Overpaid student loans

Here are some reasons that may mean you have paid back more than you owe on your student loan account(s). This note explains how to reclaim the overpayment from the Student Loan Provider. You can ask for a refund if:

·        You have paid more than the total amount you owe.

·        Your annual income was below the threshold.

·        You started making repayments before you needed to.

·        You have repaid more than you need to because your employer had you on the wrong repayment plan.

You cannot claim a refund if you made extra repayments.

If you pay back more than you owe

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will tell your employer to stop taking repayments from your salary when you have repaid your loan in full. It can take around 4 weeks for salary deductions to stop. This means you may pay back more than you owe.

If your annual income was below the threshold

Your income is the amount you earn (including things like bonuses and overtime) before tax and other deductions. You could ask for a refund if you made repayments but your income over the whole tax year (6 April to 5 April the following year) was less than:

£24,990 a year for Plan 1

£27,295 a year for Plan 2

£31,395 a year for Plan 4

£21,000 a year for Postgraduate Loan

If your annual salary is less than this, your employer may still have deducted repayments. For example, if you were paid a bonus that put you over the monthly threshold for your plan, they would deduct a repayment for that month.

You will not get a refund for any repayments until after SLC have confirmed your annual income with HMRC. This will not happen until after the end of the tax year. You can only ask for a refund for tax years that have ended.

If you started repaying before you needed to

If a deduction is taken from your salary before you are due to start repaying, you can ask for a refund.

If your employer had you on the wrong repayment plan

You can get a refund if you are on Plan 2 or Plan 4, but your employer had you on another plan. Check your employer has you on the correct repayment plan.

Asking for a refund

If your annual income was below the threshold for the previous tax year, sign into your student loan repayment account and ask for a refund. If you need a refund for any other reason call or contact SLC with your customer reference number.

Or contact the Student Loans Company

Telephone: 0300 100 0611 (England, Northern Ireland or Scotland)
Telephone: +44 (0)141 243 3660 (outside the UK)
Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm

Telephone: 0300 100 0370 (Wales)
Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm (not open on bank holidays)

You can also contact SLC by post.

Student Loans Company Ltd
10 Clyde Place
Glasgow
G5 8DF