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Student Loan Interest Rates Academic Year 2026/27
13 April 2026
Type
Written Ministerial Statement
Department
Department for Education
At a Glance
Issue Summary
The statement addresses the capping of maximum interest [8D [K interest rates on Plan 2 and Plan 3 student loans at 6% for the academic ye [2D [K year 2026/27.
Action Requested
The government is implementing a short-term protecti [8D [K protective measure to cap the interest rate at 6%, protecting students from [4D [K from potential inflationary pressures, ahead of the confirmation of the off [3D [K official rates based on RPI in April 2026. This decision follows previous i [1D [K improvements made to the student finance system.
Key Facts
- The maximum interest rate for Plan 2 and Plan 3 loans wil [3D [K will be capped at 6% from September 1, 2026, to August 31, 2027.
- Interes [7D [K Interest rates are normally set by reference to the Retail Prices Index (RP [3D [K (RPI) value for the year to the preceding March.
- The RPI figure for Marc [4D [K March 2026 will be published on April 22, 2026.
- Under existing arrangeme [9D [K arrangements, borrowers on Plan 2 loans may face an interest rate of up to [K RPI +3%.
- The repayment threshold for Plan 2 loans was increased to £28,4 [5D [K £28,470 in April 2025 and further to £29,385 on April 6, 2026.
- Targeted, [9D [K Targeted, means-tested maintenance grants will be reintroduced from the 202 [3D [K 2028/29 academic year for up to £1,000 extra support.
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