Student Loan living costs

If you need help to pay for day-to-day living expenses, you may be able to get a weekly payment of living costs.

Important information

Living costs are part of a Student Loan so you'll need to pay them back.

The Student Loan living costs is similar to the Student Allowance but you have to pay it back. You don't have to pay back the Student Allowance but you need to meet the criteria

Who can get it

You can get a Student Loan for living costs if you're:

  • studying full-time
  • under 55.

You also need to meet the criteria for a Student Loan

What you can get

You can get up to $239.76 a week for living costs but you don't have to borrow the full amount.

When you apply for living costs you can choose to get the Consumer Price Index (CPI) adjustment on 1 April each year. If you select this, it means you'll always get the maximum amount of living costs.

We won't pay for your lump sum hostel or hall of residence costs.

What is the CPI adjustment?

Getting a Student Allowance

If your Student Allowance is more than the maximum amount of living costs ($239.76), you can't get living costs as well.

If your Student Allowance is less than $239.76, you can get living costs as well, but your total cannot be more than $239.76.

For example:

  • Your Student Allowance is $100. You can get up to $139.76 for living costs.
  • Your Student Allowance is $200. You can get up to $39.76 for living costs.

How to apply

Apply online for a Student Loan (if you haven't already) and enter the amount of living costs you want each week.

If you've already applied for a Student Loan, you can change your living costs online, in MyStudyLink.

Payments

We pay your living costs to you as long as:

  • you qualify for living costs
  • you've nominated living costs, and
  • your Student Loan application is approved.

When you get paid depends on when you nominate them.

  • Nominate living costs before your course starts

    If you nominate living costs before your course starts, you qualify from the date your course starts.

    When you get your first payment depends on when your Student Loan application is approved.

    Student Loan application approved before course starts

    If your loan application is approved before your course starts, you’ll get your first weekly payment in the second week of your course.

    You won’t get any money in the first week of your course because we pay you in arrears. This means you study for one week and get paid for that study in the next week. When you finish your course, you’ll get your last payment a week later.

    Student Loan application approved after course starts

    If your loan application is approved after your course starts and you applied for it:

    • before your course started, you'll get a back payment to when your course started
    • after your course started, you'll get a back payment to when you applied.

    This will be paid to you in a lump sum. You'll then get your first weekly payment a week later.

    You won't get your first weekly payment until a week later because we pay you in arrears. This means you study for one week and get paid for that study in the next week. When you finish your course, you'll get your last payment a week later.

  • Nominate living costs after your course starts

    If you nominate living costs after your course starts, you qualify from the date you contact us to nominate them. We can't pay them earlier then when you contact us.

    You'll get your first weekly payment the week after you contact us to nominate them. This is because we pay you in arrears, which means you study for one week and get paid for that study in the next week. When you finish your course, you'll get your last payment a week later.

  • Nominate living costs and apply for Student Allowance

    If your loan is approved first, you'll get the weekly living costs amount that you've nominated.

    Once your Student Allowance is approved, your living costs will either:

    • stop, if your Student Allowance is more than the maximum amount of living costs ($239.76) - you can't get living costs as well.
    • reduce, if your Student Allowance is less than $239.76 - your total cannot be more than $239.76.

    Back payment of Student Allowance

    If we owe you any back payment of Student Allowance:

    • this will be paid onto your loan first, to pay back any living costs you received
    • we'll put some towards any debts you have with the Ministry of Social Development, eg, StudyLink (excluding your Student Loan) or Work and Income
    • we'll then pay the rest to you.

linksRelated links

Student Loan
Student Loan course-related costs