When will your student loan debt be written off?

To start, student loans fit into one of three repayment plans: Plan 1, Plan 2 and Plan 4. For some reason the government doesn’t like the number three! If you don’t already know which repayment plan your debt fits into, you can find out here, and then come straight back!

Now that you know which plan your student loan debt falls into, let’s take a look at what this means when it comes to writing off your student loan debt.

If your student loan falls into Plan 1, the date your debt will be written off, depends on the academic year you took out the loan:

• If the academic year you took out your loan, was 2005 to 2006 or earlier, your loan will be written off when you're 65.
  
• If the academic year you took out your loan, was 2006 to 2007 or later, your loan will be written off, 25 years after the April you were first due to start your repayments.
  
  For example, let's say your course ended in June 2018. Your repayments would not have been due until April 2019. However, if your course ended February 2018, your repayments would have been due to start in that same year, in April 2018.

If your student loan falls into Plan 2, you can expect your student loan to be written off 30 years after the April you were first due to start your repayments.

Similar to Plan 1, if your student loan falls into Plan 4, the date your debt will be written off is linked to the academic year you took out the loan:

• If the academic year you took out your loan, was 2006 to 2007 or earlier, your loan will be written off when you turn 65, or 30 years after the April you were first due to start your repayments. Whichever comes first.
  
• If the academic year you took out your loan, was 2007 to 2008 or later, your loan will be written off 30 years after the April you were due to start your repayments.

You’ll notice there is a bit of a theme above, and it’s pretty safe to assume you will be at least 50 years old before the day comes that your loan is written off!

If you continued your education to postgraduate, here’s a breakdown of when your Student Loan Debt will be written off, and it varies a little depending on where you are from:

• If you're an English or Welsh student, your Post Graduate Loan will be written off, 30 years after the April you were first due to start your repayments.
  
• If you're Northern Irish go straight to "I'm in Plan 1" above
  
• If you're Scottish go straight to "I'm in Plan 4" above

Again, the rules are very similar and you’re not going to shake off your debt without a long wait. However, there are other less common circumstances to be aware of that will also affect when your student loan debt is written off.

Well, there are two other major circumstances whereby your loan may be written off but they are extreme, these are:

1. If you can no longer work due to an illness or disability (you should be claiming benefits associated with this).
   
2. If you.... and there's no nice way to say this.... but if you die. Yes, the Student Loan Company are kind enough to cancel your debt if you are dead, how considerate of them!

The information in this article is considered to be true and correct at the date of publication.