A re-elected Albanese Labor Government will cut student debt by 20% - for everyone

We’ll also reduce the amount graduates have to repay each year. This is about putting money back into your pocket – and putting intergenerational equity back into the system.

What’s Changing?

The first policy is to wipe 20% off all student loan debts. This isn't just for uni debts; it also includes debts from TAFE courses and apprenticeship loans.

This change will wipe around $16 billion in student debt for around three million Australians. On top of the $3 billion in student debt the Albanese government has already wiped, to make sure that student debt never grows faster than wages.

The second policy focuses on making the repayment system fairer by cutting the repayment rate and increasing the amount you need to earn before you start paying the loan back. Basically, this means that anyone paying off a HECS debt will keep more of their pay each week instead of it going to their loan. Because you shouldn’t have to start paying off your student debt until you’re earning a decent wage.

For someone on an income of $70,000 this will mean they will pay around $1,300 less per year in repayments.

Building a Fairer Education System

Since coming to government in 2022, we have introduced a range of policies to make our tertiary education system fairer by:

* Wiping $3 billion in student debt

* Delivering 500,000 fee-free TAFE places

* Introducing paid placements for students in fields like nursing, teaching, midwifery, and social work

Calculate your student bet reduction and find out more here:  20% reduction of student loan debt - Department of Education, Australian Government