HECS-HELP debt explained: your CAN, ATO balance and indexation

A HECS-HELP debt is recorded in two places, and each tells you something different. Your university or other provider sends a Commonwealth Assistance Notice (CAN) for each study period. The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) keeps your running loan balance. Reading both, and checking one against the other, is the simplest way to catch mistakes and understand why your balance changes.

Part 1: Your Commonwealth Assistance Notice

Every student in a Commonwealth supported place (CSP) or using a HELP loan must get a CAN from their provider.

What it shows: the units of study you're enrolled in for that study period and the Commonwealth assistance you received, either a CSP or a HELP loan.

When it arrives: no later than 28 days after the census date. It may come directly or appear in your student portal.

Why the census date matters: it's the last day you can pay upfront, apply for a HELP loan, accept a CSP offer or formally withdraw without incurring fees. Each provider sets its own census dates, so check yours each study period.

Sample (fictional): Sam studies at Southbank University. Sam's Semester 1 CAN lists four units, each with a HECS-HELP amount, and a total for the semester. Sam notices one unit was dropped before the census date but still appears with a charge.

What to check on each CAN

1. Units: Do they match what you were enrolled in at the census date?

2. Amounts: Does each unit's HECS-HELP amount look right for your course?

3. Assistance type: Is it shown as a CSP with HECS-HELP, or something else, such as FEE-HELP?

4. The total: Does it match what was added to your HELP debt? You can check by logging in to myGov and viewing your loan account in ATO online services.

If something is wrong

Ask your provider, in writing, to correct the CAN within 14 days of receiving it. If the provider doesn't fix it, you can use its grievance and complaints process. In the sample, Sam emails Southbank's student administration within the 14 days with the withdrawal confirmation attached.

Keep a copy of every CAN. Together they're your record of the assistance you've used.

Part 2: Your ATO loan account

The ATO manages HELP repayments. You can see your loan account in the ATO app or in ATO online services through myGov. The account records:

• indexation amounts;

• voluntary and compulsory repayments;

• the 20% loan debt reduction;

• overseas levy amounts, if any.

New loans can take time to appear, because the information comes from other agencies. You can contact the ATO to ask for a statement at any time.

Why your balance grows: indexation

There's no interest on HELP debts, but there is indexation. On 1 June each year, the ATO indexes the part of your debt that has been unpaid for more than 11 months. The rate is based on the lower of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and the Wage Price Index (WPI). On 1 June 2026 the rate was 2.8%.

Debts less than 11 months old aren't indexed, so a recent student may see no indexation line yet.

Voluntary repayments made before 1 June reduce the amount indexed. For the 2026 indexation, Study Assist advised paying by 26 May to allow time for processing.

The 20% reduction

The government cut student loan debts by 20%, based on balances at 1 June 2025, and the ATO has finished processing the reductions. How it appears depends on when you studied. If your last loan was added before July 2024, you'll see one reduction transaction and an adjustment to your 2025 indexation. Current students may see several reduction lines covering different loan periods. Effective dates other than 1 June 2025 can appear; the ATO says these are for its calculations and the full reduction was applied.

Repayments: when they start and how they're worked out

You make compulsory repayments through the tax system once your repayment income passes the minimum threshold. For 2026–27 that threshold is $69,528. Repayments are worked out on income above the threshold: 15 cents for each dollar over $69,528, plus 17 cents for each dollar over $129,717, or 10% of your income, whichever is lower.

Sample (fictional): if Sam's 2026–27 repayment income is $79,528, that's $10,000 over the threshold, so the compulsory repayment would be about $1,500.

A few points that confuse people:

• Repayment income includes more than wages, such as some investment income.

• Employer withholding isn't applied to your debt until you lodge your tax return. If too much was withheld, it comes back with your return. If too little, you pay the gap.

• Voluntary repayments reduce your debt but don't reduce that year's compulsory repayment.

Common reasons a balance looks wrong

• A new loan hasn't arrived yet. Loan information is passed to the ATO from other agencies, so there can be a delay.

• Withholding isn't showing. Amounts your employer withholds are applied only when you lodge your tax return.

• The balance jumped in June. That's usually indexation, applied on 1 June to debt older than 11 months.

• Reduction lines carry odd dates. The ATO says dates other than 1 June 2025 are for its calculations.

• A unit appears that you dropped. Check the CAN and the census date, then ask your provider to correct it.

Questions to ask

• To your provider: "Unit X appears on my CAN but I withdrew before the census date. Please correct it."

• To the ATO: "My latest CAN isn't showing on my loan account yet. When will it appear?"

Get help reading your notices

EasyToDecode, launching soon, is built to read documents like your CAN: it will quote the lines that matter, flag anything that doesn't add up, and draft questions for your provider. See how it works or join the waitlist to hear when it opens.