With the schools on the verge of reopening after a long hiatus due to Coronavirus, some people who have recently graduated are on the hook to cough back the tuition money they got from the Kenyan government in the form of HELB loans. This means whatever these new graduates will be making in their new jobs, a portion of it must go towards clearing their outstanding student loans. These loans can be repaid using Mpesa and a HELB paybill number.
Most financial experts can attest that any form of loan is a liability in your net worth and should be settled down as soon as it is humanly possible. So what is the quickest way to disentangle from the shackles of the HELB loans:
1. Pay More Than The Bare Minimum.
The government of Kenya will not penalize you if you pay more than the monthly minimum. You can do this by either making an additional payment in mid month, or make a larger payment at the end of the month, more than the bare minimum required. This way, you will be able to clear your loan faster so that you can redirect the money to other long-term projects that will benefit you in the future.
2. Enroll In Automatic Payment.
Legally speaking, your employer is required to report to the government within 3 months after hiring a HELB beneficially former student. The employer is also required to deduct the amount that is outstanding payment and remit the amount to the government as per the HELB Act 1995. But you can go a step further by making it automatically from your bank account. This is more so if you have more than one income stream other than your employer.
By setting up automatic payment, you don’t get to see the money but you can log into the HELB portal to see your loan burden drop gradually until it is all gone.
3. Make Bi-Weekly Payments
HELB loans are paid once per month. But if you make it a biweekly payment, this means you will have paid twice in a month and will be around 26 payments in a year. This is more than the 12 payments required by the government. The more payments you make, the faster your debt declines.
4. Use “Found Money” as as Leverage
Did you do some sort of kibaruas for additional income? There are so many ways to make money not only in casual labor but more so online. Being a graduate, the most easiest way is to do writing jobs online whereby, you write about a certain topic for pay. You can also do some data entry, customer service or transcription services. For those who are into design, you can make logos for start-up companies who are trying to brand their firms. The opportunities are unlimited. You only need a laptop and some data and you are set. Use the money you generate to repay your HELB loans quicker. Other than the employer deduction of the Helb loan, you can pay on the side using the Helb paybill number via your Mpesa account.
Methods of Payment
If you want to repay an additional money to the loan other than your employer deduction, your can do the following:
- Pay via your Mpesa Account
- Pay at your local bank
- Pay via online payment
1. Local Payment Via Mpesa and A Paybill Number.
The easiest way to pay your Helb loan is via Mpesa. You will only need a helb paybill number and your phone. To pay using this method, follow the following steps:
- Log into your Mpesa account
- Select pay bill option
- Enter HELB business number as 200800 (this is also the Helb Paybill number).
- Enter your national ID number as your account number
- Enter amount you want to pay
- Enter your secret PIN number
- Confirm transaction and send
The transaction and the outstanding balance will be updated instantly in your Helb account.
2. Payment At A Local Bank
You can decide to pay via your bank account. Please note that all payments are made to the Higher Education Loan Board through a cheque, money transfer or direct transfer. You can also make payment via a cash deposit to HELB Collection Account. This is applicable on the banks on the list below:
| Name of the Bank | Account Number | Branch Location | Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) |
| Kenya Commercial Bank | 1103 266 314 | University-way | SWIFT CODE : KCBLKENX |
| Family Bank | 035 000 024 971 | Family Bank Towers | SWIFT CODE : FABLKENAXXX |
| Co-operative Bank | 011290 612 228 00 | University-way | SWIFT CODE : KCOOKENA |
| Barclays bank | 077 501 8216 | Barclays Plaza | SWIFT CODE : BARCKENX |
| Standard chartered Bank | 010 801 826 4700 | Koinange street | SWIFT CODE : SCBLKENX |
| Equity bank | 055 029 357 3408 | Equity Center | SWIFT CODE : EQBLKENA |
| National Bank of Kenya | 010 016 039 1100 | Harambee Avenue | SWIFT CODE :NBKEKENX |
| Citibank | 300 040 012 | Nairobi | SWIFT CODE : CITIKENA |
| SBM Bank | 0332 084 215 001 | Delta House | SWIFT CODE : SBMKENA |
| NCBA Bank Kenya | 1002 247 638 | NIC House | SWIFT CODE : CBAFKENX |
| Jamii Bora Bank | 1174 852 7001 | Koinange street | SWIFT CODE : CIFIKENAXXX |
3. Paying from Abroad
If you are travelling around the globe, you can still be able to pay your Helb loan. This is more so in countries like Canada and the United States. There are two ways to make such payments: Through Kenya Commercial Bank’s Wave and online via World Remit.
- Payment Via Wave– Visit www.sendwave.com in order to update or download the wave app. Make the payment using Kenya Commercial Bank Account number 1103266314. Then forward the wave email notification as well as your ID NUMBER to OnlinePayments@helb.co.ke
- Payment via World Remit. Follow the following steps to pay via this method:
- Log in to www.worldremit.com
- Select the ‘Bank Deposit’ service from the blue ‘Send to’ box on this page
- Choose whether to make the transfer to a Kenyan shilling (KES) or US dollar (USD) account
- Enter the amount you want to transfer
- We’ll show you the highly competitive exchange rate you’ll receive and any fees upfront
- Enter recipient’s details KCB ACCOUNT NUMBER 1103266314
- Pay online using a credit or debit card
- Use your ID number as the reference
- You and your recipient will receive SMS and email notification once the transfer is complete
- Please forward the wave email notification as well as your ID NUMBER to OnlinePayments@helb.co.ke
While these are not the only ways to pay you Helb loan, there are other methods. But the most important thing to remember is the Helb Paybill number. That way, you can also pay via other means such as Airtel and Equity mobile payments.
