An increasing number of companies are offering new recruits a tax-saving scheme to help pay off their student loans, the Financieele Dagblad reported on Monday.

Rotterdam port authority, financial services group ING and the national government’s civil service are among the employers allowing staff to make use of a loan repayment strategy

Schiphol airport and telecoms company KPN have also included the provision in their pay and conditions agreements, and broadcaster RTL is about to follow suit, the paper said.

Almost all agreements offering the scheme are based on a separate pot of money which employees receive in addition to their salary to pay for specific items — such as a bicycle or home office improvements — virtually tax-free. They can also use this money, typically between €500 and €2,500, to repay their student loans.

Around 75% of university graduates leave with a student loan, averaging €12,500, according to the paper. However, around one-third of students owe at least €47,000.

Interest on student loans has recently risen from 0% to 2.5%.