{"id":606065,"date":"2025-12-01T21:57:32","date_gmt":"2025-12-01T21:57:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/606065\/"},"modified":"2025-12-01T21:57:32","modified_gmt":"2025-12-01T21:57:32","slug":"9-ways-the-budget-will-affect-university-students","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/606065\/","title":{"rendered":"9 ways the budget will affect university students"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Cara Hene<\/strong>, News Digital Editor<\/p>\n

We were confused too. So, we spoke to an expert and made a guide just for you.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Epigram recruited Dr Peter Spittal, an expert in labour and public economics at Bristol University, and Research Fellow at the Institute for Fiscal studies. Here\u2019s how the 2025 Autumn budget will impact you, as a University of Bristol student:<\/p>\n

1. Uber and Bolt to pay more VAT<\/p>\n

You might have to forgo that late-night Uber home from City Centre.<\/p>\n

\"\"\u00a33 could be added onto a \u00a312 Uber fare, according to The Sun | Epigram \/ Ellen Reynolds<\/p>\n

From January 2026, Uber and Bolt will be charged 20% VAT on the full trip fare, rather than just the profit, no longer benefitting from a loophole intended for tour operators.<\/p>\n

Due to specific regulations in the capital, this may impact taxis in London more than in Bristol. Either way, this will mean more expensive Uber rides across the country.<\/p>\n

But hey, maybe you\u2019ll get the Bristol bum out of it.<\/p>\n

2. Student loan repayment threshold frozen<\/p>\n

The salary threshold of \u00a329,385, (the point at which you\u2019ll start paying back your student loan) has been frozen for three years. <\/p>\n

This applies to you if your course started between September 2012 and July 2023.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Because wages tend to rise over time, your student loan will now start coming out of your pay sooner, effectively reducing your pay.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In effect, this raises the cost much more for degrees that graduates have not tended to pay back, such as communications, psychology, and design.<\/p>\n

3. Minimum wage increase<\/p>\n

This is huge news for university students.<\/p>\n

The government has increased the minimum wage significantly compared to previous British governments.<\/p>\n

From April 2026, the minimum wage for 18-20 year-olds will rise from \u00a310.00 to \u00a310.85 <\/strong>per hour. That\u2019s a 8.5% increase <\/strong>– we\u2019d generally expect a 5-6% rise.<\/p>\n

\"\"Part-time hospitality jobs are common for students | Epigram \/ Sophie Maclaren<\/p>\n

Over-21s will get 50p more, a 4.1% increase to \u00a312.71 per hour.<\/p>\n

This is really important for students; in July, Bristol SU<\/a> found 35% of University of Bristol students had skipped classes for part-time work.<\/p>\n

From next year, you\u2019ll be able to work less for the same amount of money<\/strong>, meaning more time for studying or seeing mates.<\/p>\n

4. Income tax thresholds frozen<\/p>\n

Income tax rates did not rise. <\/p>\n

Instead, the Chancellor froze income tax thresholds until 2030-31, three years longer than originally planned.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Again, on average, wages tend to rise over time. Therefore, more people will be pushed into a higher tax bracket when they get a pay rise.<\/p>\n

\"\"These income tax brackets for England will remain unchanged | ‘Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances’, Gov.uk<\/p>\n

This will especially impact recent graduates, who are relatively high earners at the start of their career.<\/strong><\/p>\n

5. Rail fares frozen<\/p>\n

This is great news if you take the train to get home from Bristol to a major city in England.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"A 2024 University of Bristol report found over half of students take the train or public transport to get to University | Epigram \/ Hannah Corcoran<\/p>\n

For the first time in 30 years, \u2018regulated\u2019 rail prices in England won\u2019t rise for two years, until March 2027. <\/p>\n

This includes travel between major cities, season tickets, day singles and returns, and some flexible fares around urban centres. Last year, these fares were increased by 4.1%.<\/p>\n

However, the freeze won’t apply to Scotland, Wales, or non-English rail operators such as ScotRail, which runs trains from Bristol to Edinburgh.<\/p>\n

6. \u2018Salary sacrifice\u2019 pension contribution tax<\/p>\n

A \u2018salary sacrifice\u2019 pension contribution is when some of your salary goes toward your pension. Previously, this was beneficial because you didn’t have to pay a National Insurance Contribution, or NIC (a type of tax).<\/p>\n

Now, from April 2029, only the first \u00a32000 of your contribution will be tax free. Both you and your employer will have to pay NIC on anything more.<\/p>\n

\"\"33% of private sector and 9% of public sector employees currently use this contribution scheme | Epigram \/ Sophie Maclaren<\/p>\n

This will come out of your pay packet when you start work, particularly impacting young people who\u2019ll be affected by this change far longer than their older colleagues.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Say you earn \u00a334,000 straight out of university <\/strong>(the median graduate starting salary) and you want to put 10% of your salary towards your pension – that\u2019s \u00a33400.<\/p>\n

Now, you\u2019ll need to pay employee NIC on \u00a31400 of that \u00a33400 contribution. Your NIC rate will be 8% because you earn between \u00a324,000 and \u00a349,000.<\/p>\n

8% of \u00a31400 is \u00a3112. Therefore, you\u2019ll be \u00a3112 out of pocket.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Before this budget, this number would have been \u00a30.<\/p>\n

7. The \u2018latte tax\u2019<\/p>\n

Don’t worry! You won’t have to pay more for your Mocha Mocha vanilla oat latte.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The sugar tax is now being extended to pre-packaged \u2018milky drinks\u2019, which will include lattes, protein shakes, and even sweetened plant-based milks.<\/p>\n

\"\"The sugar tax was originally introduced in 2018 to tackle child obesity | Epigram \/ Ellen Reynolds<\/p>\n

This won\u2019t apply to lattes in caf\u00e9s (thank god), but you’ll have to pay a bit more in supermarkets, or they might taste less sweet.\u00a0<\/p>\n

8. Maintenance grants re-introduced<\/p>\n

A levy on international students will fund maintenance grants <\/strong>from 2028-29 for university students from low-income backgrounds on \u2018high priority\u2019 courses<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"\"It’s currently unclear which courses will count as \u2018high priority\u2018 | Epigram \/ Sophie Maclaren<\/p>\n

If your parents earn \u00a325,000 or less, you\u2019ll get \u00a31,000 in first and second year, and \u00a3750 in third year.<\/p>\n

If your parents earn between \u00a325,000 and \u00a330,000 you\u2019ll get between \u00a3500 and \u00a31000 in first and second year, and between \u00a3375 and \u00a3750 in your third.<\/p>\n

Altogether, maintenance grants funded by a levy on international students favours domestic students. It will make international students less financially attractive, and give money to disadvantaged home students.<\/p>\n

9. International student levy<\/p>\n

Universities in England will pay \u00a3945 for each international student from August 1 2028, which will fund the re-introduction of maintenance grants.<\/p>\n

This will likely result in fewer international university students, and may \u2018make things worse\u2019<\/strong> for universities already in a funding crisis, according to Spittal.<\/p>\n

\"\"35% of University of Bristol students are international, according to 2023\/24 figures | Epigram \/ Sophie Maclaren<\/p>\n

However, forcing a move away from the international student model might put universities in England on a \u2018more stable footing\u2019<\/strong> for the future, Dr Spittal says.<\/p>\n

Featured imaged: Epigram \/ Sophie Maclaren<\/p>\n

What do you think of the budget? Let us know! Email us on editor.epigram@gmail.com, or dm us on Instagram (@epigrampaper_)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Cara Hene, News Digital Editor We were confused too. So, we spoke to an expert and made…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":606066,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8818],"tags":[381,748,393,4884,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-606065","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-bristol","8":"tag-bristol","9":"tag-britain","10":"tag-england","11":"tag-great-britain","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115646553656210336","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/606065","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=606065"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/606065\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/606066"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=606065"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=606065"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=606065"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}