[Kolta]

For people that are interested in paying back there loan, the government has announced a 10% bonus on repayments over $500 above minimum repayment threshold.

http://beehive.govt.nz/release/voluntary+repayment+bonus+exceeds+promise

[Urbanexit]

Amen Masden thats pretty much my take on it as well. Bonuses for early payment make absolutely no difference whatsoever to us expats whose loans are rocketing upwards, I look forward to the collapse of the loan scheme at some point in my lifetime.

[Urbanexit]

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/ED0904/S00057.htm

[mulder]

The Politicians have sold NZ out to international corporations - all these politicians get cushy jobs overseas - Mike Moore - World Bank; Helen Clark - UN; etc. Politicians are not here to help kiwis and have not made a student loan contract in good faith (as they only care about their cushy future). Therefore, I won't pay 1c on my loan and if I live in NZ again I will be on the dole. But NOTE:
1. IRD can take any property (Real Estate, car, etc.) so have everything in someone else's name. If you inherit a house, sell it so its never in your name.
2. IRD can take money from your bank account, garnish wages, re-instate already forgiven debts - so have nothing in your name.
3. Don't set up a company with yourself as a director or a trust with yourself as a trustee - IRD can break up these and take assets.
4. Currently, people with speeding tickets, reparation orders cannot fly OUT of NZ. This will eventually be strengthened to loan defaulters so make sure of this before returning to NZ.
5. The loan is not like a normal debt that cannot be enforced after 6 years have expired. This loan is in force until its paid or if you go bankrupt IN NZ. (This may change soon).
So I hope this is useful information and DONT keep believing in Labour and National - they are both controlled by overseas corporations and just trick kiwis into voting one out, when they both do the same things.

[ShazamShazam]

Look guys - I dont know if we can change anything over night but does the government really know how many of us are overseas and feel so disgruntled about our student loans or is it a case of all of us thinking that someone else must be letting them know! ...if you get what I mean!

My loan was $30,000 in 97 and now its up to $50 or beyond. I have been over here in the UK for 7 years now and I am now paying the 6 monthly payments on the amnesty scheme. - A hefty overseas tax scheme it seems and how many of us are complaining to the right people about how the governments have kept shifting the goal post on us?

I propose we start a face book group at the very least - and/or all write to MP's back in NZ like the other guy on here (read back a few pages - sorry mate I forgot your name) has done. I know it might seem lame but we can have a voice? I guess all we need is a few people over here with the know-how and who are good with words to pen up a few letters that we can all use as templates and send out to MP's.

Maybe I am just being Idealistic. I want to pay back my loan but I don't want to pay off all that interest - no more than the next person - its overwhelming and I do want to go back to New Zealand one day when I retire but not if they take my hard earned pounds away from me!

Anyone good at writing letters?

[Urbanexit]

No they don't know how many are overseas. If you didn't tell them then they had no idea. People who applied for the amnesty who were overseas who the government didn't know were there have sacrificed their interest free status and are now having to pay x amount in interest per year. The whole amnesty was a stick carrot thing designed to get people back on the books.

[ontheouter]

The NZ Govt is looking at the ways IRD administers Student Loans. It seems the consultation is mainly focused on changes to the way IRD works with loans (who cares if it is online or not...), but there is a section for overseas borrowers where other views can be aired on a consultation forum. So get on and air your views, I will be!
https://studentloanforum.taxpolicy.ird.govt.nz/

[ontheouter]

I have used the forum Overseas Borrowers/ Any Other Changes - deadline is July 17!!!
https://studentloanforum.taxpolicy.ird.govt.nz/topics/#overseasborrowers

[Urbanexit]

Well we know one thing, when you need to consult with the people who hold the loans in a collective fashion to find out how you might actually collect the money that is owed you know you are in real trouble. Blood in the water.

[petalpusher]

I would like to echoe the comments of most on here. The system is unfair and flawed as well as charging astronomical amounts of interest I cant believe that only now IRD are contemplating moving to an online system.

To add to the frustration once I had decided to bite the bullet and start making some repaymens towards my loan I couldn't believe how inefficient the service was. Living in the UK and having to try and phone in to alter my details is a nightmare! IRD should be more pro-active in making us aware of other ways to pay towards our loan also. I just stumbled across this site last week www.orbitremit.com as a way to pay but IRD had never pointed me in the direction of anyone other than Westpac bank who charge large fees at both ends and usually give an average exchange rate.

Come on IRD get with the times and once we have resigned ourselves to paying some money back at least make it as easy as possible to do so otherwise you will alienate us even further!

[Urbanexit]

They can't alienate me any further, I'm as alienated as it gets, ie not returning. The thing the politicians don't realise is they are also up against a time limit. The longer people stay away the more they start to realise they don't need that backwater country that they owe all that money to and they begin to put down roots elsewhere. They end up meeting someone and having children then settling in their spouses country instead.

[Urbanexit]

Again we see the short sighted thinking of the New Zealand government. Look at the economy at the moment they have a problem with student debt and a problem kick starting the economy because the currency is too high making exporting tough. If you combine the two problems both disaapear. Tell the international community that the government is wiping the debt and adding it to the tax payers books and the currency will plunge. Solution bad student loan policy gone currency lowered.

[hogffej]

Hi all

I've set up an email account in an attempt to get us together in a more effective manner.

nzstudentloan@googlemail.com

Send me an email.

Currently we're just two people and we've been sending letters to various polititions in NZ. We have had a few individual replies, but as you can guess there wasn't going to be any compromise.
I does feel like bashing your head against a wall, but I have to believe that as our generation of Loan holders gets older, so too do more sympathetic people enter politics.

I'm sure that we all know someone in the media industry who could put something in print for us...I think this is the angle we should take. No more marching down the main street like clowns. Besides, we're all overseas, so we've got no real voice. If we could manage to stir up a bit of a media frenzy there may be a chance to bend the ear of a sympathetic polition.

Please get in touch and we'll get some ideas together.
And tell everyone that you know who is in the same boat to get in touch also. Even if they're not loan holders but are sympathetic and could help us in any way.

Cheers,
Jeff

[Urbanexit]

I'm pretty sure letter writing will not do any good, the NZ population is generally apathetic at best. Politicians are not in a hurry to interrupt the status quo as at the end of the day they are just managers with one goal and that is renew their term of office. The situation will just escalate and escalate until they are forced to deal with it.....ostrich, head, sand you get the idea, meanwhile make sure you have no assets in NZ and try to get your parents to give you your inheritance early and transferred offshore if they are still alive.