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Calculate your compulsory HECS-HELP repayment and project your debt payoff date, using the current marginal repayment system and CPI indexation.
Updated: 6 August 2026 · Reviewed by Mohsin Iqbal · 15 min read
Your HECS-HELP Details
Financial year
Current HECS-HELP debt
$
Repayment Income (broader than taxable income)
Taxable income
$
Reportable fringe benefits
$
Reportable super contributions
$
Net investment losses
$
Extra voluntary repayment (per year)
$
Assumed annual salary growth
%
Assumed annual threshold growth
%
Assumed annual HELP indexation rate
%
Indexation uses the lower of CPI or the Wage Price Index (WPI) — enter your forecast for whichever you expect to be lower.
Repayment & Payoff Projection
Annual Repayment (this year)
—
Item
Value
Estimates only, for planning purposes — not financial advice. This projection assumes both your repayment income and the repayment thresholds grow at the rates you enter — actual future ATO thresholds will differ. Confirm your exact repayment income and liability with the ATO or a registered tax agent.
📅 Yearly Balance Schedule (first 10 years)
⏱️ Last reviewed: 6 August 2026 · Written and reviewed by Mohsin Iqbal under our editorial policy and calculation methodology. HELP repayment rules change — always confirm your position with the ATO or a registered tax agent.
📖 Approx. 15 min read🎓 2026–27 & 2025–26 ATO rates🔄 Updated 6 August 2026
From 2025–26, HELP repayments use a marginal system — you only pay on income above the threshold, not a flat percentage of your whole income.
The minimum repayment threshold is $69,528 for 2026–27, up from $67,000 in 2025–26.
All eligible HELP balances were automatically reduced by 20% as at 1 June 2025 — no application was needed.
Your debt is indexed to CPI on 1 June each year — there's no traditional interest, but the balance can still grow if indexation outpaces your repayments.
Salary sacrifice does not reduce your HECS repayment — reportable super contributions are added back when calculating repayment income.
Quick Answer
If your repayment income is above $69,528 (2026–27), you'll have a compulsory HELP repayment withheld from your pay, calculated as 15 cents for every dollar above the threshold, rising to 17 cents above $129,717, and capped at a flat 10% of total income above $186,051. On a $75,000 salary, that's about $821 a year. Your debt is also indexed to CPI on 1 June each year. Use the calculator above for your exact repayment and an estimated payoff date.
What Is HECS-HELP?
HECS-HELP (Higher Education Contribution Scheme — Higher Education Loan Program) is the Australian Government loan scheme that lets eligible students defer their university tuition costs, repaying later through the tax system once their income is high enough. It's one of several HELP loan types (alongside FEE-HELP, VET Student Loans and others), all repaid using the same repayment income thresholds and rates.
How Compulsory Repayment Is Calculated
From the 2025–26 income year, HELP repayments moved to a marginal system — a genuine structural reform. Previously, once your income crossed the threshold, you paid a flat percentage of your entire repayment income, creating a "cliff effect" where a small pay rise could trigger a disproportionately larger jump in repayments. Under the current system, you only pay on the income above each threshold, the same way income tax brackets work.
Repayment income = Taxable income + reportable fringe benefits + reportable super contributions + net investment losses
If repayment income ≤ threshold: repayment = $0
If threshold < repayment income ≤ mid threshold: repayment = (income − threshold) × 15%
If mid threshold < repayment income < top threshold: repayment = base amount + (income − mid threshold) × 17%
If repayment income ≥ top threshold: repayment = income × 10% (flat)
HECS Repayment Threshold Table
Repayment Income
2026–27 Rate
2025–26 Rate
Below threshold
Nil (under $69,528)
Nil (under $67,000)
Threshold to mid
15c/$1 above $69,528
15c/$1 above $67,000
Mid to top threshold
17c/$1 above $129,717
17c/$1 above $125,000
Above top threshold
10% flat (from $186,051)
10% flat (from $179,286)
✅ At the very top end, the system switches to a flat 10% of your total repayment income rather than continuing the marginal calculation indefinitely — this cap is calibrated so both methods produce almost identical results right at the crossover point.
The 20% HECS Debt Reduction (2025)
The Australian Government applied a one-off 20% reduction to all eligible study and training loan balances as at 1 June 2025, legislated through the Universities Accord (Cutting Student Debt) Act 2025. The reduction was automatic — no application was required, and the ATO applied it directly. A $50,000 balance became $40,000. This was a one-off historical event, not an ongoing feature — it doesn't recur each year.
How Indexation Works
HECS-HELP debt doesn't accrue traditional interest, but it is indexed to inflation (CPI) on 1 June each year, which can increase your balance if you haven't fully repaid it. From the 2023–24 indexation date onward, the rate used is the lower of CPI or the Wage Price Index (WPI), a change designed to prevent indexation outpacing wage growth as it did in 2023. Because indexation applies to your balance before that year's compulsory repayment is deducted, a low or irregular income year can mean indexation outpaces your repayment, temporarily growing the debt.
Voluntary Repayments
You can make voluntary repayments on top of your compulsory amount at any time, directly to the ATO. Whether this makes financial sense depends on what your money would otherwise earn — since HELP indexation is typically similar to or lower than many investment returns, voluntarily paying down HECS purely for the "return" often isn't the strongest financial move compared to superannuation or other investments. Where it can matter more is home loan applications: lenders treat your compulsory HECS repayment as an ongoing financial commitment that reduces borrowing capacity, so paying down debt (or timing a large voluntary payment) before applying can sometimes help.
✅ Enter an amount in "Extra voluntary repayment" in the calculator above to see exactly how much faster an additional annual payment would clear your debt — the yearly balance schedule shows compulsory and voluntary repayments separately, year by year.
Tax Implications of HECS-HELP
Repayments are withheld through PAYG, alongside income tax, based on your declared HELP debt status on your Tax File Number declaration.
Salary sacrifice doesn't reduce your repayment. Reportable employer super contributions are added back when calculating repayment income specifically to prevent this.
HELP repayments are not tax deductible — they're a repayment of a loan, not a work-related expense.
Repayment income isn't the same as taxable income — it also includes reportable fringe benefits and net investment losses, which can catch people by surprise.
Salary Examples (2026–27)
Salary
Annual HELP Repayment
Fortnightly
$60,000
$0
$0
$80,000
$1,571
$60
$100,000
$4,571
$176
$130,000
$9,076
$349
$150,000
$12,476
$480
Step-by-Step Example
Repayment income of $80,000, 2026–27 year:
Is $80,000 above the $69,528 threshold? Yes.
Is $80,000 below the $129,717 mid threshold? Yes — so use the 15c rate.
Fortnightly withholding ≈ $1,571 ÷ 26 = about $60.
Common Mistakes
Assuming salary sacrifice avoids HECS repayments. Reportable super contributions are added back specifically to prevent this.
Using the old flat-percentage system to estimate repayments. Since 2025–26, the marginal system applies — old calculators or mental math from before the change will overstate repayments near the threshold.
Confusing indexation with interest. There's no interest on HELP debt, but CPI indexation on 1 June can still grow your balance.
Not accounting for reportable fringe benefits. Repayment income is broader than just salary — it can include fringe benefits and net investment losses.
Forgetting the 2025 one-off 20% reduction was a single event. It already happened and won't recur — don't expect it again in future years.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Higher Education Contribution Scheme, the original government loan scheme (now part of the broader HELP program) that lets eligible students defer university tuition costs, repaying later through the tax system.
HELP (Higher Education Loan Program) is the umbrella government loan scheme covering HECS-HELP, FEE-HELP, VET Student Loans and others. All HELP debts are repaid using the same repayment income thresholds and rates.
Anyone with an outstanding HELP debt whose repayment income exceeds the minimum threshold ($69,528 for 2026–27) in a given financial year.
Once your repayment income for a financial year exceeds the minimum threshold, a compulsory repayment is included in your tax assessment for that year, typically withheld progressively through PAYG during the year.
Using a marginal system since 2025–26: 15 cents for every dollar of repayment income above the threshold, rising to 17 cents above the mid threshold, capped at a flat 10% of total income above the top threshold.
Repayment income includes your taxable income, reportable fringe benefits, reportable employer super contributions (including salary sacrifice), and net investment losses — broader than taxable income alone.
Yes, you can make voluntary repayments to the ATO at any time, on top of your compulsory amount. Whether it's financially worthwhile depends on what else you'd do with the money, since HELP indexation is typically modest compared to many investment returns.
Yes — your compulsory HELP repayment is calculated and included as part of your annual tax assessment, and typically withheld progressively from your pay throughout the year via PAYG, similar to income tax.
Yes — lenders treat your compulsory HECS repayment as an ongoing financial commitment, which reduces your assessed borrowing capacity, similar to how they treat other regular debt repayments.
It can. Indexation is applied to your balance on 1 June each year using the lower of CPI or the Wage Price Index. If your compulsory repayments for the year were smaller than the indexation added, your balance can increase overall.
$69,528. Below this, no compulsory repayment is required. Above it, you repay 15 cents for every dollar above the threshold, under the current marginal system.
$67,000 — the first year of the new marginal repayment system, which replaced the old flat-percentage approach.
Yes — all eligible HELP balances as at 1 June 2025 were automatically reduced by 20% under the Universities Accord (Cutting Student Debt) Act 2025. No application was required; the ATO applied it directly. This was a one-off event.
No. While salary sacrifice reduces your taxable income, reportable employer super contributions are added back when calculating repayment income for HELP purposes, specifically to prevent this strategy from reducing compulsory repayments.
Check your myGov account linked to the ATO, or your latest Notice of Assessment, for your current outstanding balance including any indexation applied.
It depends on your repayment income and which financial year applies — use the calculator above with your own figures for an exact estimate, including your fortnightly withholding amount.
Under the current marginal system, only the portion of your income above each threshold is taxed at the higher rate — a pay rise increases your repayment progressively, not with the "cliff effect" that could occur under the old flat-percentage system.
Not quite — it has no fixed repayment schedule or traditional interest, is repaid only once you earn above the threshold, and is collected through the tax system rather than a separate loan account, though it does still show up in credit and lending assessments.
Your employer knows you've declared a HELP debt (since it affects PAYG withholding), but doesn't see your actual balance — that information stays between you and the ATO.
All your HELP debts (HECS-HELP, FEE-HELP, VET Student Loans, etc.) are combined into a single balance for repayment purposes, repaid together using the same repayment income thresholds.
HELP debt itself generally isn't reported to credit bureaus the way a personal loan is, but it's still factored into lenders' serviceability assessments for things like home loans, since it reduces your available income.
Yes — you declare it on your Tax File Number declaration when starting a job, so your employer withholds the correct additional amount for your compulsory repayment alongside income tax.
Your taxable income plus reportable fringe benefits, reportable super contributions (including salary sacrifice), and net investment losses — a broader figure than taxable income alone, specifically defined to prevent common avoidance strategies.
Most likely because of the marginal system introduced in 2025–26, which replaced the old flat-percentage approach — for most people this meaningfully lowered repayments. The threshold also increased for 2026–27, from $67,000 to $69,528.
This calculator uses the official ATO-published repayment thresholds and rates for both the 2026–27 and 2025–26 years. It's a planning estimate — for your exact liability, check your myGov account or consult a registered tax agent.
HECS-HELP repayments now use a marginal system — you only pay on income above the threshold, currently $69,528 for 2026–27. Your debt is indexed to CPI on 1 June each year, and all balances got a one-off 20% cut in 2025. Salary sacrifice doesn't reduce your repayment, since reportable super contributions are added back. Use the calculator above with your own figures for an exact repayment estimate and projected payoff date.