How to Use the HECS-HELP Repayment Calculator
- Enter your repayment income for the year — broader than taxable income (see below).
- Select Calculate to see your compulsory HECS-HELP repayment.
How the HECS-HELP Repayment Calculator Works
A HECS-HELP debt (or other HELP loan) isn't repaid on a fixed schedule. Instead, the ATO works out a compulsory repayment each year based on your income, once you earn enough to be required to pay anything at all.
2026–27 HELP Repayment Thresholds
Compulsory repayments begin once your repayment income exceeds $69,528. Above that, it's a marginal system:
- 15 cents per dollar above $69,528
- Rising to 17 cents per dollar above $129,717
- Capped at 10% of your repayment income — whichever figure is lower
Source: ATO — study and training loan repayment thresholds and rates (2026–27).
What Counts as Repayment Income
Repayment income is wider than your taxable salary. It adds back:
- Reportable fringe benefits, for example from a novated lease
- Reportable super contributions, like salary sacrifice
- Total net investment losses
- Exempt foreign employment income
So salary packaging can push your repayment income above the threshold. This can happen even when your taxable income looks lower.
Repayments at Different Income Levels
Estimated compulsory HECS-HELP repayment for 2026–27 at a few common income levels:
| Repayment income | Annual repayment |
|---|---|
| $70,000 | $71 |
| $90,000 | $3,071 |
| $110,000 | $6,071 |
| $150,000 | $12,476 |
| $200,000 | $20,000 |
For example, on a repayment income of $85,000, the compulsory repayment for 2026–27 is $2,321 — about 2.73% of that income.
How It's Collected
If you've told your employer about your HELP debt, they withhold extra tax through the year to cover your expected repayment. At tax time, the ATO reconciles that withholding against your actual compulsory repayment — you may get some back or owe a top-up.
Indexation vs Interest
Your remaining HELP balance isn't charged interest in the usual sense. Instead, it's indexed once a year on 1 June. The indexation rate is whichever is lower: the Consumer Price Index (CPI) or the Wage Price Index (WPI). This lower-of rule was legislated in 2024 and backdated to June 2023, after CPI-only indexation produced a 7.1% spike in 2023. The 2026 rate was 2.8%. Source: Study Assist — loan increases and indexation.
A debt that isn't being actively repaid can still grow in dollar terms each year. A voluntary repayment made before 1 June reduces the balance that gets indexed. That's the main financial reason to pay down a HELP debt faster than the compulsory schedule requires.
Multiple HELP Debts
Some people have more than one type of HELP debt — for example, a HECS-HELP debt from a university degree and a VET Student Loan from vocational training. These are combined into a single balance for repayment purposes. One compulsory repayment is calculated on your total repayment income each year. It's applied against the combined balance, starting with whichever debt was raised first.
See this alongside your full income tax and take-home pay with our Take Home Pay Calculator Australia. Or check every current threshold on our Australian Tax Rates and Brackets.