UK Student Loan Repayments from Argentina

A move to Argentina changes how a UK student loan is collected. After more than three months abroad, the Student Loans Company (SLC) assesses your income and takes repayments directly, because Argentine payroll does not deduct a UK student loan. For a Plan 2 borrower in 2026-27, the Argentina earnings threshold is £17,630 a year and repayment is 9% of income above it.

The evidence matters as much as the salary. Without an overseas income assessment, SLC sets a fixed Plan 2 charge of £245.40 a month in Argentina, even where the income-based payment would be much smaller. Moving abroad neither pauses interest nor changes the loan's write-off date.

The Argentina threshold for each plan

SLC publishes a country threshold and a fixed monthly charge for each loan plan. These figures cover April 2026 to March 2027, and are measured in pounds after SLC converts peso earnings. They differ from both the UK PAYE thresholds and Argentina's minimum wage.

Overseas thresholds are set on 6 April using each country's World Bank Price Level Index. SLC converts salary using HMRC's average exchange rate for the previous calendar year: for Argentina in 2026-27 the published rate is 0.000623, or around ARS 1,605 to £1. The rate stays fixed for that tax year rather than tracking the monthly market rate. Plan 2 also has interest thresholds at £17,630 and £31,730 for Argentina, with RPI plus up to 3% between them. Someone with both an undergraduate and a Postgraduate Loan owes the applicable repayments on both.

How peso pay becomes a monthly repayment

For monthly employment pay, SLC averages the last three months of payslips and multiplies by 12 to estimate annual gross salary. Where pay arrives more than 12 times a year, as with Argentina's aguinaldo or statutory thirteenth salary, it uses the number of pay periods instead. One-off bonuses are added to the annual amount; regular overtime and allowances count, while superannuation deductions are left out of the calculation.

Take a Plan 2 borrower earning ARS 3,000,000 each month in Buenos Aires. ARS 36,000,000 annually converts at SLC's rate to £22,428. After subtracting the £17,630 threshold, 9% of £4,798 is £431.82 a year, or about £36 a month. The £245.40 fixed payment for failing to supply evidence would be nearly seven times that assessed amount.

ARCA does not collect UK student loans through Argentine payroll. A British employer might still deduct through PAYE while you live abroad; telling SLC about those deductions lets it account for the same earnings in the overseas assessment.

Reporting the move and proving income

SLC expects an overseas assessment when someone leaves the UK for more than three months. An update on return matters too: until SLC has the new details, its Argentina threshold and interest banding remain attached to the account. The employment details and overseas address can be updated through the student loan account before departure, while access to the registered email and phone number is still easy to maintain.

Income evidence depends on how the money arrives. An employee can supply a contract and recent payslips; a self-employed person may need accounts, tax returns and invoices. Someone without earnings provides the declaration SLC requests, and a recent bank statement can show income below the threshold. Even where the assessed repayment is £0, supplying evidence avoids a fixed monthly charge. Spanish-language documents need a translation of the kind SLC accepts, so the accepted format matters before paying a translator. There is no Argentine fee to notify SLC.

The assessment letter gives the rate, threshold, start date and payment amount. A wrong income period or currency can be corrected with SLC using the file reference rather than allowing unpaid scheduled instalments to accrue. Fresh evidence is requested when the assessment year ends; job loss, changed income or a return to Britain can change the figures sooner. Once back, updating employment details allows UK PAYE deductions to resume on the right basis.

If a fixed charge turns into arrears

A fixed monthly repayment can start when employment details or income evidence are missing. Arrears then build when the amount on SLC's repayment schedule goes unpaid. They are overdue repayments rather than a separate penalty, and sit alongside current instalments until cleared. Across overseas country bands and plans, published fixed charges can reach £618.80 a month.

SLC handles an arrears arrangement directly on +44 141 243 3970. UK payroll deductions on a later return do not clear an existing arrears balance; that balance needs its own arrangement. Interest continues overseas, while eventual write-off depends on the loan plan and the dates studied, rather than the address on the account.

Getting pounds to SLC from Argentina

SLC collects overseas repayments in pounds under the payment options and account reference it supplies. Keeping a UK bank account may simplify this, but repayments can also be funded from Argentina. The relevant comparison between transfer methods is the amount of pounds that reaches SLC after conversion and fees, with the correct reference attached so the money is credited to the loan.

A peso salary may move with the market exchange rate while SLC's assessment rate stays unchanged for the tax year. That makes the annual income assessment and the actual transfer two separate amounts to plan for: one sets what is due, and the other determines how many pesos it takes to pay it.