Repaying Student Loans 2009/10 guide discussion

Oldernotwiser

minowamayhem wrote: »

I am currently living in Japan and as I am wanting to return to the UK to study for my P.G.C.E. I thought it would be wise to get in touch with the SLC to inquire about paying off my loans as I thought I qualified for a loan for my graduate studies. They asked me to fill in an assessment form and I just received a letter telling me that my default repayment is going to be £196 a month. I have credit card and overdraft debts that I am quite anxious to get paid off first, can I defer my repayments and if I ignore the letter will I be penalised by the SLC? Also can they automatically take payments from my account without my consent?
It also turns out that because I have been out of the country for more than 3 months in the last 3 years that I am not eligible to receive a loan for my graduate studies, so what would be my best course of action?

Any help would be really appreciated!!

Thanks

You can't defer payments for charges and arrears in the same way that you can normal loan payments. They have to take equal priority with the other debts.

If you've not been resident in the UK for the last 3 years you'll be classed as an overseas student and be ineligible for home student funding.

In the circumstances, it looks as if you aren't in a financial situation to return to study, I'm afraid.

Poolie

minowamayhem wrote: »

I am currently living in Japan and as I am wanting to return to the UK to study for my P.G.C.E. I thought it would be wise to get in touch with the SLC to inquire about paying off my loans as I thought I qualified for a loan for my graduate studies. They asked me to fill in an assessment form and I just received a letter telling me that my default repayment is going to be £196 a month. I have credit card and overdraft debts that I am quite anxious to get paid off first, can I defer my repayments and if I ignore the letter will I be penalised by the SLC? Also can they automatically take payments from my account without my consent?
It also turns out that because I have been out of the country for more than 3 months in the last 3 years that I am not eligible to receive a loan for my graduate studies, so what would be my best course of action?

Any help would be really appreciated!!

Thanks

It would be helpful it you could tell us what years you were at uni as it sounds like they have found you were overseas and are going to charge you the £196 for not telling them you were going overseas. They have the right to do this as it is the students responsibility to advise SLC they are going overseas.

Basically if you have received a set of forms one will be for you being overseas. Best to get it filled in fast and show them how you are supporting yourself while in Japan. If this is study then it will need to be a copy of your contract. Also best to advise when you went overseas.

Oldernotwiser

Poolie wrote: »

It would be helpful it you could tell us what years you were at uni as it sounds like they have found you were overseas and are going to charge you the £196 for not telling them you were going overseas. They have the right to do this as it is the students responsibility to advise SLC they are going overseas.

Basically if you have received a set of forms one will be for you being overseas. Best to get it filled in fast and show them how you are supporting yourself while in Japan. If this is study then it will need to be a copy of your contract. Also best to advise when you went overseas.

I assumed that the loans must be pre 1998 as the OP asked about deferring them, but you could be right that they're the newer kind.

Poolie

THe £196 per month is the charge that SLC is leveraging on people who go overseas and do not tell them. This is to try and catch some of those people out who thinking going overseas doesn't mean they have to pay it back. If you are overseas and not earning enough then it is like deferring.

Edificator

For recent mature students who's loans are not wiped out until 25 years after repayment starts, this can mean the student is retired before the loan is repayed. Normally an employer would deduct the repayments. If you no longer have employment income does pension income above £15,000 count? Would repayment be required from this pension income?

Poolie

We would require more information on the loan you have. When did you originally take it out?

It also depends if the pension is classed as taxable income by HMRC. If so then you may be expected to repay some loan. Also Pensions usually don't pay £15,000 per annum.

sarah6649

Hi

I did an undergraduate degree 2003-2006. I started paying interest in 2007 (I think). In September 2008 I started a full time law conversion course, and am now doing the legal practice course (also full time) which finishes in June 2010. All of this time I have continued to accrue interest on my student loan. I haven't told SLC that I'm a student again because I'm not sure if it makes any difference?

If anyone could help that would be much appreciated.

Thanks

Oldernotwiser

sarah6649 wrote: »

Hi

I did an undergraduate degree 2003-2006. I started paying interest in 2007 (I think). In September 2008 I started a full time law conversion course, and am now doing the legal practice course (also full time) which finishes in June 2010. All of this time I have continued to accrue interest on my student loan. I haven't told SLC that I'm a student again because I'm not sure if it makes any difference?

If anyone could help that would be much appreciated.

Thanks

Your loan accrues interest from the date you take it out, regardless of whether you're a student or not.

skybluearmyontour

I'd been paying bits into my student loan account voluntarily for a while, then I got my yearly statement and because of the interest it had hardly made an impact. You're talking £100 off the total for every £900 I put in. I've been quite lucky though. Well very lucky. My mum paid the loan for me after re-mortgaging the house and now I owe here the money instead which is obviously a lot better. The money is coming off at a good steady speed now although I still owe £12,590.

I was getting fed up with SLC. The yearly statement is not helpful what so ever. I had many discussions with them as to why they hadn't set-up internet banking. I also had a lot of problems with them when I worked abroad. They were going to hit me with some charges when I was away and I had to start faxing things back to them which was a nightmare. My mum was taking calls from them saying they needed to speak to me and would not listen when she said I was in America. Kept saying they could call me in America...they never did.

I think they are rough on students because most haven't got the financial experience behind them to combat it.

Poolie

skybluearmyontour wrote: »

I'd been paying bits into my student loan account voluntarily for a while, then I got my yearly statement and because of the interest it had hardly made an impact. You're talking £100 off the total for every £900 I put in. I've been quite lucky though. Well very lucky. My mum paid the loan for me after re-mortgaging the house and now I owe here the money instead which is obviously a lot better. The money is coming off at a good steady speed now although I still owe £12,590.

I was getting fed up with SLC. The yearly statement is not helpful what so ever. I had many discussions with them as to why they hadn't set-up internet banking. I also had a lot of problems with them when I worked abroad. They were going to hit me with some charges when I was away and I had to start faxing things back to them which was a nightmare. My mum was taking calls from them saying they needed to speak to me and would not listen when she said I was in America. Kept saying they could call me in America...they never did.

I think they are rough on students because most haven't got the financial experience behind them to combat it.

You should only repay through your pay as no point otherwise. When you do start repayment through your salary then consider hitting it harder.

Statements - Due to having to wait for information form HMRC or not (usually done once a year they set everybody where they hvaen't had a payment to £0 so they can get a statment out) there is not much they can do about it.

Online - there is a site available if you have your artid and secret answers - www.studentloanrepayement.co.uk - SLC should be able to send these out again if you need them

Overseas - You should have told them you were going away and how you were going to be supporting yourself. This should have been done up to 3 months before. They would have been well within the right to charge you the standard rate of £217 per month and the admin charges on top of this.

Rough on Students - No! they just want the money back they lent you. If you had played fair with them when you went overseas they would be fair with you. Works both ways!