Guidance for students from Scotland
SLC issues guidance for students from Scotland and answers common questions.
Who is SLC and who is SAAS?
Student Loans Company (SLC) pays loans to students from across the UK and collects their loan repayments.
Student Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS) assesses student finance applications and pays bursaries for students from Scotland. They do not pay student loans.
Keep up to date with SAAS by following them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.
When will I get my first payment?
We can’t pay your loan until your course has started and you’ve registered with your university or college. If you’re not sure when your course starts, you should check with your university or college.
You can check the payment status of your loan by looking at your loan payment letter.
What happens if my course start date has changed?
Your loan payment date will change too. This is because we can’t pay your loan until your course has started and you’ve registered with your university or college.
If you’re eligible for a bursary, SAAS can still pay that on your original course start date. This means it’s likely you’ll get paid your bursary and your loan on different days.
Why does my loan payment letter say ‘awaiting NI’?
This means we’re waiting for your National Insurance (NI) number to be checked with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). This can take a few weeks from when SAAS send us your loan entitlement. We can’t pay your loan until we’ve checked and confirmed your NI number with the DWP.
If you haven’t given us an NI number yet or you need to change the one you have given us, call us on 0300 100 0609.
How do I change my bank details?
You’ll need to call us on 0300 100 0609. You’ll need to do this even if you’ve already changed your bank details with SAAS because they only pay your bursary.
If you’re expected a payment from us, we require 4 working days’ notice to change the bank details, so the payment is made to the new bank account.
How do I check the progress of my SAAS application?
SAAS do not pay student loans. SAAS assesses loan applications and pays bursaries for students from Scotland.
You should sign in to your SAAS account to check if your application has been assessed.
Who to contact?
Question about your student loan payments?
You should contact SLC if your student loan has been processed by SAAS and you have a question about:
- when you’ll receive your payments
- updating your details
- missing payments
Read the SAAS payment guide before you contact us.
Telephone: 0300 100 0609
Monday to Friday, 8am to 7pm
Saturday, 9am to 4pm
Question about your SAAS application, bursary or grant payments?
You should contact SAAS if:
- you haven’t applied for a student loan yet
- you have applied for a student loan, but your application hasn’t been processed yet
- you have a question about your award notice
Read the SAAS payment guide before you contact SAAS.
For any other questions, you should contact SAAS.
Question about repaying your loan?
You’ll have to start repaying your loan when your income is over a certain amount (the ‘threshold’ amount).
You’ll be charged interest from the day you get your first payment.
Read the repaying your student loan guide before you contact us.
Updates to this page
Published 27 August 2020Last updated 6 December 2024 + show all updates
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Contact hours have changed.
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Updated opening hours for SAAS contact line for bank holiday on Monday 27 May 2024.
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Bank holiday opening hours have been removed
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Easter bank holiday opening hours have been added
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Festive opening hours have been removed
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Added festive opening hours
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Opening hours have been updated
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Removed bank holiday information.
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Removed bank holiday information.
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Updated bank holiday opening hours
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Added bank holiday opening hours
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Removed Jubilee bank holiday opening hours
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Updated contact opening hours for Sundays + added opening hours for Thursday 02 June and Friday 03 June bank holiday.
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Removing bank holidays opening hours
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Updated contact opening hours for 2 May bank holiday
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Updated guidance for contacting SLC, SAAS and Repayments - making content clearer on who to contact. Removing COVID related content that is no longer applicable. Added social media promotion for contacting SAAS.
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Updated Summary to remove covid 19 as now repurposed as general FAQ
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Sunday shutdown updates.
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A new FAQ has been added: I’ve had to extend or repeat my course due to COVID-19. Will I get extra funding to cover this?
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Removed Easter Bank holiday contact opening hours for SAAS loan payments advice line
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Updated opening hours for Easter bank holiday under 'How do I contact SLC?'
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Added a new FAQ, related to the £500 bonus paid to NHS staff in Scotland
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Removed downtime messaging.
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First published.