Starmer's parting shot is to give EU students a £30k discount of their uni fees.

[caringcarer]

This is a kick in the teeth to our own students. If he has money to discount off uni fees for students he should discount our own students. It's an outrage.

In the US, student loans are standard personal debt. If they are not repaid, it can cause serious long-term consequences later on. It can affect credit, and if someone returns to the US or has US-based income, property, tax refunds, or other assets, enforcement actions will be taken. People working abroad even for UK companies still continue repaying US loans because the debt remains tied to them legally and financially.

In the UK repayments are income-based and collected through the tax system when someone earns above a certain threshold. If a borrower moves abroad and never again earns UK-taxable income or interacts with the UK financial system, then in practice enforcement basically can't happen.

So, I’m not sure why people think this is some kind of loophole or surprise. Student loans are given out as part of a public system designed to fund higher education, not as individual one-off bets on whether someone will stay in the country forever.

You also can’t really blame students for taking opportunities that are offered to them under clear rules at the time. Some people do move abroad long-term, and yes, in those cases enforcement can not happen if they never again earn UK-taxable income or re-enter the UK financial system.

To add: I don’t really understand the issue here.

Universities have to be funded somehow by the government. If the government says “we’re putting £500m into universities,” most people would be fine with that. But if the funding is instead structured through student loans or support for students (including international or EU students coming to study), suddenly people hate the idea: even though universities still receive the money either way.

Universities benefit directly from this funding, and students also contribute significantly to the UK economy through tuition, rent, and spending while they study.

Ah, so you are acknowledging that your previous post was incorrect.

In answer to your current posts:

I was already aware that US citizens had a unique tax situation, nevertheless,
people taking out UK student loans also sign a legal contract, with a contractual obligation to make repayments as per 'the clear rules at the time' (to quote you).

If a borrower moves abroad and never again earns UK-taxable income or interacts with the UK financial system, then in practice enforcement basically can't happen.

I would imagine that still applies to US borrowers to a large extent - and to borrowers from the EU country you were born in. Nevertheless, there is still a contractual obligation (aside from a moral obligation) to make repayments if eligible.

You also can’t really blame students for taking opportunities that are offered to them under clear rules at the time.

You can - they are not following the clear rules if they do not notify the Student Loans Company when they relocate overseas - update their new address, provide income details and arrange repayments if eligible.

So, I’m not sure why people think this is some kind of loophole or surprise.

Oh really.

To add: I don’t really understand the issue here.

In particular, I think many people in the UK would be surprised to learn that EU students and graduates owe £6bn in student loans to the UK Student Loans Company.

Of course there are ways to avoid repaying U.S. student loans, but it's far harder than avoiding UK student loans.

In the U.S., student loans are real debts, not income-contingent loans like in the UK. If you stop paying, your credit is damaged, collections can pursue you, your wages can be garnished, and tax refunds seized. The debt doesn't just disappear because you ignore it.

The only way to make collection significantly harder is to leave the U.S. and stay outside its financial system. Even then, the debt still exists.

UK student loans are completely different. Repayments are based on your income, not simply on the fact that you owe money. If graduates return to countries where wages are much lower, they may never earn above the UK repayment threshold. In that case, they wouldn't be required to make repayments, regardless of whether they wanted to or not.

So the £6 billion owed by EU borrowers is what bothers you, while the £294.6 billion owed by UK borrowers is treated as normal? That’s a strange focus.

She’s marrying a Canadian and I can’t imagine she’ll come back but even if she did I imagine all they’ll do is say we’ll start paying it back now. 🤷🏻‍♀️. They would have no evidence of her working out there. She could be a housewife.

Marriages break down. Neither you nor she can guarantee she’ll never come back to the UK.

Edited to add: In the absence of any comms from her, they’ll make assumptions about her earning and she’d be expected to pay back her arrears based on their calculations.

UK student loans are completely different

UK student loans might be structured differently, nevertheless;

Statutory guidance
Student loans: a guide to terms and conditions 2025 to 2026

6.10 What happens if you don't make repayments

By law, you must repay your loan in line with the loan contract and regulations.
If you don’t make repayments, SLC have the right to take legal action to recover your debt. This means SLC can get a court order to make you repay the total debt plus interest and penalties in a single payment.

This can be enforced through the courts as a civil debt, whether you’re in the UK or living abroad, and you’ll be responsible for all costs, including legal costs.

If graduates return to countries where wages are much lower, they may never earn above the UK repayment threshold. In that case, they wouldn't be required to make repayments, regardless of whether they wanted to or not.

They've thought of that and calculated living costs by country as well;

6.7 What happens if you travel or work overseas

As you would in the UK, you’ll repay 9% of your income over the repayment thresholds for plan 1, plan 2 and plan 5 loans and 6% of your income over the threshold for Postgraduate Loan. But because of differences in living costs, the repayment threshold SLC applies in another country could be different from the UK threshold.

For example, overseas earnings thresholds for plan 1:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/overseas-earnings-thresholds-for-plan-1-student-loans/overseas-earnings-thresholds-for-plan-1-student-loans-2024-25
www.gov.uk/repaying-your-student-loan/how-you-repay
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/student-loans-a-guide-to-terms-and-conditions/student-loans-a-guide-to-terms-and-conditions-2025-to-2026

Not a strange focus at all - the title of this thread focuses on EU students.

However, since you ask, yes, it is more irritating to read that tens of thousands of EU nationals have taken out UK student loans which apparently they have no intention of ever paying back. Are you in that category yourself?

(NB £294.6 billion appears to be the total student loan balance, including loans that are being repaid)