How HELP shows up on your return
Your compulsory HELP repayment is worked out on your repayment income and added to your assessment. Your employer should have withheld extra for it during the year (if you ticked the HELP box on your TFN declaration). If they did, the two roughly cancel out. If they didn’t, the repayment eats into your refund or creates a bill.
2025-26 repayments (marginal system)
| Repayment income | Compulsory repayment |
|---|---|
| Up to $67,000 | Nil |
| $67,001 – $125,000 | 15c per $1 over $67,000 |
| $125,001 – $179,285 | $8,700 + 17c per $1 over $125,000 |
| Over $179,285 | 10% of total repayment income |
Before 2025-26 you repaid a percentage of your whole income once you passed the threshold. Now it’s only on the part above $67,000, like a tax bracket — so repayments are smaller for most people.
The pre-filled example
$80,000 salary, $1,000 deductions: taxable income $79,000. Tax $14,488, Medicare $1,580, HELP $1,800 (15% × $12,000). Total $17,868. With $18,238 withheld (including HELP withholding), the refund is about $370.
Good to know
- Repayment income also includes reportable fringe benefits, net investment losses and reportable super contributions — salary sacrifice doesn’t reduce it.
- All HELP balances were cut by 20% in 2025 (applied before the 1 June 2025 indexation).
- Your refund is never used for voluntary repayments unless you ask; compulsory repayments are separate.
Ticking the right box
When you start a job, the TFN declaration asks whether you have a HELP, VSL, FS, SSL or TSL debt. Tick “yes” and your employer withholds extra each pay so that the compulsory repayment is roughly covered by tax time. If you forgot, you can submit a new withholding declaration to your employer at any time.
If you have two jobs, both employers should withhold for HELP, which can lead to over-withholding — that comes back as part of your refund. You can see your HELP balance and the repayments applied after each assessment in myGov under the ATO’s “Loans” section.
Remember that the debt itself is indexed on 1 June each year, so the compulsory repayment credited after your assessment reduces the balance that will be indexed next time. Lodging on time means your repayment is applied sooner.
Key 2025-26 figures (checked 5 November 2026)
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| Tax-free threshold | $18,200 |
| Rates | 16% / 30% / 37% / 45% |
| Low income tax offset | Up to $700 |
| Medicare levy | 2% (nil to $28,011 single) |
| HELP threshold | $67,000 (marginal 15% / 17%) |
| Self-lodgement deadline | 31 October 2026 |
FAQ
Does a HECS debt reduce my tax refund?
It can. The compulsory repayment is added to your tax bill; if your employer withheld enough for it during the year, your refund is roughly unaffected.
How much HELP do I repay on $79,000 in 2025-26?
$1,800 — 15c for each dollar above $67,000.
What refund in this example?
About $370 with $18,238 withheld on an $80,000 salary and $1,000 of deductions.
Sources (checked 5 November 2026): ATO “Tax rates – Australian resident” (2025-26 and 2026-27), ATO low income tax offset, ATO “Medicare levy reduction for low income earners” (2025-26 thresholds $28,011 / $35,013), ATO “Study and training support loans rates and repayment thresholds” (2025-26 and 2026-27), Treasury Laws Amendment (More Cost of Living Relief) Act 2025 (15% from 1 July 2026).