Martin Lewis says 4million people could be owed student loan refunds - how to check if you're eligible

Martin Lewis has revealed that over four million university graduates could be due hundreds of pounds in refunds for overpaid student loan repayments.

The founder of MoneySavingExpert.com (MSE) outlined the various situations that might indicate you've paid more than necessary. You begin to repay your student loan once your earnings exceed a certain threshold - however, Martin highlighted that you may have overpaid if there were months where you started repaying your loan despite not earning enough over the tax year.

This is likely to impact those who have only been employed for part of the tax year, or those with fluctuating incomes or commissions. The point at which you start repaying your student loan depends on the type of plan you're on - for instance, those on a Plan 2 loan only start repayments when their annual income exceeds £27,295, while for someone on a Plan 5 loan, the threshold is £25,000 per annum.

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Overpayments may also occur if you were assigned the incorrect student loan repayment plan. Martin clarified that unless you can prove otherwise, employers are instructed to default to Plan 1.

This plan has a significantly lower repayment threshold than most other plans, meaning some individuals on lower salaries may have begun repaying their student loan prematurely, reports the Mirror.

Martin Lewis has highlighted that some individuals might be entitled to a refund if they started repaying their student loan prematurely. Repayments are typically due from the April following your departure from your course, and there have been instances where deductions continued even after the loan was settled in full.

Martin explained: "Student loans, like tax, are repaid via the payroll - but only if you earn over a threshold, and what you pay is in proportion to earnings. And just as millions can reclaim tax overpayments, many uni leavers can reclaim unwittingly overpaid student loans. Our Freedom of Information (FOI) requests indicate that over four tax years (6 April 2019 to 5 April 2023) likely more than 4 million overpaid, and many more did before and since."

A success story was shared by a woman named Kayleigh with MoneySavingExpert (MSE): "I wanted to thank you. I've just found out I'm due just over £800 through having made 5 repayments to my student loan when I hadn't reached the yearly threshold."

For those looking to reclaim any overpayments on their student loan, the process involves logging into your student loan account via GOV. UK and selecting "request a refund".

If you believe you're on an incorrect repayment plan, it's advised to discuss this with your employer or contact the Student Loans Company directly at 0300 100 0611.

You should also contact the Student Loans Company for a refund if you began repaying your loan prematurely. If deductions were made after the loan was fully repaid, the Student Loans Company should automatically issue you a refund.