Millions of Australians with a HECS-HELP debt will be slugged with an increase of what they owe on Saturday, with credits on the way after legislation is passed this year.
It means for a graduate with an average student debt of $26,494, their debts will rise by an additional $1,245 and they will receive a credit of $1,190.Instead, it maintains the real value of education you so a student would repay an amount that is more like the actual cost of that education today, according to the Department of Education.
The government will cap the indexation rate to be the lower of either the Consumer Price Index or the Wage Price Index backdated to 1 June 2023. Skills and Training Minister Brendan O’Conner said it was about easing “cost of living pressures” and removing “financial barriers to education and training”.