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There’s two ways to pay off your HECS-HELP debt:

  • Compulsory repayments, as the name suggests, are compulsory. Once you’re earning above the threshold, a lump sum compulsory payment will be applied to your loan account after you lodge your tax return. To help you avoid a bill at tax time, you need to let your employer know you have a study loan so they can withhold extra tax on your behalf.

  • Voluntary repayments are an optional way to help you pay off your loan faster – they’re applied to your loan balance straight away and are on top of your compulsory repayments.

Whether you’ve just started studying, or graduated years ago, it’s important to understand how paying your student loan works. To help, we’ve put together answers to your most common questions below.

What does STSL on my payslip mean?

STSL is a payroll code that stands for ‘study and training support loan’. Even though some employers choose to show these amounts separately on your payslip, we don’t treat them any differently than any other tax you pay.

How can I avoid indexation on HECS-HELP?

Indexation is applied to any HECS-HELP debt older than 11 months, once a year on 1 June. The indexation rate can change each year.

By making voluntary repayments you can avoid or reduce the amount of indexation applied to your loan balance.

The only way to completely avoid indexation is to make sure your HELP loan account balance is $0 by 1 June.

When making voluntary repayments, make sure you allow at least 4 business days for the payment to be processed before 1 June. If you make a voluntary repayment too late, indexation will be applied.

How do I stop STSL amounts being taken out of my pay after I pay off my HECS-HELP debt?

Your employer won’t automatically stop taking STSL amounts out of your pay when you’ve paid off your HECS-HELP debt. You need to tell them! You can do this by filling out a new withholding declaration and answering ‘no’ at question 6.

How do I make voluntary HECS-HELP repayments?

To make a voluntary repayment, log into your ATO online account. From the menu select Tax > Accounts > Loan accounts. In this view you’ll see your loan balance and the option to make a voluntary repayment via BPAY, credit or debit card.

For other payment options, see our website.

How much will my compulsory HECS-HELP repayment be?

Your compulsory repayment amount is based on your income. That means as your earnings increase, so do your repayments. You can use our study and training loan repayment calculator to get an idea of how much your compulsory repayment might be.

I've overpaid my HECS-HELP debt! How do I get it back?

If your HELP loan account is in credit, it’ll be taken into account when you lodge your tax return.

If you've overpaid, don’t worry - it'll be refunded to you.

Why isn’t my HECS-HELP debt going down?

Your HECS-HELP loan balance doesn’t reduce after each pay cycle. Your compulsory repayment is only applied as a lump sum once a year after you’ve lodged your tax return.

If you haven’t had a compulsory repayment applied to your loan account, it could be because:

How can I check my HECS-HELP debt balance?

You can check how much you have left to pay by logging into your ATO online services account. From the menu select Tax > Accounts > Loan accounts.

Are HECS-HELP loan repayments tax deductible?

No, HECS-HELP loan repayments aren’t tax deductible.

Other self-education expenses might be tax deductible if your education relates to earning your income.

How does salary sacrificing affect my HECS-HELP repayments?

You may think that salary sacrificing will lower your HECS-HELP repayments. We need to bust that myth – salary sacrificing may actually increase the amount you must pay back.

If you have a reportable fringe benefit, it’s added on top of your taxable income and increases your repayment income. This may push you over the compulsory repayment threshold or increase your compulsory repayment amount.

To help avoid a tax bill, check that your employer withholds enough extra tax to cover the added amount.

What happens to my HECS-HELP debt when I retire?

Your HECS-HELP debt is treated the same after you retire. If your retirement income is under the repayment threshold, you won’t need to worry about compulsory payments.

For more information about paying your HECS-HELP debt, check out StudyAssist.

Liked by SHNRN, natdk and 5 others
ngspell(I'm new)I'm new
24 Mar 2026


Hey community - I have got 5k left on my HECS debt and looking at options to get rid of it. Is it possible for the ATO to pay out whatever is accumulated towards that debt and I can pay of the remainder? Or do I have to wait until the next compulsory repayment to happen? No idea when that will be and would like to get rid of it sooner than later..


KaraATO(Community Support)Community Support
25 Mar 2026

Hi @ngspell,


It sounds like there might be a bit of confusion about how HELP repayments work, so here’s a quick rundown to make things clearer.


The ATO can’t pay out the amounts already withheld from your pay before the end of the year. Any Study and Training Support Loan (STSL) amounts your employer takes out are held as part of your tax withholding and only get applied to your HELP debt after your tax return is processed. This happens once a year, not each time you get paid.


The money your employer takes out of your pay for your HELP loan only goes towards your debt after you lodge your tax return and it’s processed. If you want to clear the remaining $5,000 sooner, you can make a voluntary repayment at any time through your ATO Online services by going to Tax > Accounts > Loan accounts. You’ll see your current balance and the option to make a payment.


If you’re planning to pay it off completely and you want to avoid indexation, make sure your HELP balance is $0 by 1 June. It’s best to allow at least 4 business days for your payment to be processed. If the payment arrives too late, indexation will still be applied.


Once your balance is fully paid, don’t forget to update your employer. You’ll need to lodge a new withholding declaration and answer 'no' to the study and training loan question. Employers won’t automatically stop taking repayments. Any overpayment through your employer will balance and likely be refunded when lodging your next return (provided you don't have any debt owed to us or any other commonwealth agency).

Chico(I'm new)I'm new
22 Oct 2025

Hello,


I have a few questions that I would love to get some answers for:


Backstory: I started studying in February this year (2025). I have not told my employer as I don't want them to know I am studying, as I will be changing professions once I complete my studies in 3 years' time.


My HECS Help Loan is sitting at just under $4,000 so far.


Questions:

I don't want them to know I am studying, so I have been putting money aside each month to cover the compulsory payments. I don't plan on making any voluntary payments. Can I keep money aside and then come end of the financial year, pay the total amount for compulsory payments? If so, where do I see what my compulsory payments would have been? And how do I go about paying this? I obviously want to pay this back, but don't want my employer involved. I have also lodged my tax return for the last financial year 24/25. I would love to understand how I can view and pay the compulsory amount to avoid fines.


Thanks!

DamienATO(Community Support)Community Support
26 Oct 2025

Hi @Chico,


Once you’re earning above the threshold, compulsory payments will be applied to your loan account. To help you avoid a debt at the end of the year, we recommend letting your employer know you have a study loan so they can withhold extra tax on your behalf. But this isn't mandatory.

 

When you lodge your tax return, we’ll calculate if you need to make a repayment based on your income, not whether your employer knows about your studies. If you don't advise your employer to withhold extra tax, it's likely you'll have a debt at the end of the financial year.

 

Your compulsory repayment will appear on your notice of assessment after you lodge. Any debt is due by the date on the notice (usually 21 November if you lodge yourself).

 

To check your loan balance, log in to ATO Online through myGov. Go to Tax > Accounts > Loan accounts.

thpri(I'm new)I'm new
17 Oct 2025

I have a HELP debt that I incurred in March 2025. I haven't informed my employer of this, I was told by an ATO person that I can either ask my employer to withdraw money on each payslip or pay in bulk during tax return. I chose the second option.

1)I'm doing my tax return now,I was under the impression that ATO will automatically calculate how much compulsory payment I need to make, how do I see in my notice of assessment that ATO is taking money for my HELP debt? I am earning enough that I need to make compulsory payements.

2) Will compulsory payements start for me in FY24/25 or FY25/26?

RachelATO(Community Moderator)Community Moderator
20 Oct 2025

Hi @thpri,


If you earned above the compulsory repayment threshold in 2024–25, then yes, you’ll need to make repayment when you lodge your tax return. We’ll automatically calculate the compulsory amount, based on your repayment income. You’ll see the repayment amount listed on your notice of assessment.


To help avoid an unexpected debt at tax time, tell your employer you have a study loan. In the same way your employer withholds tax throughout the year to cover your end of year tax liability, they can also withhold extra amounts to cover your study or training support loan compulsory repayment. 


Since you incurred the HELP debt in March 2025 and are lodging your return for the 2024–25 financial year, your compulsory repayments start from that year. There’s no waiting period once you have a HELP debt and earn above the threshold.

HECSquestions(Newbie)Newbie
1 Sept 2025

I paid off my HECS in May 2023, but didn't tell my employer until December 2024.


For the months May '23 to Dec '24 inclusive, my employer was taking out additional money for that STSL (HECs repayment) as a 'Tax deduction' around $576 per month. They only stopped taking out this STSL contribution in January 2025 when I had alerted them to the fact that I had paid off my HECs in May 2023 and had submitted my Withholding declaration to my company.


I've just completed my FY24/25 tax return, and I have received my normal tax return ($, but I haven't received any additional reimbursement for my May 2023-December 2024 HECS overpayment.


I called up the ATO and they said that the ATO already knew I had paid off my HECs when I paid it off in May 2023, and had accounted for it already in my FY22/23, FY23/24, and FY24/25 tax returns.... but I've spoken to others who have received the HECS overpayment reimbursement in one lump sum after they had alerted their employers of the situation...


Question: Do I need to be reimbursed for all of the months where my employer withheld that extra STSL amount? OR has the ATO already accounted for my previous HECS overpayments from May 2023 - December 2024 within the last 3 financial years tax returns and has reimbursed me accordingly already?

JayATO(Community Support)Community Support
1 Sept 2025

Hiya @HECSquestions


The extra withholding amounts would have been refunded to you every year in your tax return. Because the extra withholding stopped this year, you may find your 2026 tax return is a lot smaller.

Thegones(I'm new)I'm new
2 Aug 2025

Hello I have a question,


If I have a small HECS balance at the start of a financial year, can I make a voluntary payment to reduce my debt to $0 and then notify my employer to stop making HELP PAYG payments before waiting until the end of the financial year?



TGreenwell(I'm new)I'm new
11 July 2025

Hello, I have some questions about HELP debts.


Q1: Suppose I have a balance, say (for made up example) $28,000, and I know that my employer will put away $16,000 in the financial year through HELP PAYG payments. Say I made a contribution of $13,000 just to be safe before 1 June so that even after indexation what my employer has withheld exceeds the balance. Suppose I then notified my employer from 1 July the next financial year that I had no further HELP debt to pay, as I know it will be zero. I wanted to get a sense of whether I would be introducing any difficulties or problems, even though my tax return hasn't "officially" noted that the balance has reduced to zero.


Q2: If I have a small balance at the start of a financial year that will be far exceeded by contributions over the financial year, and I then notify my employer to stop making HELP PAYG payments once I know that balance has been exceeded, would I still have to pay the full amount for a financial year based on the percentage taken from my income when resolving my tax return for that financial year?


I know these are probably edge cases, but it is a complicated system.


Thanks, T.

JayATO(Community Support)Community Support
14 July 2025

Hiya @TGreenwell


It is possible to have your withholding rate reduced it's just a little more complicated than the process you have in mind. You would need to apply for a downward withholding variation.


Typically if the debt has already been paid in your account, after your return has processed you can just go ahead and let your employer know with a withholding variation form or a new TFN declaration. The difference between these two processes is the downward withholding variation is an application that needs to be approved by the ATO.


To submit a normal withholding variation or a new TFN declaration, you would need to sign a declaration saying you no longer have the debt, which is not true until the account balance is zero.


As far as your second question goes, voluntary payments do not reduce your compulsory repayment amount, HOWEVER, you will never need to pay more than the total sum of your debt. So if your debt remaining is $1000 and the amount withheld is $2000, you will still only pay the $1000 to pay our your debt.

Jordan79(I'm new)I'm new
25 Feb 2025

Hi, I would like to pay my HECS balance in full, currently shows as $6,180, whereas in reality, it should be closer to $4,000. Based on my calculations, I’ve already paid around $2,179 since the last adjustment at tax time, in July 2024


since the ATO only updates the balance annually in July, meaning the current figure reflects as of July 2024 and will only update until July 2025. If I pay the full $6,180, I will likely have to chase a refund, which could take an unknown amount of time.besides I’ve got the amount to cover my actual remaining HECS


On the other hand, if I only pay what I believe I owe, the remaining balance may still show $2,000 instead of $0, leading to further complications. Can you please advise. Jordan

BrookeATO(Community Support)Community Support
5 Mar 2025

Hi @Jordan79


Is the amount that's already paid off due to the STSL payments your employer has withheld?


If that's the case, any STSL payments that were withheld during the year will be refunded to you when you lodge your tax return if you've paid your HECS debt in full (the $6,180 you mentioned). Alternatively, if you pay the remaining less the amount that's already been contributed (the $4,000 you mentioned), the remaining balance may still be impacted by the indexation on 1 June 2025.


We're unable to provide advice on what you should do. If you need assistance in making a decision on what best suits your situation, we'd suggest seeking professional financial advice.

natdk(Initiate)Initiate
13 Feb 2025

Hi there,

I would like to pay off my HELP debt prior to the 1 June indexation date. My employer has already withheld STSL from my paycheck each fortnight, but I understand that, to pay off my HECS debt before the 1 July, I would need to do so via a voluntary payment, and could receive my employer's withheld amounts back later that year via a tax refund.


However, I also understand that I can submit a withholding declaration to prevent my employer taking further STSL amounts from my paycheck once my HELP loan has been repaid. My question is: once my withholding declaration is submitted indicated my HELP debt is paid off, will my employer refund me the STSL contributions they've already withheld? I can see 4 options on the withholding form regarding varying STSL PAYG instalments, the first being 'Overpayment - debt repaid - overpayment refund required'. Does this mean that, if I select this option, my employer will refund me the amount withheld that FY, so that I do not need to wait until I lodge my tax return after the end of the FY to receive this?

BrookeATO(Community Support)Community Support
5 Mar 2025

Hi @natdk


It's great that you're in a position to pay off your HELP debt!


Generally, what happens is you'll get refunded the amounts your employer has withheld from you when you lodge your tax return. But, what you can do is update your withholding declaration to stop your employer from continuing to withhold extra tax. So, moving forward you won't have the STSL payments taken out of your pay.

Liked by natdk

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