Keeping your student finance account up to date after your course
It’s important to keep your details up to date in your student finance account so we can contact you with updates about your account.
Once you’ve finished or left your course, you should use your online repayment account to manage your student loan. It has different features to the one you used while you were applying for and attending your course.
You can use your online repayment account to:
- check your balance
- update your contact details
- view your repayments
A separate online service allows you to update your employment details and tell us if you’re going to be leaving the UK for more than 3 months.
This guide will provide information on how and when to use your online repayment account once you’ve finished or left your course.
If you’ll be finishing or leaving your course in the next 12 months
What you need to do now
You need to keep your contact details up to date in your student finance account, this means we’ll have your correct details when you’re due to start repaying.
To familiarise yourself with the repayment process, you should follow our SLC repayment channels on social media:
What to expect when you finish or leave your course
You’ll be eligible to make repayments to your student loan balance from the April after you finish or leave your course. But you won’t make any repayments until you’re earning over the repayment threshold.
Find out more about the repayment process at www.gov.uk/repaying-your-student-loan.
If you’ve finished or left your course in the last 6 months
You’ll have access to your online repayment account. You should sign in to make sure your contact details are up to date. If the email address on your account is a university or college one, such as janesmith@university.ac.uk, you should change it to a personal one that you use regularly instead.
You’ll be eligible to make repayments to your student loan balance from the April after you finish or leave your course. But you won’t make any repayments until you’re earning over the repayment threshold.
Find out more about the repayment process at www.gov.uk/repaying-your-student-loan.
If you’re going abroad or if we ask you to update your employment details
You should visit www.gov.uk/repaying-your-student-loan/update-your-employment-details to provide us with your correct information if you:
- have received an email from us asking you to update your employment details
- are leaving the UK for more than 3 months
It’s important that we have up to date information for you so that:
- your expected repayment amounts are not higher than they should be
- you’re not being charged the higher, non-compliant interest rate
- we’re able to contact you with any important updates about your account
If you need help to carry out any of these actions you can contact us. Our staff will be available to support you.
For regular repayment updates, you should follow our SLC repayment channels on social media:
If you finished or left your course over 12 months ago
You’ll have access to your online repayment account. It’s important you keep your contact details up to date. You can sign in to check your balance, make extra repayments and update your contact details.
If the email address on your account is wrong you should update it to one that you use regularly instead.
You may have already started making repayments if you’re earning over the repayment threshold, you can sign in to your account to view your annual statement which shows the total repayments made.
If you’re going abroad or if we ask you to update your employment details
You should visit www.gov.uk/repaying-your-student-loan/update-your-employment-details to provide us with your correct information if you:
- have received an email from us asking you to update your employment details
- are leaving the UK for more than 3 months
It’s important that we have up to date information for you so that:
- your expected repayment amounts are not higher than they should be
- you’re not being charged the higher, non-compliant interest rate
- we’re able to contact you with any important updates about your account
If you need help to carry out any of these actions you can contact us. Our staff will be available to support you.
For regular repayment updates, you should follow our SLC repayment channels on social media:
When and how to tell us about a change in your circumstances
| Your circumstances | What to do |
|---|---|
| Started a new job | We’ll usually be notified automatically by your employer, but if we email you to ask you to update your details you should follow the instructions to provide your up-to-date information |
| Moved house | Sign in to your online repayment account and select ‘Update your personal details’ to update your address |
| Changed your phone number or email address | Sign in to your online repayment account and select ‘Update your personal details’ to update your contact details |
| Leaving the UK for more than 3 months | Sign in at www.gov.uk/repaying-your-student-loan/update-your-employment-details to tell us you’re leaving the UK |
| Changed your name, for example by deed poll or if you’ve got married | Call us on 0300 100 0611 or message us on Facebook or Twitter |
| Become self-employed | We’ll usually be notified automatically by HMRC, but if we email you to ask you to update your details you should follow the instructions to provide your up-to-date information. Sign in at www.gov.uk/repaying-your-student-loan/update-your-employment-details to update your employment details |
| On maternity, paternity or adoption leave | If we email you to ask you to update your details you should follow the instructions to provide your up-to-date information |
Updates to this page
Published 5 November 2021Last updated 19 January 2022 + show all updates
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Wording for 'changed your name' has been updated in the circumstances table
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First published.