HELP debt and borrowing power: what doctors need to know

Figures as at 23-10-2026. The thresholds below are the ATO's for the 2026-27 income year, from its page last updated 13-10-2026. They are indexed every year, so check the ATO page before you rely on them.

The short answer

Most lenders count your compulsory HELP repayment as a commitment. It comes off your income before they work out what you can afford to borrow. The repayment is set by your income, not by how much you owe, so a small balance can cost you as much borrowing power as a large one at a lender that counts it in full. What happens when your debt is nearly repaid varies from lender to lender, so ask us.

How compulsory repayments work

HELP is repaid through the tax system. The ATO and StudyAssist set out how:

• Your employer withholds it. You tell your employer about your loan on your tax file number declaration or a withholding declaration, and they withhold an extra amount from each pay.
• It is settled at tax time. The amounts withheld are applied to your loan as a lump sum after you lodge your tax return, not each payday.
• It depends on your income alone. Your partner's income does not change your repayment.
• Extra payments do not lower it. Voluntary repayments reduce your balance, but while you still owe money and earn above the minimum, they do not reduce your compulsory repayment.
• Two jobs, two employers to tell. If you work for more than one employer, such as a second hospital, each one needs to know. If you pay PAYG instalments on business income, such as through your own ABN, the ATO takes your loan into account when it works out your instalments.

The 2026-27 thresholds

From 01-07-2025, compulsory repayments moved to a marginal system: below the top band, the repayment is worked out only on income above a minimum, which was $67,000 for the 2025-26 income year. The ATO says most people's compulsory repayments are lower from their 2026 tax return onwards, with no change for people earning $179,286 or more. The thresholds are indexed each year in line with average weekly earnings. For 2026-27 the ATO lists:

• $0 to $69,528: nil
• $69,529 to $129,717: 15c for each $1 over $69,528
• $129,718 to $186,050: $9,028 plus 17c for each $1 over $129,717
• $186,051 and over: 10% of your total repayment income

In the ATO's own example, a repayment income of $137,064 in 2026-27 means a compulsory repayment of $10,276.99 for the year. To try your own figures, use the ATO's study and training loan repayment calculator.

What counts as repayment income

Your repayment income is more than your taxable income. The ATO adds up:

• taxable income, leaving out any assessable First Home Super Saver released amounts
• reportable fringe benefits, whether or not your employer is exempt from fringe benefits tax
• total net investment loss, including net rental losses
• reportable super contributions
• exempt foreign employment income

That matters for doctors. Salary packaging through a hospital, salary sacrifice into super and a negatively geared investment property can each lower your taxable income, but each shows up again in your repayment income through the items above. So they may not lower your HELP repayment the way you expect. For the tax side, talk to your accountant or a registered tax agent.

How lenders see it

Most lenders count your compulsory HELP repayment as a commitment and take it off the income they use to test what you can afford. Each lender works it out a little differently, which is one reason the same doctor can borrow different amounts at different lenders, and why we compare several for doctors and dentists.

• The balance matters less than you think. Two doctors on the same income with very different balances can look much the same to a lender.
• Nearly paid off? Lenders take different approaches to a debt that is almost gone. Ask us before you assume it will or will not count.
• Your ATO balance can lag. Amounts withheld from your pay this financial year are applied only after you lodge your tax return, so the balance you see in ATO online services may be higher than what you will end up owing.
• Applying as a couple? Each of you has your own repayment, worked out on your own income.

The 20% cut and other ways the balance falls

• The 20% reduction. The ATO has finished applying a 20% reduction to all student and training support debts that existed on 01-06-2025. The cut was based on your balance as at 01-06-2025, before that year's indexation. If it left your account in credit, the ATO refunds the credit unless you owe other tax or Commonwealth debts.
• Indexation. HELP debts are not charged interest, but amounts more than 11 months old are indexed on 1 June each year, using the lower of the Consumer Price Index and the Wage Price Index. Voluntary repayments made before 1 June mean less indexation is added.
• Rural and remote practice. The HELP Debt Reduction Program for Rural Health Practitioners can reduce HELP debt by up to 100% for eligible doctors who live in, and provide general practice services in, rural, remote and very remote areas, and can waive indexation for the time they live and work there. Eligibility rules apply, including minimum weekly hours and at least 36 months of practice after first Ahpra registration.

A lower balance does not lower your compulsory repayment. It shortens how long you pay it.

Paying it off before you apply

Clearing a small balance can lift your borrowing power at a lender that would otherwise count the repayment. Before you do, weigh up:

• voluntary repayments are not refundable, so cash you put into HELP cannot come back for your deposit or stamp duty
• once the loan is paid in full, the ATO says to give your employer a new withholding declaration so they stop withholding for it
• a lender may ask you to show that the balance is nil

We can run your numbers both ways at a few lenders before you decide.

Where to from here

Our home loans for doctors page covers LMI waivers, registration and the documents lenders ask for. To test repayments and deposits yourself, try our home loan calculators. Then send us your payslips and your HELP balance from ATO online services, and we will show you how it plays out at a few lenders on our panel. Junior doctor? Read home loans for interns, residents and registrars too.

Sources

• ATO, Study and training loan minimum repayment income and rates, Compulsory repayments, Study and training loans: what's new and View your study loan account online, all checked 23-10-2026.
• StudyAssist, Loan repayments, Loan increases and indexation, both checked 23-10-2026.
• Department of Education, HELP Debt Reduction for Rural Health Practitioners, checked 23-10-2026.

This article is general information only. It is not credit advice or an offer of credit, and it does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Scheme rules change, and the official source is ato.gov.au. Consider your circumstances and talk to us before acting.

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