Breaking News!

Effective December 15th through July 1, 2027-Applications have been re-opened to allow borrowers to enroll in the Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) and Pay As You Earn (PAYE) repayment plans.

Borrowers can apply for the SAVE plan (although they will enter administrative forbearance upon enrollment) and can now apply for the original ICR, PAYE, and IBR repayment options, as well as the standard repayment plan.

For some borrowers, there may be advantages to enrolling in one of these previously discontinued repayment options listed above. According to NASFAA’s policy team, "Borrowers who want to pay off their loans more quickly, especially those early in their careers when their monthly payments under an IDR plan might be the lowest, may prefer to resume payments sooner rather than later. Paying now, while their income (and therefore their payments) is lower, could make more financial sense. In such cases, they would need to switch to a different repayment plan."

Borrowers looking to continue to postpone their payments’ interest-accrual free can continue their enrollment in the SAVE plan until the legal proceedings are resolved, likely extending well into 2025.

Note: Borrowers interested in resuming payments to continue qualifying for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) or time-based forgiveness may want to switch from the SAVE plan to the IBR, PAYE, or ICR plan once these options are available in mid-December. You will want to speak with your loan servicer to identify the best option for you.

 

How To Prepare for Successful Student Loan Payment:

Secondly, make sure to explore the various loan repayment options and select one that you qualify for and works best for your budget.

How To Pick the Right Repayment Plan:  

 

Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan

A federal court has blocked the U.S. Department of Education from putting certain parts of the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan and other Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans into effect. This includes but is not limited to how SAVE calculates monthly payments and loan forgiveness options. For most current information and new developments, please visit StudentAid.gov/saveaction 

Student Loan Forgiveness 

Some situations may allow federal student loans to be forgiven, canceled, or discharged so that some or all the loan may not need to be paid back. Read below to learn about some of the more commonly used loan forgiveness programs. For a complete overview of ALL forgiveness program opportunities, visit Student Loan Forgiveness | Federal Student Aid.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF)

This loan forgiveness program is available to people who work in public service in federal, state, tribal, local government, or non-profit organization. 

PSLF forgives the remaining balance on Direct Loans after 120 qualifying payments have been made while working full-time for a qualifying employer. Only payments made under certain repayment plans (primarily income-driven repayment plans) qualify for PSLF.

For more information, visit Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Help Tool | Federal Student Aid. 

Teacher Loan Forgiveness 

Teachers that taught full time for five complete and consecutive academic years in a low-income school or educational service agency and meet other qualifications may be eligible for forgiveness of up to $17,500 on Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans and Subsidized and Unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loans.

Direct Consolidation Loan or a Federal Consolidation Loan may be eligible for forgiveness of the outstanding portion of the consolidation loan that repaid an eligible Direct Subsidized Loan, Direct Unsubsidized Loan, Subsidized Federal Stafford Loan, or Unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loan.

For more information, visit Teacher Loan Forgiveness | Federal Student Aid.

Total and Permanent Disability Discharge

If you are totally and permanently disabled, you may qualify for a total and permanent disability discharge of your federal student loans and/or your Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant service obligation.  For more information, visit Total and Permanent Disability Discharge | Federal Student Aid.

Avoiding Student Loan Scams

Unfortunately, potential student loan scams are on the rise. Be aware of student aid scams and use these tips below to avoid these scams.

Play It Safe: Protect Yourself from Student Loan Scams

Here is how you can spot a scam from a student loan debt relief company:

1. They ask for your FSA ID username and password.
2. They want you to pay up-front costs or monthly fees.
3. They promise instant and complete loan cancellation or loan forgiveness.
4. They ask for you to sign and submit a third-party authorization or power of attorney.
5. They want you to act right away and claim that their offer is limited.
6. Any messages from them have spelling and grammatical errors.

If you are still unsure that it is a scam, visit The Federal Trade Commission for more tips.

Frequently Asked Questions

I am currently enrolled in classes. Do I need to start making student loan payments?  If you are enrolled at least half-time, you do not need to start making payments as you have in-school deferment. If you graduate, stop attending classes or drop to less than half-time, you will need to start making student loan payments after your grace period ends. 

I do not know who my loan servicer is. How do I find out?  Visit and log in to studentaid.gov. Once logged in, update your personal information and you can view your student loan servicer. You will then want to log into the loan servicer’s website and create an account. 

How do I find out the amount of my monthly student loan payment?  You can log in to your loan servicer’s website and view your payment amount. 

Once the 0% interest rate ends, how do I find out what my interest rate will be?  Your interest rate will most likely be the same as it was before the 0% interest began.  However, the interest rate may change for some borrowers. Contact your loan servicer for your exact interest rate. You may also be able to log in to your loan servicer’s website to find this information.

My monthly student loan payment is too high. What are my options?  Visit studentaid.gov to review various repayment plan options—including income-driven repayment plans, which could substantially decrease monthly payments for qualifying borrowers.

I am new to repaying student loans and have not made payments before. What do I do?  If you left school within the past 6 months, you will likely still be in your automatic grace period.  For most federal student loans, after you graduate, leave school, or drop below half-time enrollment, you have a six-month grace period (sometimes nine months for Perkins Loans) before you must begin making payments. Not all federal student loans have a grace period.

Your monthly payment amount will depend on the repayment plan you chose. If you don’t choose a plan, you’ll be put on the Standard Plan where payments are based on your balance size and not your income and family size.

You may want to consider applying for an income-driven repayment (IDR) plan that may be able to help decrease your monthly loan payments. 

I keep hearing about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program. What is this and do I qualify?The PSLF Program forgives the remaining balance on your Direct Loans after you’ve made the equivalent of 120 qualifying monthly payments under an accepted repayment plan, and while working full-time for an eligible employer.

To qualify for PSLF, you must

• be employed by a U.S. federal, state, local, or tribal government or qualifying not-for-profit organization (federal service includes U.S. military service);
• work full-time for that agency or organization.
• have Direct Loans (or consolidate other federal student loans into a Direct Loan);
• repay your loans under an income-driven repayment plan or a 10-year Standard Repayment Plan; and
• make a total of 120 qualifying monthly payments that need not be consecutive.

I think I may have been contacted by a student loan scammer.  What should I do if I already gave my information or paid a student debt relief company?

• Contact your federal loan servicer to end any power of attorney or third-party authorization agreement. Also, make sure no unwanted changes were made on your loans.
• Contact your bank or credit card company, and request that payments to the debt relief company be discontinued.
• File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
• File a report of suspicious activity through Student Aid’s Feedback Center.
• Most importantly, log in to your FSA account and change your password.

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