New Zealand Student Loan Repayment Calculator 2026-27

How is the annual repayment worked out?

The tool subtracts the threshold of $24,128 (the figure built into this tool, labelled 2026-27 and unchanged since 1 April 2024) from your annual income, ignores the result if it is negative, and multiplies what is left by the repayment rate, 12 cents per dollar by default. On the default inputs that is ($60,000 − $24,128) × 12% = $4,305 a year, or $83 a week. The same amount is used every year of the projection because income is held constant.

How are the two borrower types different in the tool?

NZ-based borrowers have no interest at all, so the balance only falls by the repayment. Overseas borrowers have 8.9% added to the balance at the start of each year, then the year’s repayment is deducted. For a $25,000 balance and $60,000 income the NZ-based result is 6 years and $25,000 repaid; the overseas result is 9 years, $36,776 repaid and $11,776 of interest. The 8.9% is a fixed figure in the code, not an announced annual rate.

Does the tool model the repayment rules for borrowers living abroad?

No. It applies the same percentage-of-income method to an overseas borrower that it applies at home, only with interest added. Arrangements for people who are abroad can follow different rules and notification duties, and nothing here checks how long you have been away. Inland Revenue is the authority for what you must pay, and this page cannot tell you that.

What does “50+ years” mean, and why are the interest figures so large then?

If a year’s repayment is smaller than the interest that year, the balance grows and never clears, so the loop stops at 50 years and reports 50+ years. For a $40,000 overseas balance on $30,000 income the repayment is $705 a year against about $3,560 of first-year interest, so the totals shown after 50 compounding years are enormous and meaningless as a forecast. Read the 50+ message itself and increase income or the rate to see when repayment overtakes interest.

Why does a partial final year count as a whole year?

The projection works in whole years. A $25,000 balance repaid at $4,305 a year needs about 5.8 years, so the last year’s repayment is smaller but the display rounds up to 6 years. Total repaid is still exactly the balance for an NZ-based borrower, because the final payment is capped at what is owed.

What happens with income below the threshold, a zero balance or a zero rate?

If income is at or below the threshold the tool returns an annual repayment of $0 with a note, and for an overseas borrower it points out that interest keeps accruing. A repayment rate of 0 also produces $0 with its own message. A zero balance shows 0 years. Blank rate falls back to 12 cents, but an explicit 0 is respected.

What does the tool not include, and how current are its figures?

It leaves out voluntary repayments, pay rises, income that varies year to year, lump sums, any write-off, and the timing of deductions through the tax year. The $24,128 threshold (labelled 2026-27), the 12-cent rate and the 8.9% overseas interest figure (not re-checked for this update) are built into this tool and these rules change at least every year from 1 April, so the tables here are not updated automatically. Inland Revenue, StudyLink or a qualified adviser should be treated as authoritative.