Education Act 2002

Student loans

186 Student loans

(1) Regulations may make provision for—

(a) the repayment by the Secretary of State of amounts payable in respect of loans mentioned in paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of subsection (2);

(b) reducing or extinguishing the amounts payable in respect of loans mentioned in paragraph (a) or (b) of subsection (2).

(2) The loans are—

(a) loans received under arrangements made under section 1 of the Education (Student Loans) Act 1990 (c. 6) by eligible persons who fulfil prescribed conditions;

(b) loans received under arrangements made under section 22 of the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998 (c. 30) by eligible persons who fulfil prescribed conditions;

(c) loans received for educational purposes under such other arrangements as may be prescribed by the regulations, including arrangements made outside England and Wales, by eligible persons who fulfil prescribed conditions.

(3) The regulations may, in particular, make provision—

(a) for determining whether a person is eligible for the purposes of the regulations;

(b) prescribing the circumstances and manner in which, and the times at which, payments are to be made, or amounts are to be reduced or extinguished;

(c) allowing retrospective adjustments for the purposes of the regulations, including provision allowing the Secretary of State to require reimbursement of repayments, or to alter the amounts reduced or extinguished;

(d) for imposing on employers, or such other persons or bodies as may be prescribed, requirements with respect to information to be given to the Secretary of State;

(e) for the reimbursement by the Secretary of State of costs incurred by persons or bodies in complying with any such requirements;

(f) for appeals with respect to matters arising under the regulations (including provision for determining, or enabling the determination of the procedure to be followed in connection with the appeals).

(4) The Secretary of State may make arrangements for any person or body specified in the arrangements to exercise on his behalf, to such extent as is so specified, any function exercisable by him by virtue of the regulations (including any such function in relation to appeals).

(5) Any arrangements made under subsection (4) shall not prevent the Secretary of State from exercising the function in question himself.

(6) The Secretary of State may pay to any person or body by whom any function is exercisable by virtue of subsection (4) such amounts as he considers appropriate for the purpose of meeting expenditure incurred or to be incurred by that person or body in, or in connection with, the exercise of that function.

(7) Any payment under subsection (6) may be made subject to such terms and conditions as the Secretary of State may determine.

(8) Such conditions may in particular—

(a) require the provision of returns or other information before any such payment is made;

(b) relate to the use of the amount paid or require the repayment in specified circumstances of all or part of the amount paid.

(9) In this section—

• “prescribed” means prescribed by regulations;

• “regulations” means regulations made under this section by the Secretary of State.