Students worried over paying back student loans are pushing the federal and provincial governments to do away with interest on student loans.

In Canada, Manitoba, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island do not charge interest on their provincial loans. Newfoundland and Labrador gives out non-repayable grants and British Columbia has announced it will eliminate interest rates on student loans.

In Quebec, students are charged an interest rate of 0.5 per cent plus the prime bank rate on provincial loans. Interest only begins to accrue after a student graduates.

Roughly 490,000 students received money from the federal program in 2015, a number the excluded students in Quebec, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories.

The campaign is being led by the Canadian Federation of Students. According to statistics compiled by the organization, Canadian students owe $28 billion in student loans, $19 billion of which is from the federal program.

“The federal government charges students interest at a rate that’s actually more than what’s charged on many mortgage products,” said CFA VP Charlotte Kiddell.

For federal loans, the amount of interest charged depends on whether the student takes out a variable or fixed rate loan. Variable loans are charged at bank prime rate plus 2.5 per cent, while fixed rate is prime plus five per cent.

Kiddell said the weight of paying back loans can force students into difficult decisions.

“A student who is burdened with an approximately $30,000 loan, which is about average for an undergraduate domestic graduate, is going to have trouble buying a house, starting a family, accessing a small business loan,” she said.

According to Statistics Canada, only 34 per cent of gradates with a bachelors degree had their debt paid off within three years.