TL;DR: The UK student loan repayment thresholds for 2025/26 are: Plan 1 £26,065, Plan 2 £28,470, Plan 4 £32,745, and Plan 5 £25,000. You repay 9% of anything you earn above your threshold, nothing if your income stays below it. From April 2026, Plan 2 rises to £29,385, then freezes for three years. This page covers all plans, monthly and weekly equivalents, and what changes ahead.

If you are searching for the exact UK student loan repayment thresholds for 2025/26 or 2026/27, you are probably trying to work out how much you will actually repay each month. Google often shows a single number in its snippet, but there are four different plans, each with its own threshold, interest rate, and timeline. This guide pulls them all together.

What Are UK Student Loan Repayment Thresholds?

The repayment threshold is the income level at which your student loan repayments kick in.

You do not repay anything if your income stays below it. Once you earn above the threshold, you repay 9% of that excess only, not 9% of your full salary, and not 9% of the total loan balance.

Your threshold depends on which plan you are on, which depends on when and where you started studying.

2025/26 Repayment Thresholds, All Plans

These are the confirmed thresholds for the current 2025 to 2026 tax year, as published by Student Finance England and the relevant UK administering bodies.

Plan	Annual threshold	Monthly	Weekly	Repayment rate
Plan 1	£26,065	£2,172	£501	9% above threshold
Plan 2	£28,470	£2,372	£547	9% above threshold
Plan 4 (Scotland)	£32,745	£2,728	£629	9% above threshold
Plan 5	£25,000	£2,083	£480	9% above threshold
Postgraduate Loan	£21,000	£1,750	£403	6% above threshold

Source: Student Finance England, Guide to Terms and Conditions 2025 to 2026 and GOV.UK Repaying your student loan.

2026/27 Repayment Thresholds, All Plans

These thresholds apply from 6 April 2026, the start of the new tax year.

Plan	Annual threshold	Monthly	Weekly	Change from 2025/26
Plan 1	£26,900	£2,241	£517	Up from £26,065
Plan 2	£29,385	£2,448	£565	Up from £28,470, then frozen
Plan 4 (Scotland)	£33,795	£2,816	£649	Up from £32,745
Plan 5	£25,000	£2,083	£480	No change
Postgraduate Loan	£21,000	£1,750	£403	No change

Source: Student Finance England, Guide to Terms and Conditions 2026 to 2027.

How the 9% Repayment Rate Works

The maths is straightforward once you understand what it is actually applied to.

You repay 9% of your income above the threshold for your plan, not 9% of your total salary.

Here is a worked example using Plan 2 in 2025/26:

Annual salary: £35,000
Plan 2 threshold: £28,470
Income above threshold: £6,530
Annual repayment: £587 (9% of £6,530)
Monthly repayment: roughly £49

If your salary were £28,000, below the £28,470 threshold, you would repay nothing that year.

If your income drops below the threshold for any period, repayments pause automatically. They restart when your income goes back above it. There is no penalty for those gaps.

Postgraduate loans use 6% instead of 9%, and they can run alongside an undergraduate plan, meaning both deductions apply at the same time if you earn above both thresholds.

Which Plan Are You On?

Your plan is determined by when and where you started your first undergraduate course, not where you live now or which university you attended.

Plan	Who is on it
Plan 1	Started in England or Wales before 1 September 2012. Also: all Northern Ireland borrowers regardless of start date.
Plan 2	Started in England between 1 September 2012 and 31 July 2023. Also: Wales from 1 September 2012 onwards.
Plan 4	Started in Scotland at any point from 1 September 1998. Administered by SAAS, not SFE.
Plan 5	Started in England on or after 1 August 2023.
Postgraduate Loan	Postgraduate Master’s from 1 August 2016 or Doctoral from 1 August 2018, studying in England, Wales, or Northern Ireland.

Not sure which plan you are on? Log in to your Student Loan Company account at slc.co.uk, or check the deduction code on your payslip, 01 for Plan 1, 02 for Plan 2, 04 for Plan 4.

The Plan 2 Threshold Freeze, What You Need to Know

This is the part that caused the most controversy in early 2026, and it is worth understanding clearly.

The Plan 2 threshold had been frozen at £27,295 from 2021/22 all the way through to 2024/25, a four-year freeze. In April 2025, it finally rose to £28,470.

The government then announced it will rise again to £29,385 in April 2026, but after that, it will be frozen for three years until April 2030.

Previously, the Plan 2 threshold was meant to rise annually in line with RPI inflation. That link has been cut.

The practical consequence: as salaries rise over those three years, more of each pay increase will fall above the frozen threshold and into the 9% repayment window. Borrowers repay progressively more without any change in the threshold itself. This is sometimes called fiscal drag.

Martin Lewis publicly challenged the Chancellor over this decision, calling it a significant shift for 2.8 million Plan 2 borrowers. His analysis is worth reading if you want the full picture of what the freeze means over a 30-year repayment term.

For a deeper breakdown of how Plan 2 is changing, see our post on Plan 2 student loan changes 2025, and the detail on the repayment threshold freeze.

Interest Rates by Plan (2025/26)

Interest rates are set separately from thresholds and affect how fast the balance grows, not directly what you repay each month.

Plan	Interest rate
Plan 1	RPI or 1% above Bank of England base rate, whichever is lower
Plan 2	While studying: RPI + 3%. After graduation: RPI only (if earning ≤ threshold) up to RPI + 3% (if earning above £51,245)
Plan 4	RPI or 1% above Bank of England base rate, whichever is lower
Plan 5	RPI only
Postgraduate Loan	RPI + 3%

The RPI rate applied to student loans for September 2025 to August 2026 is 3.2%, based on the March 2025 RPI figure.

What Happens If Your Income Drops Below the Threshold?

Repayments pause automatically. You do not need to notify anyone or apply for a pause.

HMRC and your employer handle deductions through payroll. If your income falls below the threshold, because of a job change, part-time hours, parental leave, illness, or any other reason, no deduction is taken.

Repayments restart the next time your income exceeds the threshold.

When Do Thresholds Update?

All thresholds update on 6 April each year, at the start of the new UK tax year.

The updated threshold then applies for the full tax year ahead. Employers are given updated HMRC deduction tables, and payroll systems adjust automatically.

Plan 1 and Plan 4 thresholds are typically linked to RPI or wages, so they tend to rise modestly each year. Plan 2 has now diverged from that pattern. Plan 5 is currently fixed at £25,000 until April 2027, after which it is expected to rise with RPI.

Why This Matters for Adults Considering University Now

If you are thinking about starting a degree in 2026, the plan you would be placed on matters.

Anyone starting an undergraduate course in England after 1 August 2023 goes onto Plan 5, with a £25,000 threshold, RPI-only interest, and a 40-year repayment term before write-off.

That is a different structure from Plan 2, and in some ways more generous on interest (no RPI + 3%), but the longer repayment term and lower threshold mean more people will repay more over time.

If you want to understand which funding route makes most sense for your situation before you start, our guide to how student finance works in the UK is a good starting point. And if you are trying to understand whether student finance is a form of debt worth taking on, read our student finance debt explainer.

UniStart works with adult learners across the UK, including mature students and career changers, helping them understand funding before they apply. Our 4-intake model means you are not limited to the September start: courses are available starting in January-February, May-June, September, and November.

Common Myths About Student Loan Thresholds

Myth: You repay 9% of your total salary. The 9% only applies to income above the threshold. On a £35,000 salary with a Plan 2 loan in 2025/26, your threshold is £28,470, so you repay 9% of £6,530, not 9% of £35,000.

Myth: All plans have the same threshold. They do not. Plan 4 (Scotland) has the highest threshold in 2025/26 at £32,745. Plan 5 has the lowest undergraduate threshold at £25,000. The thresholds are separate and set independently.

Myth: The threshold freezes mean you always repay more. Whether you repay more depends on your salary trajectory. If your income stays close to the threshold, a freeze has little effect. The freeze matters most for borrowers whose salaries grow significantly above the threshold during the frozen period.

FAQs

What is the Plan 2 student loan repayment threshold for 2025/26?

The Plan 2 repayment threshold for 2025/26 is £28,470 per year, that is £2,372 per month or £547 per week. You repay 9% of any earnings above that figure. From April 2026, the threshold rises to £29,385 and then freezes until April 2030.

What is the Plan 1 student loan threshold for 2025/26?

The Plan 1 threshold for the 2025/26 tax year is £26,065 per year, which is £2,172 per month or £501 per week. Interest accrues at RPI or 1% above the Bank of England base rate, whichever is lower.

What is the Plan 4 student loan threshold for 2025/26?

Plan 4 applies to Scotland-based borrowers and has the highest threshold of all plans: £32,745 per year in 2025/26, rising to £33,795 in 2026/27. You repay 9% of income above that figure. Plan 4 is administered by SAAS, not Student Finance England.

What is the Plan 5 student loan threshold for 2025/26?

Plan 5 applies to students in England who started on or after 1 August 2023. The threshold is £25,000 per year for both 2025/26 and 2026/27, it is currently frozen, with increases expected from April 2027 in line with RPI.

What happens if I earn less than the threshold?

Nothing. If your income is at or below your plan’s threshold, no repayments are taken. There is no penalty, and the pause is automatic through payroll. Repayments restart if your income rises above the threshold again.

How do I find out which plan I am on?

Check your Student Loan Company online account at slc.co.uk, or look at the deduction code on your payslip. Code 01 = Plan 1, 02 = Plan 2, 04 = Plan 4. If you have a postgraduate loan, it shows separately as PGL.

Ready to Understand Your Funding Before You Apply?

Student finance thresholds are one part of the picture. Understanding which plan you will be placed on, how much you can borrow, and what repayment looks like across your career is the part most people skip, and the part that leads to regret later.

If you are thinking about starting a degree as a mature student or career changer, UniStart can walk you through the funding process from the beginning.

Two ways to get started:

Download the UniStart app for a guided overview of your funding options: unistart.app/download
Request a free callback with a UniStart advisor: unistart.app/contact

Explore funded degree routes available through UniStart, including January, May, September, and November starts.

“One of the most common things we hear from adults who nearly did not apply to university is ‘I wish someone had explained the numbers clearly before I started.’ That is exactly what we try to do.”, Radu Danila, Founder, UniStart

Important: Student loan repayment rules, thresholds, and interest rates can change. This article reflects confirmed GOV.UK guidance as of May 2026. Always check the latest information at GOV.UK before making financial decisions.

UK Student Loan Repayment Thresholds 2025/26 & 2026/27: All Plans