More Norwegians have over 1 million kroner of debt in student loans, new figures show

Photo: Terje Bendiksby / NTB

Around 900 Norwegian State Educational Loan Fund (Lånekassen) customers had more than NOK 1 million in student debt when they started repaying it in 2021. That is an increase from 560 customers the year before.

The average debt at the end of higher education is increasing, according to figures presented by Lånekassen on Tuesday. In 2021, it amounted to NOK 378,000 – an increase from NOK 246,000 in 2011.

“The general price increase is part of the explanation. The increase can also be explained by the fact that from 2017 to 2020, there was a gradual expansion from 10 to 11 months of student support,” Lånekassen chief Morten Rosenkvist stated.

New support schemes

There have also been several new schemes in the Loan Fund that can help explain the increase, including an additional loan for students over the age of 30 and an extraordinary corona loan in the last two years.

Those who take a degree abroad end up with higher student debt on average than those who study in Norway. The main reason is that many international students pay tuition fees.

The average debt at the end of higher education in Norway last year was NOK 355,000, while the corresponding figure for international students was NOK 641,000. Ten years ago, the average debt was NOK 227,000 for students in Norway and NOK 406,000 for international students.

The Loan Fund has a total of 1.2 million customers, of which 750,000 are paying down their student loans.

Source: © NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today / #NorwayTodayFinance

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