Statutes

The Student Loan Scheme Act 2011 is the primary legislation for the Student Loan Scheme.

It provides the legal framework for the collection of Student Loan debt by Inland Revenue, core aspects of the Student Loan contract, and the administrative arrangements that exist between Inland Revenue and MSD.

The following statutes provide the legal authority for the administration of the Student Loan Scheme.

This Act provides for:

The establishment of a Student Loan, including:

• the exchange of information about loan applicants between MSD and Inland Revenue
• information that must be disclosed in the loan contract and the provision of the loan contract to borrowers
• the establishment fee
• the right to cancel a loan contract
• the transfer of loan balances to Inland Revenue, (including the associated objection process)
• that Student Loan contracts are enforceable against a minor
• the Student Loan Scheme Act 2011 applies despite anything to the contrary in any Student Loan contract
  • if a Student Loan contract cannot be interpreted in a manner that is consistent with the Student Loan Scheme Act 2011, then the Student Loan Scheme Act 2011 prevails over the terms of the Student Loan contract

The Student Loan recovery responsibilities of Inland Revenue including:

• the calculation of the repayment obligations of borrowers
• the administration fee
• the calculation of interest
• the collection of repayment obligations from borrowers
• offences and penalties
• dispute procedures and rights to challenge
• hardship relief
• the statutory authority for Regulations including: the repayment thresholds and approval of charitable organisations in relation to working overseas and obtain an interest write-off

The Student Loan contract is not a consumer credit contract, as stated in section 15(1)(ca) of the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act 2003 (CCCFA), and section 206 of the Student Loan Scheme Act 2011.

When the government agreed to remove the Student Loan contract from the definition of consumer credit contracts under the CCCFA it was noted the government would adhere to the spirit and intent of the CCCFA.

Part 4, Part 6, Schedule 9 and Schedule 10 contain the empowering provisions that provide the statutory authority for MSD to administer the Student Loan Scheme.

This includes (but is not limited to):

• the authority to require applicants to provide information necessary to establish eligibility and/or entitlement
• the Results of Study (ROS) data-match
• offences and penalties in relation to students, education providers or third parties
• the use of information obtained under the Social Security Act 2018
• the use of information obtained under Part 9 of the Public and Community Housing Management Act 1992
• the recovery of debts, other than valid Student Loan debt which is recovered by Inland Revenue through the PAYE system
• the Verification of Study (VoS) data-match

Purpose and application

The purpose of the Privacy Act 2020 is to promote and protect individual privacy. It governs how agencies can collect, use, disclose, store and give access to personal information.

For more information about the Privacy Act, including guidelines for collecting, using, storing and giving access to personal information and for privacy breaches, see:

• Privacy Act 2020 guidelines

Information matching

Subpart 4-Authorised information matching programmes of Part 7 of the Privacy Act 2020 governs how agencies can compare personal information in accordance with an authorised information matching programme.

Both Verification of Study (VoS) and Results of Study (RoS) are authorised information matching programmes under the Privacy Act 2020. They are authorised by clauses 7 and 8 of Schedule 9 of the Education and Training Act 2020, and must comply with the requirements set out in Subpart 4 of Part 7, and Schedule 6 of the Privacy Act 2020.

Privacy Commissioner

The Privacy Act 2020 also sets out the role and functions of the Privacy Commissioner. For more information about the Privacy Commissioner, including how individuals can make a complaint if they feel their privacy has been breached, see:

• Office of the Privacy Commissioner