Interest when your student finance ends
If you received a grant, loan, student travel product or a lifelong learning credit, we will have calculated an interest on this student finance. The government determines how high the interest rate is. While you were studying, the interest rate was always fixed for 1 year. From January of the year following the end of your student finance, the interest rate will be set for 5 years. This is called a fixed-rate period.
Do you enter a new study programme after the start your fixed-rate period and do you receive student finance for this? You will incur a 2nd debt. As long as you receive student finance, the interest rate for this debt will be set for 1 year at a time. Afterwards, it will be set for 5 years. Each of the debts will have its own interest rate.
Which interest rate applies to you?
The interest rate is linked to the repayment rules that apply to you and the fixed-rate period. For more information on the repayment rules that apply to you, go to Mijn DUO.
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Overview of interest rates
| Year | Interest rate(%) |
|---|---|
| 2026 | 2,33 (SF35) en 2,29 (SF15) |
| 2025 | 2,57 (SF35) en 2,21 (SF15) |
| 2024 | 2,56 (SF35) en 2,95 (SF15) |
| 2023 | 0,46 (SF35) en 1,78 (SF15) |
| 2022 | 0,00 |
| 2021 | 0,00 |
| 2020 | 0,00 |
| 2019 | 0,00 |
| 2018 | 0,00 |
| 2017 | 0,00 |
| 2016 | 0,01 |
| 2015 | 0,12 |
| 2014 | 0,81 |
| 2013 | 0,60 |
| 2012 | 1,39 |
| 2011 | 1,50 |
| 2010 | 2,39 |
| 2009 | 3,58 |
| 2008 | 4,17 |
| 2007 | 3,70 |
| 2006 | 2,74 |
Interest for lifelong learning credit
You are required to repay a lifelong learning credit in no more than 15 years. The interest rate is equal to the SF35 interest rate and a fixed-rate period of 5 years also applies here. You can find all information about repaying an lllc debt on the page about the various repayment rules.
Interest rate after obtaining your diploma
Are you obtaining your diploma? Then your performance-related grant (basic grant, supplementary grant and student travel product) will be converted into a gift, including the interest accrued.
How interest works
Interest is calculated month by month on your total residual debt, which is the amount of your debt plus any interest that has already accrued. So you are paying interest on interest. This is referred to as ‘compound interest’.
Example of fixed-rate period
Lisa graduated from her secondary vocational education (MBO) programme in 2025. She has taken out a loan, so she has a student debt. As a result, a fixed-rate period started from 2026.
- The interest rate for 2026 is 2.33%. This rate is fixed for a period of 5 years. This means that, from the start of January 2026 until the end of December 2030, Saskia will have an interest rate of 2.33%.
- In 2031, a new fixed-rate period will commence for Saskia. For the following 5 years, she will be subject to the 2031 interest rate.
Calculate your interest
In 2026, you will pay 2.33% or 2.29% interest. This is the annual percentage rate. You can convert this interest rate to the monthly percentage rate. This is called the monthly interest rate. The monthly interest rate is calculated using the following formula: (interest rate/100+1) ^ (1/12) -1
FAQs
I would like to pay off (part of) my loan now. How do I do that?
You can always begin paying off your debt (or part thereof), even if you are not yet required to begin paying back your loan.
Once you have obtained your diploma, your performance-related grant will be converted into a gift in January after the last payment of your student grant. If there is still a debt left, you will receive a message in February about your fixed interest period. From that moment on you can pay with iDEAL in Mijn DUO.
When you want to make payments before this moment, please transfer an amount to DUO:
- Account number: NL45 INGB 0705 0019 03
- Name of account holder: Dienst Uitvoering Onderwijs, Groningen, the Netherlands
- Description: your citizen service number, with the addition ‘ILS’. Example: 12346789ILS.
If you have several debts with various interest rates, we will always deduct any additional payments from the debt with the highest interest rate. Would you like to write off a debt for which the interest rate is being increased? Transfer the desired amount as explained above. Please contact our customer service once the payment has been debited. The employee can then debit the payment from the debt, the percentage of which is increased.
How is the interest rate determined?
The interest rate depends on the repayment rules. Under the repayment rules of SF15, the repayment period is 15 years, and under S35 it is 35 years.
The interest is calculated as follows:
- The interest rate under the SF15 repayment rules depends on the average interest on the 3-year to 5-year bonds in the month of September, which is to say interest due for that month alone.
- The interest rate under the SF35 repayment rules depends on the average interest on the 5-year bonds from previous year's October to the end of September of the current year, which is to say a period of 12 months.
The average interest rate over a period of 12 months may differ from the interest rate in the month of September alone. As a result, the rates may differ.
How can I keep my interest as low as possible?
If you are able to spare the money, you can choose to repay part of your performance-related grant now. Your debt will then be lower, so you will pay less interest in total. You will then have to pay back less of your performance-related grant if you do not obtain your diploma on time. This is because the interest will then be calculated on a smaller amount.
Have you obtained your diploma on time? Then the part of the performance-related grant that has been repaid will be transferred back into your bank account.