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Loans for further education

The loan is available to help cover tuition fees and is paid directly to your college or training organisation.

It doesn’t depend on your household income and there’s no credit check.

You won’t have to pay anything back until your income is over £21,000.

Course tuition fees

The tuition fee for your course is set by your college or training organisation. They'll confirm the cost before you enrol.

How much loan you can get

If you qualify for the loan you can get a minimum of £300.

The amount you get depends on your course and the tuition fees you have to pay. You can choose to pay some of the tuition fee costs yourself and take out a smaller loan.

You can apply for a total of four loans. You can’t get a loan to study more than one course at a time but you can apply for more loans for further studies.

Who qualifies

To qualify for a 24+ Advanced Learning Loan you must:

• be starting a course on or after 1 August 2023
• be aged 24 or over on the first day of your course
• be living in the UK on the first day of your course
• have lived in the UK, Channel Islands or the Isle of Man for three years immediately before starting your course
• study at a college or training provider approved for public funding
• study on an eligible course at level 3 or above (this includes A levels, Access to HE, Certificates and Diplomas, Advanced Apprenticeships or Higher Apprenticeships)

• Qualifications: what the different levels mean

How to apply

You can apply from April 2013 for courses starting on or after 1 August 2013.

Ask your college or training organisation for more details.

Repayments

Monthly repayments are based on your income. If your income changes, the amount you repay will also change.

You pay 9 per cent of any income over £21,000 a year - see the table below for examples:

Repayments begin in the April after you finish or leave your course when your income is more than £21,000 a year. If you earn less than this, repayments stop. Repayments don’t begin until April 2016, even if you finish or leave your course before then.

If you’re employed, repayments will be taken directly from your salary each month like tax. If you’re self-employed you need to make repayments as part of your tax return each year.

You can make voluntary repayments at any time to pay off your loan more quickly.

After 30 years any remaining loan will be written off.

Interest rates

The interest you pay on your loan is based on inflation (Retail Price Index (RPI)).

Find out more

You can find out more by speaking to your college or training organisation.

You may also wish to get independent financial advice.

• Money Advice Service Opens new window