If you’re heading to uni in the UK, chances are you’ll end up using a student loan to cover things like rent, food, and your tuition fees. Don’t worry, you’re not alone — most students do!

And if you’re living in England, Northern Ireland, or Wales, the government’s got your back with a student maintenance loan to help with living costs. The best part? You won’t need to start paying it back until you’re earning over £25,000 a year (that’s about £2,083 a month or £480 a week). Before you apply, here’s the lowdown on what you need to know!

Student loans come in two types: student maintenance loans, which help with living expenses, and tuition fee loans, which cover tuition fees.

1. What is a student maintenance loan?

Alright, so here’s the deal — while you’re at uni, the government can hook you up with a student maintenance loan to help with stuff like rent, groceries, and just, you know… life.

You might also be getting some cash from a part-time job or your family, but honestly, most of your money will probably come from that loan. Just to clear things up — this one’s different from the tuition fee loan (that one goes straight to your uni to cover your course fees). This maintenance loan? It’s all about helping you stay afloat while you study.

2. What is a tuition fee loan?

Your course tuition fees are covered by a tuition fee loan. Your household income does not affect how much you can borrow. If you wish to pay for some of your tuition yourself, you don’t have to borrow the entire amount.

Additionally, keep in mind that you do not receive payment for all of your student loans directly because it is paid directly to your university. This means that you shouldn’t have to worry about pressure to spend the money yourself or your university chasing you for payment.

3. Student maintenance Loan—What you can receive (2025)

Several factors affect how much you can get back with a complete student maintenance loans:

• Household Income: As your household income rises, the loan amount falls.
• Where You Live: London students who live away from home can get more than students in other parts of the United Kingdom.
• Course Length: The total amount you can borrow may also be impacted by the length of your course.

4. Maximum Loan Amounts:

• Living at Home:

Up to £7,500

• Living Away from Home (Outside London):

Up to £9,500

• Living Away from Home (In London):

Up to £12,000

5. Who may qualify for student maintenance loans?

Students in the UK need to meet specific criteria for eligibility for the student maintenance loan system.

1. Age: Students must have an age less than 60 to enrol on the first day of their first course. The method of calculating your loan changes if you are above 25 years old.
2. Residence and Nationality: To qualify for study you must have lived at least three years in the UK Channel Islands or Isle of Man before program start together with being a UK citizen or holding settled status.
3. Household Income: The threshold values from your household income influence your borrowing capacity so they set the upper limits for your loan amount.
4. Course and Institution: Students must take approved courses at recognized universities while being active enrolees. Academic courses at all undergraduate levels within accredited universities qualify for loan eligibility.

6. What is covered by student maintenance loans?

Student maintenance loans are sent into your bank account directly. This means you have complete control over how you use the funds. Most likely, you’ll use a maintenance loan to pay for your accommodation, utilities, groceries, and transportation.

Additionally, don’t forget your course supplies. Although lectures and seminars are covered by tuition, books and lab coats are not always included. The price of a laptop, your phone bill, and any club or society dues must also be considered.

Still unsure about where to start? This is where Enrollmate.co.uk comes in. We provide professional advice on how to maximise your support, eligibility checks, application procedures, and student funding. We can help you every step of the way and streamline the process, whether you’re unclear about forms or what you’re entitled to.

7. Student Maintenance Loan – Repayment Overview

• Loan Payments:

Across most of the UK, your maintenance loan gets dropped into your student bank account in three chunks over the year — pretty much evenly spaced out. So yeah, it’s like getting paid three times a year!

• Interest Charges:

Your course tuition fees are covered by a tuition fee loan. How much you can borrow doesn’t depend on your household income. And if you want to cover part of the tuition yourself, you don’t have to take out the full loan.

Also, just so you know — you won’t actually see that tuition money in your account, because it goes straight to your uni. So no stress about spending it by mistake or your uni chasing you for payment.

• Repayment Start Date:

Only after you complete or drop your course will you start making loan payments.

• How Repayment Works:
  • Your income, not the amount borrowed, decides how much you must repay.
  • Over the repayment threshold, 9% of your salary will be repaid.
  • Repayment thresholds differ depending on your repayment plan.
  • If your income drops below the threshold, repayments will stop automatically.

Learn more about repayment: www.gov.uk/repaying-your-student-loan.

8. What to Do If Your Student Maintenance Loan Isn’t Enough

Your maintenance loan probably won’t cover everything—that’s just how it goes. So, you might need to pick up a part-time job during the term or work in the holidays to keep up with costs.

Oh, and don’t forget to sort out a proper student bank account! Try to find one that gives you an interest-free overdraft while you’re at uni — and even better if it sticks around for a year or so after you graduate. You might end up using it (no shame, most of us do), but once interest kicks in, that overdraft can get pricey real quick.

Next, you want to look at getting additional funds through a scholarship or bursary. These can be given for financial necessity or because of special academic or other skills, and they can be issued by universities, nonprofit organisations, or local trusts.

9. Exploring Extra Funding:

It can be difficult to pay for your university education, even with a loan for tuition and upkeep.

Many students work part-time jobs, but given the responsibilities of studying, this may not always be an option. Bursaries and scholarships, on the other hand, provide additional funding.

These are pots of money set up by public or private companies to give extra support to students who’ve shown potential in certain areas or just need a bit of help.

It’s definitely worth checking out other ways to get some extra cash. You might have to do an interview or write a personal statement, but honestly, it’s not a huge amount of work — and it could really pay off.