Student loan drawdowns | See instructions and drawdown dates

Student loans are usually drawn down in instalments

University students can draw down a student loan in two instalments – one in the autumn and the other in the spring. Upper secondary school students can draw down a student loan in four instalments – two in the autumn and two in the spring.

If you’re uncertain about what applies to you, you will see the maximum amount, instalments and the first and last drawdown dates of your student loan in the decision on student financial aid you received from Kela.

See further details about drawdown dates

Automatic or partial drawdowns?

There are two options for drawing down a student loan. You can draw down your student loan in convenient instalments with partial drawdowns or in one go with automatic drawdowns. You will select your preference on the student loan application.

An effortless option

Automatic drawdowns

Select automatic drawdowns if:

you need the full loan amount for the academic year
you don’t want to send separate partial drawdown requests.

By selecting automatic drawdowns, the full loan amount granted to you will be automatically disbursed to your account on the drawdown dates determined by Kela in the autumn and spring terms.

You don’t need to pay any other costs except an arrangement fee or a raising fee (10,00 €).

See our tariff.

Partial drawdowns

Select partial drawdowns if:

you want to draw down your loan in convenient instalments when you need them
you don’t want to draw down the full loan amount granted to you.

By selecting partial drawdowns, you can get a loan instalment disbursed to your account each time you request a partial drawdown.

You don’t need to pay any other costs for the first partial drawdown except the arrangement fee (10,00 €). Any subsequent drawdowns will also be subject to a partial drawdown fee (10,00 €).

See our tariff.

Wondering how much you should borrow?

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We have made indicative calculations on how taking out a student loan for 1, 3 or 5 academic years affects subsequent loan costs.

Compare student loan amounts

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Drawdown dates depend on where you study

You can see the first student loan drawdown dates in each academic year for university students and upper secondary school students as determined by Kela.

You can also draw down your loan later during the same academic year. However, all instalments for one academic year must be drawn down on 31 July at the latest.

Student loan drawdown dates
Student	Term	Date
University student	Autumn	1 August
	Spring	1 January
Upper secondary school student	Autumn (August–October)	1 August
	Autumn (November–December)	1 November
	Spring (January–March)	1 January
	Spring (April–May)	1 April

In certain cases, you can draw down your student loan for the entire academic year in one go. Examples of such cases include completing an entire course of study abroad or completing a doctoral degree at a university.

Student loan for summer studies

Here’s how you can draw down a student loan in the summer

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You can also draw down a student loan in the summer if you are spending your summer studying.

You can draw down the loan that has already been granted to you for the academic year if you haven’t yet drawn down the full amount.

If you have already drawn down the full amount, you need to apply for student financial aid from Kela for the summer period. You will get a state guarantee covering the summer from Kela with the same application.

Frequently asked questions about student loan drawdowns

When can I draw down my student loan?

Most students can draw down their student loan in two instalments during the academic year.
In the autumn term, the earliest possible drawdown date is 1 August, and in the spring term, it’s 1 January.
In certain cases, including if you’re completing your full degree abroad, you can draw down your student loan for the entire academic year in one go.
Upper secondary school students can draw down their student loan in four instalments in each academic year regardless of the duration of their studies.
University students who are studying for a maximum period of 12 months can draw down their student loan in two instalments.

What does drawing down a student loan mean and how do I get the money to my account?

Drawing down a student loan means that the loan will be disbursed to your account. There are two options for drawing down a student loan:

Automatic drawdowns – with this option your loan instalments are disbursed automatically to your account.
Partial drawdowns – with this option you need to submit a student loan application to us every time you wish to have a loan instalment disbursed to your account.

What’s the difference between a drawdown agreement and a partial drawdown agreement in student loans?

A drawdown agreement means automatic drawdowns

When you make a drawdown agreement, we will disburse the student loan to your account automatically on the first possible drawdown date in accordance with Kela’s guarantee decision. The loan will be disbursed to your account in full on the payment dates mentioned in the guarantee decision. You can check the payment dates on Kela’s website or from the guarantee decision.

A partial drawdown agreement means partial drawdowns

A partial drawdown agreement means that the student loan won’t be disbursed to your account automatically on the first possible drawdown date. You can submit a drawdown request using the student loan application when you want to transfer some of the loan to your account. You can make a partial drawdown when you have a student loan but haven’t drawn down the full loan amount and wish to have a part of it disbursed to your account.

Should I draw down my student loan automatically or in separate instalments?

When you select automatic drawdowns, we will disburse the student loan to your account automatically on the first possible drawdown date set out in Kela’s guarantee decision. The loan will be disbursed to your account in full on the payment dates mentioned in the guarantee decision. You can check the payment dates on Kela’s website or from the guarantee decision. You don’t need to pay any other costs except an arrangement fee or a raising fee.

If you want to decide when to draw down your loan, you should select partial drawdowns. You can submit a drawdown request using our student loan application when you want to transfer some of the loan to your account. You don’t need to pay any other costs for the first partial drawdown except the arrangement fee (10,00 €). Any subsequent drawdowns will also be subject to a partial drawdown fee (10,00 €).

Can I draw down my entire student loan in one instalment?

In certain cases, including if you’re completing your full degree abroad, you can draw down your student loan for the entire academic year in one go.

Read more about exceptions on Kela’s website

Can I draw down my student loan every month?

If you want to decide when to draw down your student loan, you can select partial drawdowns as the drawdown method. Partial drawdowns mean that the student loan won’t be disbursed to your account automatically on the first possible drawdown date.

You can submit a monthly drawdown request using the student loan application when you want to transfer some of the loan to your account.
You can make a partial drawdown when you haven’t drawn down the full student loan amount granted to you.
You don’t need to pay any other costs for the first partial drawdown except the arrangement fee (10,00 €). Any subsequent drawdowns will also be subject to a partial drawdown fee (10,00 €).

Benefits for student customers