Paying university fees upfront not paying off

摘要

Many parents planning to pay their children's university fees up front may now be financially better off deferring the up-front payment because Canberra has halved discount incentives for early repayment of HECS-HELP (Higher Education Loan Program) debts from lanuary 1. These changes mean an upfront payment of at least $500 to the cost of a university course attracts a discount (called a HECS-HELP discount) of only 10 per cent compared to what was previously 20 per cent.