Ministry of Education Invests 1.5 Billion NTD to Reduce Student Loan Burden; 410,000 to Benefit from 1-Year Grace Period Extension

The Presidential Office announced 18 measures under the 'Taiwan Population Countermeasure New Strategy—Family Support Chapter' today. To reduce the burden of student loans, the Ministry of Education will invest 1.5 billion NTD in budget, with the one-year extension of the repayment grace period expected to benefit approximately 410,000 people. In recent years, due to the declining birth rate, the number of student loan applicants has decreased annually. According to Ministry of Education statistics, there were about 570,000 applications in the 2014 academic year, dropping to 330,000 in the 2024 academic year. The government has recently implemented policies such as subsidies for private colleges and housing allowances, which have also led to a decrease in total loan amounts. The total loan amount in the 2014 academic year was 23.3 billion NTD, falling to 11.4 billion NTD in the 2024 academic year. This situation allows the government to allocate more funds to relax student loan measures. In the 'Taiwan Population Countermeasure New Strategy' announced by the Presidential Office today, it was proposed to lower the student loan interest rate from 1.775% to 0.775% and extend the grace period by one year. This will significantly reduce interest burdens during school and repayment pressure when entering the workforce, allowing students to focus on their studies. The Ministry of Education responded to Central News Agency reporters this evening that, in addition to the current 2 billion NTD in interest expenditures, the Ministry expects to invest an additional 1.5 billion NTD annually so that students can receive support both while 'in school' and during the 'repayment period' after graduation. Previously, about 3% of applicants (nearly 7,000 students) had to pay interest themselves during school due to higher family income; in the future, the government will cover the 0.9% interest rate, making it interest-free during school. For a university student borrowing a total of 300,000 NTD over 8 semesters, the 'one-year grace period extension' policy means the government will cover about 8,355 NTD in interest, benefiting about 73,000 students. In the future, students will start repayment two years after graduation, and the interest rate will be lowered from 1.775% to 0.775% (a 1 percentage point reduction), with the first year's repayment interest estimated to be reduced by about 2,800 NTD, benefiting about 410,000 students.