Working Family and Student Financial Assistance Agency

FAQs

Loan Repayment #
How to login to My Options – Commencement of Loan Repayment in SFO E-link?

To use the service of My Options – Commencement of Loan Repayment, student loan borrowers need to provide their 25-digit personal code for the purpose of identity verification. Student loan borrowers can find their personal code in the letter of "Commencement of Loan Repayment" issued by our Office.

Can student loan borrowers decide the repayment period?

The loan borrowed and the interest accrued thereon are repayable in 15 years ("Repayment Period") by 180 equal monthly instalments; or in a shorter Repayment Period by equal monthly instalments as agreed by our Office.

If student loan borrowers delay their graduation, do they need to commence loan repayment according to their original graduation dates?

If student loan borrowers delay their graduation, they should submit the completed “Notification of Change of Study Status” with the specified supporting documents to our Office. Under normal circumstance, the date of commencement of loan repayment will be deferred.

How to apply for early repayment of student loan?

Student loan borrowers can request for early partial / lump sum repayment in writing by email, fax, post or via the “SFO E-link”. Verbal request will not be accepted. Please visit “Links, Forms & Download” to download the form.

For early partial repayment, the repayment amount shall not be less than an amount decided by our Office (currently set at HK$5,000) or the total of one repayment instalment plus the remaining interest already accrued before the commencement of repayment*, whichever is greater. Interest calculation of early repayment varies with different Financial Assistance Schemes.

The early repayment demand notes will be posted to student loan borrowers' correspondence addresses. If student loan borrowers do not receive the demand notes by post 14 days after their requests, they should contact our Office. Otherwise, we will assume that the demand notes have been received by student loan borrowers.

Normally student loan borrowers have to settle the “Early Partial / Lump Sum Repayment Demand Note” in full within 14 days from its issue date. If repayment has not been made duly, they will be required to repay the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region the overdue amount together with surcharge and/or overdue interest.

*Interest will be accrued before the commencement of the repayment period for loan accounts under Non-means-tested Loan Schemes only

How to apply for restructuring repayment period of loan?

Student loan borrowers can request for restructuring repayment period of loan in writing by email, fax, or post. Verbal request will not be accepted. Please visit “Links, Forms & Download” to download the form.

The requested repayment period may be shortened such that each instalment (instalment grant/loan principal and interest) shall not be less than $100.

Generally, revised repayment schedule(s) will be posted to student loan borrowers' correspondence addresses a week before the due date of the upcoming repayment instalment(s). If student loan borrowers do not receive the revised repayment schedule(s) by post within a week before the due date of the upcoming repayment instalment(s), they should contact our Office. Otherwise, we will assume that the revised repayment schedule(s) has(have) been received by student loan borrowers.

Student loan borrowers have to repay their instalments according to the original repayment schedule until the revised Repayment Period takes effect. If student loan borrowers choose to extend the repayment period, the total interest payable and administrative fee (if any) will be higher. Student loan borrowers may have a rough estimation on the repayment amount by using the Calculator available in the "SFO E-link".

What should student loan borrowers do if they have changed their correspondence addresses?

Student loan borrowers are required to notify our Office immediately in writing together with a photocopy of documentary evidence showing the updated address in the past three months. Documentary evidence of address should be letters issued by the Government bureaux/departments, public organisations/utilities or commercial organisations. Student loan borrowers can also update their correspondence addresses through the GovHK website or “iAM Smart” mobile application.

Besides, student loan borrowers are obliged to notify our Office immediately in writing if they intend to leave the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region for a period longer than three months or to emigrate. Upon receipt of such notification, unless our Office has otherwise come to an agreement with student loan borrowers concerning the repayment arrangement or unless our Office is satisfied that they shall be able to continue to repay the loan based on the original repayment schedule, our Office could demand their immediate repayment of all outstanding balance of the loan, interest, overdue interest (if any), surcharge (if any), administrative fee (if any) and any recovery expenses.
How can student loan borrowers check their loan account(s) information?

Student loan borrowers can login to "MyGovHK" and/or "SFO E-link – My Bills" service to check their loan account(s) information, including viewing of repayment schedule(s), repayment transaction(s) and the demand note(s) for the past six months.

Student loan borrowers may contact our staff at the following hotlines for enquiries:

Tertiary Student Finance Scheme - Publicly-funded Programmes (TSFS): 2150 6226

Financial Assistance Scheme for Post-secondary Students (FASP): 2150 6065

Non-means-tested Loan Schemes (NLS): 2150 6211 / 2150 6212
How to re-register the "SFO E-link – My Bills" service if the service was delinked?

Student loan borrowers can re-register the service with their loan reference number or ATM/PPS reference numbers. Student loan borrowers can also choose to receive SMS notification by registering their mobile phone numbers.

Please refer to the registration guideline for details. Student loan borrowers may email to e-link_sfo@wfsfaa.gov.hk for enquiries.

How can student loan borrowers request for student loan account record?

Student loan borrowers can request for student loan account record by submitting the application form for personal data access request. Please refer to “Data Access” for details.

How to apply for deferment of loan repayment?

If student loan borrowers have difficulties in repaying the loans due to further full-time study, financial hardship or serious illness, they may apply for deferment of loan repayment. Our Office will consider each application on its own merits.

Application for deferment of loan repayment should be submitted in writing, together with the necessary documentary proof, to our Office before the due date(s) of the instalment(s) under application.

For application by fax or by email, the date of receipt of the fax or email will be considered to be the date of application. For application by post, the postmark date on the envelope will be regarded as the date of application. Relevant application forms are available at our Office. Student loan borrowers may visit “Links, Forms & Download” to download the form.

How can student loan borrowers submit applications for deferment of loan repayment if student loan borrowers are currently staying outside Hong Kong?

For student loan borrowers outside Hong Kong, they may submit applications for deferment of loan repayment by post, fax, email or e-form, together with the necessary documentary proof, to our Office before the due date(s) of the instalment(s) under application.

Besides, student loan borrowers may also appoint a Hong Kong resident to submit the application to our Office by post, fax, email or hand.

Further Extension of Interest-free Deferral of Student Loan Repayment

To ease the cash flow burden of student loan repayers amidst the COVID-19 epidemic, the Government has been providing interest-free deferral of loan repayment (“deferral arrangement”) from 1 April 2020 till 31 March 2024 for all eligible student loan repayers.

The Finance Committee of the Legislative Council approved on 30 June 2023 a further extension of the deferral arrangement for one year from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025, as announced in the 2022 Policy Address. #

Are there any differences between the further extended interest-free deferral of student loan repayment arrangement and the current interest-free deferral arrangement? Who can benefit from the arrangement? What are the details of the arrangement?

The eligibility criteria and implementation parameters of the further extended deferral arrangement follow those of the current deferral arrangement. The further extended deferral will commence on 1 April 2024 for one year.

All student loan repayers who have commenced their loan repayments (except defaulters against whom legal recovery actions have been taken), as well as those new loan repayers with loan repayments activated upon their graduation or completion of study during the period from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025 (referred to as “extended suspension period” hereunder), will benefit from the further extended interest-free deferral of loan repayment. Without having to apply, the Student Finance Office (SFO) of the Working Family and Student Financial Assistance Agency will issue notifications to all eligible loan repayers informing them of the details of the deferral arrangement.

During the extended suspension period, eligible student loan repayers do not need to repay the principal and instalment interest payable. The repayment period will be extended for a maximum of one year accordingly. Non-means-tested loan repayers also do not need to pay the annual administrative fee of $180 during the extended suspension period.

When will the eligible student loan repayers receive notifications about the further extended interest-free deferral of loan repayment?

The SFO will issue notifications to eligible student loan repayers by batches starting from January 2024 to inform them of the detailed arrangements.

For those new loan repayers with loan repayments activated upon their graduation or completion of study during the extended suspension period, the SFO will issue notifications to them three months before their expected dates of graduation or completion of study.

Can eligible student loan repayers choose to opt out of the deferral of loan repayment? What will be the arrangements if one has more than one loan repayment account?

The one-year further extended interest-free deferral of loan repayment applies to all loan repayment accounts of eligible student loan repayers. A student loan repayer may choose to opt out of the deferral arrangement for all or any individual account(s) and continue to repay the principal and interest according to the original repayment schedule(s).

A repayer who chooses to opt out of the deferral arrangement should submit the reply form online within four weeks from the date of the notification (please refer to the notification for details). Upon receipt of the reply form, the SFO will issue the demand note(s) to the repayer concerned in due course for him/ her to make the repayment.

If a student loan repayer has previously opted out of the deferral of loan repayment, can he/ she change to benefit from the interest-free deferral of loan repayment under the further extension arrangement?

The SFO will issue notifications to all eligible student loan repayers to inform them of the detailed arrangements of the extended interest-free deferral of loan repayment, and request them to make the choice again on whether or not to opt out of the deferral arrangement for all or any individual account(s). Only those repayers who choose to opt out of the deferral arrangement are required to reply to the SFO and to repay according to the original repayment schedules.

If a student loan repayer has opted out of the deferral arrangement, does he/ she need to repay interest and administrative fee?

A student loan repayer who has opted out of the deferral arrangement needs to repay the principal and interest according to the original repayment schedule(s). Non-means-tested loan repayers however do not need to pay the annual administrative fee of $180 during the extended suspension period.

If a student loan repayer encounters repayment difficulties after opting out of the deferral arrangement, is he/ she still eligible for the interest-free deferral of loan repayment?

For repayers who have opted out of the deferral arrangement and repaid according to the original repayment schedules, if they subsequently encounter repayment difficulties before the expiry of the extended suspension period, they are still eligible for the interest-free deferral of loan repayment up till the expiry of the extended suspension period (i.e. up till 31 March 2025).

Will fresh graduates still be given the option to defer commencement of their loan repayments for one year upon graduation under the existing arrangement, and at the same time enjoy the one-year extended interest-free deferral of loan repayment?

As with existing student loan repayers, new loan repayers who are fresh graduates can enjoy the interest-free deferral of loan repayment during the extended suspension period. According to the established arrangement, they may also choose to defer commencement of their loan repayments for one year upon graduation or completion of study. Hence, new loan repayers who graduate or complete their studies during the extended suspension period will be given an option of a further deferral of the commencement of their loan repayments for one year after expiry of the extended suspension period.

No interest will be charged for the means-tested loans during the period of further deferral of the commencement of loan repayment. For the non-means-tested loans, interest will be charged at the prevailing interest rate for further deferral of the commencement of loan repayment starting from 1 April 2025.

How will the one-year extended interest-free deferral of loan repayment impact upon those loan repayers who have already been approved of deferment of loan repayment under the existing mechanism?

For loan repayers who have already been approved of deferment of loan repayment on the grounds of financial hardship, further full time studies or serious illness under the existing mechanism before the implementation of the interest-free deferral of loan repayment, their existing deferment period will be superseded by the whole suspension period from 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2025. Upon expiry of the extended suspension period, they may apply for further deferment up to the remainder of their original approved deferment period if necessary.

Will defaulters benefit from the extended interest-free deferral arrangement of loan repayment?

Following the arrangement of the current deferral arrangement, those defaulters against whom legal recovery actions have not yet been taken are also eligible for the interest-free deferral of loan repayment and do not need to repay the principal and instalment interest during the extended suspension period. But they are still required to repay the arrears accrued before the suspension period (i.e. before 1 April 2020).

However, for those loan repayers against whom legal recovery actions have already been taken (including cases referred to the Department of Justice, filed to the Small Claims Tribunal, or issued with Bankruptcy Order or under Individual Voluntary Arrangement under the Bankruptcy Ordinance), they are not eligible to benefit from the extended interest-free deferral of loan repayment.

The SFO will issue notifications to the loan repayers concerned to inform them of the arrangements.

If a student loan repayer has financial difficulties in repaying the existing arrears, will the SFO provide assistance?

All existing arrears and the associated surcharge or overdue interest are excluded from the extended deferral arrangement. The loan repayer concerned may apply to the SFO for deferring the repayment of arrears or repaying the arrears by instalments. The SFO will consider each application on its own merits.

What should student loan repayers do if they have changed the contact information?

Student loan repayers are obliged to update the SFO of their and/ or their indemnifiers’ contact information. Also, this is to ensure that loan repayers can obtain the latest information on loan repayment. Hence, if loan repayers and/ or their indemnifier(s) have changed the contact information, they should notify the SFO in writing immediately. If change of correspondence/ residential address is involved, a copy of documentary evidence showing the new address in the past three months should also be submitted. Documentary evidence of address should be letters issued by the Government bureaux/ departments, public organisations/ utilities or commercial organisations. Loan repayers can also update their addresses through the GovHK website or “iAM Smart” mobile application.

Besides, loan repayers are obliged to notify the SFO in writing immediately if they and/ or their indemnifiers intend to leave the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region for a period longer than three months or to emigrate. Upon receipt of such notification, unless the SFO has otherwise come to an agreement with loan repayers concerning the repayment arrangement or unless the SFO is satisfied that they shall be able to continue to repay the loan based on the original repayment schedule, the SFO could demand immediate full repayment of the outstanding balance of the loan(s), interest, overdue interest (if any), surcharge (if any), administrative fee (if any) and any other expenses.

Can a student loan repayer apply for early repayment of loan during the further extended interest-free deferral arrangement?

Loan repayers may apply for early lump sum or partial repayment during the implementation of the further extended interest-free deferral arrangement in order to cut down interest expenses. Loan repayers may make an online application via the “SFO E-link”, or download the application form and submit the application in writing by email, fax or post. Verbal request will not be accepted.