Student loans

Every year thousands of Kiwis head off on their 'big OE'. And there are lots of money issues to sort out before taking off.

If you're living in New Zealand, there hasn’t been much of a reason to pay off more than the minimum repayment amount on your student loan - until recently.

If you leave New Zealand for 6 months or more, you will generally have to pay interest on your student loan (currently 6.6%).

Changes to the student loans scheme this year mainly affect overseas borrowers, who will now pay less, or in some cases no, interest on their loans.

As the secondary school year draws to a close, many senior students around the country (and their parents!) will be preparing for the big move to tertiary study in 2010.