Students will be informed of the new percentage by DUO this month, but it can already be calculated. Based on the interest rates in the past year, it works out to 2.6 percent.

The interest on study debts is linked to the interest the Dutch state pays on five-year loans. The average is determined based on the year from October to October.

For years, the state actually received money: the interest was negative. For students, this meant zero percent interest. In 2023, this became 0.46 percent and this calendar year the rate jumped to 2.56 percent. This caused dismay with students who thought borrowing was free.

11 percent

There were years with higher interest rates. In 2008, for example, the rate was over four percent. In the nineties, loans were very expensive with interest rates between six and ten percent; in 1992 it was even more than 11 percent.

The official calculation for next year isn’t yet known and can therefore deviate slightly. The ministry looks at state loans with a term between 4.5 and 5.5 years. DUO is expected to announce the rate next week.

During studies

The interest on study debts already starts accumulating during one’s studies. If someone has a loan of 10 thousand euros this year and doesn’t borrow anything extra, this study debt will have increased by 256 euros one year later.

After completing their education, students get a two year ‘grace period’ before starting to make repayments in January. In principle, they can take 35 years to pay off the entire loan, plus five years of pause if they so desire. Incidentally, this used to be fifteen years.

The interest amount can increase considerably. Let’s say you pay off a debt of 10 thousand euros in 35 years at an interest of 2.56 percent. This means you’ll pay over 5 thousand euros worth of interest. Your monthly repayment will be 36 euros. At zero percent interest, this would be 24 euros.

Calculation tool

DUO has a calculation tool on its website and has improved information provision about interest. For those making repayments, the interest is fixed for five-year periods. In other words, if you started making repayments in 2023, you still have an interest of 0.46 percent and it will stay that way until January 2028.

DUO takes the income into account. If you don’t earn a lot, you don’t pay back as much. If your annual income is 30 thousand euros, you won’t pay more than 26 euros a month and the rest will be waived. Please note: your partner’s income does count towards the total

Court case

Outraged students wanted to launch a court case over the interest raise last year. The idea was that DUO didn’t provide proper information. But this court case was never heard of again.