A growing number of graduates are unable to pay off their student loan because they are not earning enough.

According to DUO, which runs student finance for the education ministry, 11% of graduates had student debt in 2008. This rose to 15.6% in 2013.

Last year, 93,000 graduates needed a loan deferment, with 36,600 of them not paying off the monthly instalment on their loan and 56,400 paying less than the due amount, DUO says.

Treasury

‘It does mean there is less money going into the treasury,’ a DUO spokesman told broadcaster Nos. ‘But it is likely to be temporary, until the economy improves.’

Graduates should begin paying back student loans from the second year after graduation. But a low income means a graduate can be put into special measures. After 15 years, the rest of the student loan is scrapped, no matter how much has been paid off.