Maternity Leave and Student Loan Repayments

[TheFantasticFixit]

I'm due to go onto maternity leave at the end of October and was wondering about what happens to Student loan repayments whilst you are on ML. My maternity package is 6 weeks at 90%, and then a further 18 weeks at 50% + SMP before dropping down to SMP only.

My Student loan repayments are taken directly from my salary and I currently pay about £130 a month back to them.

Will the SLC take a repayment during this period? Money is already going to be tight so I am rather hoping not!

Would I need to contact the SLC myself to organise this or would it be done through my employer?

Any advice greatfully received!

[wakarimasen]

Hello,

You won't have to pay your student loan when you move to SMP as you will be below the threshold. Give the SLC a phone and they will send you the paperwork.

[TheFantasticFixit]

thanks Wakarimasen; does that mean though that I will still pay it whilst on the 90 and 50% pay?

[MrsCLH]

The SLC will have a threshold at which point you will be able to defer payments, so it depends whether your 90 and 50% pay will take you above that threshold or not IYSWIM? You will be able to call SLC and find out what the threshold is. HTH!

[stripeybump]

It should all be automatic like tax, shouldn't it? I didn't think you had to call them up, the PAYE system should sort it automatically and reduce payments as your pay reduces.

[ObviouslyOblivious]

I'm on ML at the moment, and as soon as my pay dropped below a certain amount the payments just stopped.

[Misty9]

I called them this morning to ask this very question :)

The threshold is £1,260 (around that anyway) gross pay per month, below which you'll not have repayments. Anything above that is what you would pay a proportionate amount on. They didn't mention any paperwork as it's all done through the inland revenue who notify them when your pay drops below a certain level.
Given that the interest carries on accruing I might put money aside and make an overpayment at some point - just so the damn thing doesn't grow at least!

[licoriceGreen]

My work said that it's all automatic. The SLC take 9% of everything that you earn over £15k annually (that was the threshold when I graduated in 2007 it might have changed I'm not sure) so it depends on how much you'll earn in the financial year.

[TheFantasticFixit]

Ah thanks everyone - was away for a couple of days so couldn't reply but thanks so much for being so helpful. I knew I was being too hopeful that they would 'forget' about it for my ML!