so a working holiday counts. Tell SLC when you go, and send the income details it asks for so it can check whether you are under the threshold.

Key takeaways

Tell SLC if you leave the UK for more than 3 months, whatever your visa.
For 2026-27 the Plan 2 overseas thresholds for Australia and New Zealand are £29,385.00 and £52,885.00.
Staying silent can lead to a fixed £409.00 monthly charge and growing arrears.
Check your plan first: Scotland is Plan 4 and Northern Ireland is Plan 1.
Keep payslips or a contract as proof of your overseas income.

#student loan #slc #plan 2 #moving to australia #new zealand #uk borrowers #repayments