Yes, and both are deducted at the same time. They use separate thresholds and separate rates, so the two add together on your payslip.
Yes. A postgraduate loan does not replace an undergraduate plan, it sits alongside it. The postgraduate loan takes 6% of income above £21,000, and your undergraduate plan takes 9% above its own, higher threshold. Both come out of the same payslip.
On £35,000 a year with a standard 2026/27 tax code, no pension, no student loan, the figures work out like this. Open a calculator to put your own numbers in.
| Tax/source year | 2026/27 |
|---|---|
| Region | England/Wales/Northern Ireland |
| Tax code basis | 1257L where the page uses PAYE defaults |
| Pension basis | No pension deduction unless this example says otherwise |
| Student loan basis | No student loan unless selected in this example |
| Calculator setting | The answer is more useful when matched to the same tax year, region, tax code, pension and loan settings used in the calculator. |
|---|---|
| Records to compare | Payslips, HMRC records, student-loan notices and pension scheme documents can explain differences. |
| Tax code | HMRC tax-code changes, K codes, BR/D codes, or emergency markers can change PAYE deductions. |
|---|---|
| Cumulative basis | Week 1, Month 1 or non-cumulative payroll can differ from a smooth annual calculator estimate. |
| Pension method | Relief at source, net pay and salary sacrifice can affect taxable pay and take-home pay differently. |
| Payroll timing | Bonus, overtime, arrears, refunds, cut-off dates and corrections can all move a single payslip. |
| Open the salary calculator with editable assumptions | calculator next step |
|---|---|
| Review calculation sources and methodology | source context |
| What is not decided here | PayBreakdown does not decide payroll correctness, lender approval, benefit entitlement or employer compliance, and does not give regulated financial, mortgage, debt, tax, payroll or legal advice. |
|---|
The figures on this page are worked from postgraduate and student loan, using the values below. Open the calculator if your example salary differs.
Each loan is assessed independently against its own threshold, so they overlap rather than replacing one another.
On a £40,000 salary with a Plan 2 undergraduate loan and a postgraduate loan, both are running.
Student loan deductions are not income tax, and they behave differently in several ways that matter for planning.
This is educational guidance on how UK pay and tax work. It does not decide payroll correctness, HMRC treatment, lender approval, benefit entitlement or employment rights, and it is not regulated financial advice. Where a figure matters, check it against your payslip, your HMRC account, or the official guidance linked above.
Yes, if your income is above both thresholds. The postgraduate loan takes 6% above £21,000 and the undergraduate plan takes 9% above its own threshold, and both are deducted from the same pay.
Neither takes priority. They run in parallel. In practice the postgraduate loan starts at a lower income because its £21,000 threshold is below every undergraduate plan threshold.
Above both thresholds the combined rate is 15% of the income above them. On £40,000 with Plan 2 and a postgraduate loan that comes to about £2,095 a year.
No. It is an additional loan with its own threshold and rate. Both continue until each is separately repaid or written off.
Last updated 2026-08-27. Checked by Sean Elsmore. Rates last checked against GOV.UK on 2026-08-07. Estimates are for planning and should be checked against official records where the decision matters.