Help And Other Student Loan Debts 2026

Please note Help debts do not incur interest, but are indexed each year, based on CPI, as CPI increases, so too will the inflation charges on your debt.  This has been extremely evident in the past few years and will mean that your loan debt is increasing substantially each year on a pro rata basis.  Hence please consider your options in regard to the debt.

The historical rates over the last few years have been listed below with the 2026 current financial year rate yet to be announced.

2025                  3.2%

2024                  4.0%

2023                  3.2%

2022                  3.9%

2021                  0.6%

2020                  1.8%

If you choose to voluntarily pay money off your HELP debt, it is best to pay this prior to 1 June each year, as the census date that the ATO apply the inflation adjustment is 1 June each year.  Hence if we use the date of 30 April, this will allow enough time for the ATO to process your payment prior to the annual inflation charges being applied.  You can make the payment directly from your Mygov account.