What you can borrow

You can borrow money from the government to pay for higher education in the UK. There are two main loans. A Tuition Fee Loan covers your course fees, and a Maintenance Loan helps with living costs.

How much you can get depends on:

• the part of the UK you normally live in
• your course and whether you study full-time or part-time
• where you live while you study
• your household income

You may also get grants and other help that you do not have to pay back.

Who gives you student finance

Your student finance comes from the part of the UK where you normally live. This applies even if you study somewhere else in the UK.

• England: Student Finance England
• Scotland: Student Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS)
• Wales: Student Finance Wales
• Northern Ireland: Student Finance NI

The amounts on this page are for students from England unless it says otherwise. They change each year, so check GOV.UK student finance for the latest figures.

Tuition Fee Loan

A Tuition Fee Loan pays the fees your university or college charges. It goes straight to them, so you never handle the money. In England, it’s paid in three instalments across the academic year.

For the 2026 to 2027 academic year, students from England can borrow up to:

• £9,790 for a full-time course
• £11,750 for an accelerated degree
• £7,335 for a part-time course

Part-time students can only get student finance if their ‘course intensity’ is 25% or more. Course intensity compares how many credits you study in a year with a full-time course.

Maintenance Loan

A Maintenance Loan helps you pay for rent, food, books, travel and other living costs. It’s paid into your bank account, usually in three instalments at the start of each term. You need to register at your university or college before you get the first payment.

The most students from England can borrow for the 2026 to 2027 academic year depends on where they live while studying.

You may get limited Maintenance Loan, or none at all, if you’re 60 or over when your course starts.

How household income affects your Maintenance Loan

Your household income usually means your parents’ income. This includes the income of a parent’s partner. If your parents are separated, it’s the income of the parent you depend on.

You count as an ‘independent student’ if, for example, you:

• are 25 or over on the first day of the academic year
• are married or in a civil partnership
• have supported yourself for at least three years

If you’re independent, your partner’s income is used instead of your parents’. You cannot claim independent status just because you do not get on with your parents.

In England, you can get the full Maintenance Loan if your household income is £25,000 or less. Above that, the amount goes down gradually as income rises. It never falls below a minimum of about 44% to 50% of the full loan, depending on where you live.

These rules apply to full-time courses that started on or after 1 August 2016. From the 2026 to 2027 academic year, care leavers can borrow the full amount without their household income being checked.

Help you do not pay back

You do not usually need to pay back extra help on top of your loans. You may be able to get:

• Disabled Students’ Allowance, if you have a disability, long-term health condition, mental health condition or specific learning difficulty
• Childcare Grant, if you study full-time and pay for childcare
• Parents’ Learning Allowance, if you study full-time and have children
• Adult Dependants’ Grant, if an adult depends on you for money
• a bursary, scholarship or hardship fund from your university or college

In England, Maintenance Grants are no longer available to new students. You can only get one if your course started before 1 August 2016.

GOV.UK lists the extra help you can get and who it’s for.

Student finance in Scotland

If you’re from Scotland and study in Scotland, SAAS pays your tuition fees straight to your university or college. You do not pay these back, but you need to apply every year. If you study elsewhere in the UK, you can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan instead.

For living costs, you can apply for a bursary and a loan. You do not pay back the bursary. How much bursary you get depends on your household income. You can choose how much loan to take, up to a limit, whatever your household income.

Find out more from SAAS.

Student finance in Wales

Students from Wales can currently get a Tuition Fee Loan of up to £9,790. Help with living costs is a mix of a Maintenance Loan and a Maintenance Grant. You do not pay back the grant. How much grant you get depends on your household income.

Full-time students from Wales may be able to have £1,500 of their Maintenance Loan written off.

Find out more from Student Finance Wales.

Student finance in Northern Ireland

For the 2026 to 2027 academic year, students from Northern Ireland can borrow up to:

• £4,985 in Tuition Fee Loan to study in Northern Ireland
• £9,790 in Tuition Fee Loan to study elsewhere in the UK

You can also get a Maintenance Loan. About 75% of the most you can borrow is available whatever your household income.

You may also get a Maintenance Grant of up to £3,569, which you do not pay back. You can get the full grant if your household income is £19,203 or less. You cannot get it if your household income is more than £41,065. Getting a Maintenance Grant reduces your Maintenance Loan.

Find out more from nidirect.

Loans for postgraduate study

If you’re from England, you can get a Master’s Loan or a Doctoral Loan for postgraduate study. You can use either loan for course fees and living costs. The money is paid to you, and the amount is not based on your income or your family’s.

For courses starting on or after 1 August 2026, you can borrow up to:

• £13,206 with a Master’s Loan
• £31,122 with a Doctoral Loan

This is the most you can get for the whole course. If your course lasts more than a year, the loan is split equally across each year.

Courses starting from January 2027

Student finance in England changes for courses that start on or after 1 January 2027. Courses are measured in credits under the ‘Lifelong Learning Entitlement’. A full-time year of a bachelor’s degree is usually worth 120 credits.

You can get up to £9,790 in Tuition Fee Loan for every 120 credits you study. The total limit is £39,160, which is about four years of full-time study. GOV.UK explains student finance for courses starting on or after 1 January 2027.

Paying it back

You start repaying your loans after you leave your course, but only when your income is over a set amount. Read about repaying your loan.