The Student Loan Trust Fund (SLTF) has disclosed that it will begin prosecuting employers who hire individuals who have defaulted on their student loans.

The institution indicated that these measures are part of its recovery efforts to reclaim amounts owed by loan defaulters.

According to Enoch Asumadu Koranteng, Manager in charge of Enforcement, speaking on GHOne TV on Wednesday, August 6, 2025, employers are mandated by the Student Loan Trust Fund Act to deduct loan repayments from the salaries of employees who are student loan beneficiaries and remit them to the Fund.

He stated that employers who fail to act accordingly would be prosecuted in accordance with the law.

“The Student Loan Trust Fund is set up by an Act of Parliament and Section 24 of the Act is saying that if you are an employer who employs beneficiaries of student loan, at the end of the month you need to deduct and remit the student loan repayment to us at the Fund. This is a statutory obligation so, if you are an employer and you fail to do these deductions and remittances, then the law says that we should prosecute you,” he said.

Asumadu Koranteng, explaining how the Fund is able to track defaulters and the institutions where they are employed, said that their database can identify all beneficiaries and their places of employment.

“Student Loan is a data controlling institution and so from our database, we are able to detect that an individual is working with this institution. I mean, based on our database, we are able to determine where you are.”

He continued, saying that through their database, the Fund writes to employers, directing them to deduct loan repayments from the salaries of defaulters.

He added that if employers fail to respond, the next steps include issuing warning letters, followed by possible prosecution as a final measure.

“When we get to know, we write to you demanding the repayment of the loan. We continue with a warning letter if you fail to respond to the demand earlier and the next step is the prosecution.

“By the time we get to the prosecution, it means we have done the first, demand notice, the second, which is the warning, and then the third, the prosecution. So, in accordance with the law, we prosecute employers who fail to deduct,” he continued.

He added, “In section 24, it places a statutory obligation on the employer, saying that at the commencement of employment, you inquire from the employee if they took student loan when they were in school. At section 27 of the Act, it places an obligation on this employee that when you get a job, inform your employer that you took student loan.

“So, there is an inquiry and there is a confirmation coming from the employer and the employee. So, by that, employers will get to know that yes, there's a need to satisfy that obligation at section 24.”

MAG/MA