HELB Directs Employers to Do This Before 15th October

The Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) has reminded employers to remit monthly deductions from employees’ salaries by the 15th to avoid penalties and ensure borrowers’ loan accounts remain up to date.

In a notice issued on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, the board urged employers to declare deductions accurately and ensure the money reaches HELB within the required period.

Employers have been advised to use the HELB Employer Portal to establish the correct monthly deductions for each employee before declaring and remitting the funds.

The board warned that employers who fail to comply could face a monthly penalty of KSh3,000 for every affected employee. The liability may be backdated to the employee’s date of employment.

Under the HELB Act, employers may also face a penalty of approximately five per cent of outstanding deductions for every month, or part of a month, that the money remains unpaid.

Section 17 of the Act further provides for possible prosecution and civil debt recovery where employers fail to fulfil their obligations without a reasonable excuse.

Failure to remit the deductions could also leave employees with outstanding loan balances despite the money having already been deducted from their salaries.

The reminder comes as HELB faces challenges recovering loans from former students. Data from the 2026 Economic Survey by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics indicates that loan collections declined by 21 per cent to KSh4.1 billion.

More than 281,000 graduates have reportedly defaulted on matured loans, with cumulative defaults reaching KSh40 billion. The non-performing loan rate has also risen to 31.4 per cent.

The board is additionally dealing with a KSh34 million shortfall in statutory deductions withheld from employees but not forwarded by employers.

Meanwhile, the government has proposed reforms aimed at providing full government funding for students admitted to public universities and colleges, subject to parliamentary approval and amendments to the HELB Act.

The proposed changes come amid ongoing concerns over how higher education will be funded and how existing student loans will be recovered.

Source; https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1ZBLchQaQN/