Update on historical higher education loan amounts not visible on student loan accounts at the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).
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Update
The department has identified a small proportion of current and former higher education students whose loan records were not properly transferred to their Australian Taxation Office student loan accounts.
As individuals may not have been aware of these loans, to ensure they are not unfairly financially disadvantaged the Australian Government will waive annual indexation on identified loans for previous years and 2023.
The department is working with higher education providers and the ATO to resolve some records and will contact affected individuals progressively from May 2023.
The Department of Education and the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations are working together to provide information and support for people affected by delayed loan records.
View further information for Vocational Education and Training Students.
Historical indexation will be waived for affected higher education students
Annual indexation on affected higher education loans will be waived for previous years and 2023.
You will see indexation amounts on your ATO account before the waiver is applied.
Future indexation rates relating to delayed loan records will apply from 1 June 2024.
What to do if you are facing hardship
Repayments on HELP debts commence once the minimum income repayment threshold is reached ($48,361 for the income year 2022-23, and $51,550 for the income year 2023-24).
If you have reached the minimum income threshold and believe that making your repayments would cause you serious hardship, or there are other special reasons that make it fair and reasonable to defer making your compulsory repayment, you can apply for a deferral to the ATO.
View further information on how to defer or amend your compulsory repayment or overseas levy.
Checking your ATO loan account
Resolved loan records will be visible on individual ATO records from August 2023. For more information about your ATO loan accounts and how to manage them, please refer to:
Next steps
The department will contact affected individuals progressively from May 2023 to provide additional information and support.
Updated loan records will be visible on your ATO account from August 2023.
Please continue to check this website for the latest advice.
Contacting the department
If you have any further queries about this matter or would like to know how to make a complaint, please contact the Higher Education Loan Program student support team on the StudyAssist website.