Education Australia
HECS-HELP Repayment Calculator
Since 1 July 2025 HELP repayments are charged only on the income above each threshold, so a pay rise can no longer cost you more than it earns. This calculator applies the 2026-27 bands to your repayment income, shows each one, and estimates how long a debt will take to clear.
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Taxable income plus reportable fringe benefits, net investment losses and certain other items.
Set your own estimate. Left at 0 so no forecast is assumed.
Compulsory repayment
—Per month
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Per fortnight
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Share of income
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Years to clear
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How the repayment is built
Working with a different rate? Edit the rates this calculator uses
These are the figures we verified on 2026-10-26. Change them to work with a historic period, or with a new rate that has been announced but which we have not published yet.
Study Assist, 2026-27. The ATO's HELP table page still showed $67,000 when checked
An estimate, not an ATO assessment. An estimate from published thresholds, not an assessment. The ATO works out your actual compulsory repayment when your return is processed, using your full repayment income. Indexation, which is applied to the balance each year, is not forecast here: the years-to-clear figure uses only the rates you enter.
How much HELP debt do I have to repay in 2026-27?
In 2026-27 you repay nothing until your repayment income passes $69,528. Above that you repay 15 cents per dollar over $69,528, then about $9,028 plus 17 cents per dollar over $129,717, and from $186,051 a flat 10% of your whole income. A repayment is never more than 10% of your income.
What counts as repayment income
Repayment income is not just your salary. It is your taxable income plus certain amounts that are added back, such as reportable fringe benefits and net investment losses, so it can be higher than the figure on your payslip. The ATO works it out from your tax return.
That is why the field above says 'repayment income' rather than 'salary'. If you have neither fringe benefits nor investment losses, it is simply your taxable income for the year.
Why a pay rise no longer costs you
Under the older system a repayment rate applied to your entire income once you crossed a threshold, so a small rise could push the whole amount into a higher rate. Under the marginal system a rise is charged at most 15 or 17 cents in the dollar on the extra amount, and the 10% ceiling means very high earners never pay a larger share than that.
The first band's 15% and second band's 17% are the marginal rates published for 2026-27; the thresholds are indexed each year, so they will move.
How this is calculated
Charge each band's rate only on the income inside it, then cap the result at 10% of the whole income.
no repayment at or below the minimum repayment income ($69,528 in 2026-27)first band: 15% × (income, up to $129,717, − $69,528)second band: plus 17% × (income − $129,717), for income above $129,717repayment = the lower of that total and 10% × the whole repayment incomeyears to clear = repeat each year: repay, apply your indexation, grow income by your growth rate
Before 1 July 2025 the percentage applied to your whole income once you crossed a threshold, which created cliffs where earning an extra dollar could reduce what you kept. The marginal system removed them: each band's rate applies only to the income inside that band.
The two bands join without a gap. The top of the first band is $129,717, and 15% of the $60,189 between $69,528 and $129,717 is $9,028.35, which is the fixed amount published for the second band. Above about $186,050 the 10% ceiling becomes lower than the marginal total, which is why the very top rate is described as 10% of your whole income.
A worked example: $85,000 repayment income
A graduate with a repayment income of $85,000 in 2026-27.
- Income above $69,528$15,472.00
- 15% of that$2,320.80
- 10% ceiling on $85,000$8,500.00
- Compulsory repayment (the lower figure)$2,320.80
- Per fortnight$89.26
- Per month$193.40
$2,320.80 a year, which is 2.73% of repayment income.
At $150,000 the same method gives $12,476.46; at $200,000 the 10% ceiling applies and the repayment is $20,000.00.
Indexation and how long a debt takes to clear
A HELP debt is indexed once a year, which raises the balance, and the compulsory repayment reduces it. Whether the debt shrinks quickly or barely moves depends on which of those is larger. Indexation is announced after the relevant inflation figures are known, so any number placed in a calculator in advance is a forecast.
That is why the indexation and income-growth fields start at zero. Enter your own estimates to see how the timeline changes; with indexation higher than your repayment, the balance can rise and the tool will say the debt is not cleared within 80 years.
Who this covers
The same repayment thresholds apply across HELP, including HECS-HELP, FEE-HELP, VET Student Loans and similar schemes, and the ATO's rates page covers Trade Support Loans and the Student Financial Supplement Scheme alongside them. Repayments for people living overseas have their own obligations and are not modelled here.
What this calculator does not do
- Repayment income is taken as the figure you enter; add-backs must be included by you
- Indexation and income growth are not forecast — they use only what you type
- Overseas repayment obligations are not modelled
- The ATO's assessment is the final amount
- Voluntary repayments are not modelled
Common questions
What is the HELP repayment threshold for 2026-27?
$69,528 of repayment income, up from $67,000 in 2025-26 according to Study Assist. Below it no compulsory repayment is due.
How much is the HECS repayment on $85,000?
$2,320.80 a year for 2026-27, which is 15 cents for each dollar above $69,528. That is about $89.26 a fortnight.
Do I pay HELP on my whole income?
Not any more. Since 1 July 2025 each band's rate applies only to the income inside it. Only at the very top, above about $186,050, is the repayment a flat 10% of the whole income.
Why do the ATO and Study Assist show different thresholds?
When we checked, Study Assist gave the 2026-27 figures ($69,528 and $129,717) while the ATO's table page still carried the 2025-26 bands ($67,000 and $125,000), and its own worked example used the newer numbers. This calculator uses the Study Assist figures and you can edit them.
Does a HELP debt reduce my take-home pay?
Yes. The repayment is collected through the tax system, usually withheld from your pay during the year and settled when your return is assessed. The income tax calculator on this site can include it.
Is HELP debt indexed?
Yes, once a year, which increases the balance before repayments. The years-to-clear estimate lets you enter your own indexation assumption rather than guessing one.
Where these numbers come from
- Study Assist (Australian Government) — HELP loan repayments 2026-27 minimum repayment income of $69,528 and the marginal bands built on it
- Australian Taxation Office — HELP, TSL and SFSS repayment thresholds and rates Its table still showed the 2025-26 bands ($67,000 / $125,000) when checked, so Study Assist is used for 2026-27
Rates last verified 2026-10-26 Every figure Study Assist and the Australian Taxation Office sets is re-checked against the source at least once a year, and again whenever a change is announced. Out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.
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