I live abroad and cannot make my student loan repayments. What should I do?
You do not have to repay your student loans in the first 2 years after you have ended your studies. If you are temporarily unable to make the repayments after this period, you can ask DUO if you can lower the amount of your monthly repayments. Or you can apply for a repayment holiday.
I want a lower monthly repayment amount
Usually, DUO automatically takes account of your income. If your income falls, DUO can reduce the amount of your monthly repayments. If you fall under the repayment rules from before 2012, you will have to apply for a lower monthly repayment amount yourself.
Find out more about lowering your monthly repayment amount (DUO)
I receive an income outside the Netherlands
DUO does not have information about income from outside the Netherlands, and will therefore be unable to take account of it when setting your monthly repayment amount. If you want DUO to take account of this income, you must inform them of your foreign income each year.
Find out more about informing DUO of your foreign income (DUO)
My income has fallen
DUO calculates your monthly repayment amount on the basis of your income from 2 years earlier. If you have a partner, it looks at your joint income. If your income or your joint income has fallen since then and you meet the conditions, you can ask DUO to calculate your monthly repayment amount using your income or joint income from a more recent year. This may lead to a lower monthly repayment amount.
Find out what you can do after your income has fallen (DUO)
I want a repayment holiday
You can take a loan repayment holiday, for whatever reason, for up to 60 months. You can take it in one consecutive period, or spread it over several shorter periods. DUO will add the months in which you make no repayments to your repayment period. As a result, repayment of your student loans will take longer than the usual 15 or 35 years.
Apply for a repayment holiday in Mijn DUO.
I cannot make my repayment on time
If you are unable to make your monthly repayment, contact DUO and see if you can make an alternative payment arrangement.
Contact
If you have any questions, please contact DUO.