COVID-19 Student Loan Support Center

Federal student loan flexibilities for the COVID-19 emergency have been extended at least through September 30, 2021.

This means that all borrowers with ED-owned student loans will continue to have their payments suspended at least through September 30, 2021 without penalty. In addition, the interest rate on all ED-owned student loans will continue to be set to 0% at least through September 30, 2021.

The 0% interest rate on ED-owned student loans has been in effect since March 13, 2020. The 0% interest rate was automatically applied retroactive to March 13.

The 0% interest rate applies only to those student loans owned by ED – including all Direct and ED-owned Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Program loans in any status (in repayment, in school, grace, deferment, forbearance, etc.).

During the period of 0% interest (March 13, 2020 at least through September 30, 2021), the full amount of your payments will be applied to principal once all the interest that accrued prior to March 13 is paid.

This 0% interest rate applies only to federal student loans owned by ED. ED does not have legal authority over private student loans, and they are not covered by the CARES Act and extensions of relief provided by ED.

The 0% interest rate will remain in effect at least through September 30, 2021.

No action is required to receive the 0% interest rate if you have eligible loans.

Tip for Navient customers: You can see the interest rates on each Loan Details page in your online account. Loans reflecting a 0% interest rate are eligible for the COVID-19 relief measure offered for ED-owned loans. Remember, this adjustment is retroactive to March 13, 2020.

Your servicer will certify the loans for consolidation using the statutory rate (not this temporary rate of 0%).

Federal student loan flexibilities for the COVID-19 emergency have been extended at least through September 30, 2021.

This means that all borrowers with ED-owned student loans will continue to have their payments suspended at least through September 30, 2021 without penalty. In addition, the interest rate on all ED-owned student loans will continue to be set to 0% at least through September 30, 2021.

This forbearance will apply to only those student loans owned by ED – including all Direct and ED-owned Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Program loans in repayment.

If you have other loans (not ED-owned), and are having difficulty making payments, we can help! You can contact us to postpone your payments with a temporary forbearance.

Alternatively, you can also explore repayment or deferment options to lower or postpone your payments. You can apply online by logging in to your account – go to Repayment Options – or give us a call.

Tip for Navient customers: You can easily identify if you have these loan types on the Account Summary page after logging into (or creating) your online account at Navient.com.

If the "Type" is Direct then your loans are eligible for the administrative forbearance.

If you’re unsure of who owns your loan, go to your Loan Details for each loan and scroll to the bottom to find the Current Owner. If ED is the Current Owner, that means your loan is eligible for the administrative forbearance.

No. Unless you previously requested to resume repayment, you don’t need to take any action to receive the administrative forbearance extension on your eligible ED-owned loans. Your payments will be postponed automatically at least through September 30, 2021. Please call us if you previously opted out of the administrative forbearance and wish to postpone payments. You can always check your loan status by logging in to your account.

We will contact you to remind you when you will need to start making payments again. Please log in to your account and visit your Profile page to ensure your contact information is up to date.

Note: You can request to have this administrative forbearance shortened at any time. Alternatively, you can explore your repayment and deferment options online by logging in to your account – go to Repayment Options.

You will automatically receive administrative forbearance (and your loans will remain at the 0% interest rate mentioned in the section above this one) for any period after your loans enter repayment between March 13, 2020 and September 30, 2021. For example, if your loans entered repayment on April 15, 2021, you will receive a forbearance from April 15, 2021 at least through September 30, 2021, and the interest rate on your loan will be 0% during this period. Note that unpaid interest is capitalized when you enter repayment, which means any unpaid interest that accrued on your loans prior to March 13 will be added to the unpaid principal at the end of your grace period. You can make payments prior to entering repayment if you wish to avoid capitalization of some or all of the unpaid interest.

As explained above, ED-owned loans will receive a 0% interest rate from March 13, 2020 at least through September 30, 2021, therefore interest will not accrue while the payment suspension is in effect. After September 30, 2021, interest will begin to accrue again. You will remain responsible for interest accrued before and after the 0% interest rate period. At the end of the COVID-19 administrative forbearance period, interest could capitalize when your loans return to a repayment status, if interest accrued on your loans before March 13, 2020 remains unpaid.

Here are a few common examples:

• Generally speaking, if you were on a standard or graduated repayment plan and were up to date on your payments before the administrative forbearance period began, you may have little or no unpaid interest accrued prior to March 13, 2020 that would be capitalized.
• If you were on an income-driven repayment (IDR) plan with $0 or very low monthly payments, you are more likely to have unpaid interest accrued prior to March 13, 2020 that may be capitalized. Some IDR plans allow you to pay less than your accruing interest, which means you may have a substantial amount of unpaid interest accrued prior to March 13. Interest can be capitalized annually if you're on Income-Contingent Repayment; you have until September 30, 2021 to pay interest that would normally capitalize on July 1. Interest can also be capitalized if you're on one of the other three IDR plans and don't recertify your income and family size by the annual deadline. Rest assured that recertification deadlines have been extended by the government and we'll remind you when it's time to recertify your plan. Additionally, interest will not be capitalized during a period of "partial financial hardship."
• If, before the administrative forbearance period began, you were in the type of deferment or forbearance in which interest would normally capitalize, then unpaid interest accrued prior to March 13, 2020 will capitalize when your original deferment or forbearance ends or on October 1, 2021, whichever is later.
• If you were in your grace period before the administrative forbearance period began, any unpaid interest on your loans will capitalize as it usually does when you enter repayment.

Please contact us at 800-722-1300 if you have questions regarding capitalized interest as it relates to your account.

No. During the COVID-19 emergency administrative forbearance, ED-owned loans will be reported as if regularly scheduled payments had been made by the borrower. This reporting is similar to borrowers enrolled in income-driven repayment (IDR) with a $0 payment. Keep in mind that delinquency reported prior to the COVID-19 emergency will remain on your credit report.

We cannot provide advice on how credit scores are calculated; we report specific loan information to credit bureaus. Credit scores are available through several companies using confidential and proprietary methods. If you have questions about a specific credit score, please contact the company that issued it.

No. If you have a Direct Loan and work full-time for a qualifying employer during the suspension, then you will receive credit toward Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) for the period of suspension as though you made on-time monthly payments. You will receive credit toward Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) loan forgiveness on your ED-owned FFELP and Direct loans for the period of suspension as though you made on-time monthly payments.

If your income has changed and you would like to recalculate or apply for an income-driven repayment (IDR) plan, visit StudentAid.gov. If approved, your payments due under the IDR payment plan will begin after the forbearance ends.

Yes. Income-driven repayment (IDR) annual recertification due dates occurring between March 13, 2020, and March 31, 2021 are all now due no sooner than March 31, 2021. We will send notification of your new recertification due date before it is time to recertify. If the recertification date is also extended we will update this information.

• Example 1: If your IDR recertification was due on May 15, 2020, the new recertification date is May 15, 2021.
• Example 2: If your next IDR recertification was originally scheduled to occur on February 15, 2021, it is now scheduled for February 15, 2022.

Yes, your payments will remain suspended; and yes, the months will count toward IDR forgiveness.

No.

Yes. Contact us to remove or shorten the forbearance at any time.

Yes! We encourage you to make payments whenever possible. Making payments during the COVID-19 emergency administrative forbearance combined with the temporary 0% interest from March 13, 2020 through at least September 30, 2021 could allow you to make progress on paying down your unpaid principal – which could reduce the overall cost of your loan. Your payments would be applied first toward the unpaid interest accrued prior to March 13, 2020 and the remainder is applied to the unpaid principal. You can continue to make payments at any time by logging in to your account, by phone, by mail, or through your bank’s bill payer service (Auto Pay is not available during a forbearance). If you choose to remain in an administrative forbearance and make payments, you will not receive a monthly bill.

As long as you are in the administrative forbearance, you will not be penalized for making a payment that is less than your usual monthly payment. Meanwhile, you still have the option to make a payment on your loan to make progress toward reducing your balance. You can continue to make payments at any time by logging in to your account, by phone, by mail, or through your bank’s bill payer service (Auto Pay is not available during a forbearance).

Yes. However, if you consolidate, after the 0% interest rate period ends after September 30, 2021, the interest rate on your loan may be higher than what you were paying before you consolidated your loans. In addition, when you consolidate, any unpaid interest will capitalize, meaning that any unpaid interest will be added to your principal balance. If you consolidate, you will also lose credit for any qualifying income-driven repayment or Public Service Loan Forgiveness payments you may have previously made.

Your loans will be placed into administrative forbearance. Cancer treatment deferment annual recertification due dates occurring between March 13, 2020 and September 30, 2021, are all now due no sooner than September 30, 2021. We will send notification of your new recertification due date before it is time to recertify. When the administrative forbearance ends after September 30, 2021, you will be placed back into the cancer treatment deferment.

• Example: If your next cancer treatment deferment recertification was originally scheduled to occur on February 15, 2021, it is now scheduled for February 15, 2022.

Please visit StudentAid.gov/coronavirus for more information.

Rest assured, these are some of the most common situations that are addressed by existing federal options for FFELP loans. Please take a few minutes to consider these options that could reduce or postpone your payments for six months to a year.

If your income has fallen, you may be eligible for Income-Based Repayment (IBR) to reduce your payments. Some borrowers qualify for a $0 payment. IBR is subject to annual recertification of your income and family size. (Parent PLUS loans or federal consolidation loans that repaid Parent PLUS loans are not eligible for IBR but please continue reading.)

If you are collecting unemployment benefits or working less than 30 hours per week while seeking full-time employment, you may be eligible for Unemployment Deferment to postpone your payments for six months. A deferment can be more advantageous than a forbearance because the government will pay the interest on your subsidized federal loans during the deferment.

Other options include: Economic Hardship Deferment, Excessive Debt Burden Forbearance, Income-Sensitive Repayment, Graduated Repayment, and Extended Repayment. These options can potentially postpone or reduce your payments for at least the next year, subject to eligibility requirements and life-of-loan limits. We can help you explore these options: Log in to your Navient.com account and select Repayment Options from the left hand menu to use our guided questionnaire. We will provide you with any forms you may need for the option you select and you can e-sign certain forms.

We provide a periodic interest statement to all federal borrowers in a forbearance, in case you would like to pay some or all of your unpaid interest. Rest assured, unpaid interest on your FFELP loans will not be capitalized (added to the unpaid principal) at the end of the short-term coronavirus forbearance. (See information above if you have Department of Education-owned FFELP loans, as different rules apply.) We encourage you to make payments during a forbearance but it is not required. To confirm the current status of your loans, log in to your Navient.com account and view your Loan Details.

Even though interest will not be capitalized at the end of the short-term coronavirus forbearance, there are other considerations you should be aware of. Your Monthly Payment Amount and total cost of your loan may increase due to the additional interest accrued during the forbearance. Your estimated payoff date will be extended by forbearance because the period of forbearance is not considered part of your repayment period.

Auto Pay and any interest rate reduction associated with Auto Pay are suspended during a forbearance.

This is a limited-time program. We expect that the short-term coronavirus forbearance program will be phased out over time, as public health and economic conditions return to normal. Please contact us right away if you are having difficulty.

We strongly encourage you to explore your long-term options as soon as possible. There are several existing programs for economic hardship and unemployment that may be more advantageous than forbearance. You can apply for many of these options online. Just log in to your account and go to Repayment Options in the left menu.

You may also be eligible for a standard hardship forbearance for a longer period of time, but note that all normal terms and conditions (including capitalization of interest) would apply. Call us at 888-272-5543 if you need assistance navigating your long-term options or to discuss whether you are eligible for a forbearance.

As explained above, it depends on the holder of your loan. If your FFELP loan is owned by a bank or other financial institution, such as Navient, it will not receive the 0% interest rate. The 0% interest rate announced is for federally-held loans only, and the government has not extended this relief to FFELP loans owned by banks and other financial institutions. Some FFELP loans were transferred to the federal government. If the government owns your FFELP loan, the 0% interest rate was automatically applied to your ED-owned student loans retroactive to March 13 at least through September 30, 2021.

The 0% interest rate was only authorized for loans owned by the Department of Education. The government is absorbing the cost for the loans it owns – but not for other loans like FFELP or private.

Although we can’t offer 0% interest, please contact us if you’re having trouble making payments due to the COVID-19 emergency. We can help you find a long-term option or postpone your payments if you need immediate relief.

If you consolidate your FFELP loans not owned by ED into a Direct Consolidation Loan, the loan will become a Direct Loan and be eligible for 0% interest and postponed payments until at least September 30, 2021. Before you do that, there are a few things you should consider:

Pros

• If you currently have federal student loans that are with different loan servicers, consolidation can simplify loan repayment by giving you a single loan with just one monthly bill.
• Direct consolidation can lower your monthly payment by giving you a longer period of time (up to 30 years) to repay your loans depending on your loan balance.
• In addition to accessing COVID-19 relief that is only available to ED-owned loans, Direct Consolidation may give you access to other options such as additional Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans and Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF).
• You’ll be able to switch any variable-rate federal loans you have to a fixed interest rate.

Cons

• After the 0% interest rate period ends on September 30, 2021, the interest rate on your Direct Consolidation loan may be higher than what you are currently paying. (The fixed interest rate on the consolidation is based on a weighted average of the contractual rates on the underlying loans being consolidated, rounded to the nearest higher one-eighth of one percent.)
• When you consolidate, any unpaid interest will capitalize, meaning that any unpaid interest is added to your unpaid principal.
• You may lose benefits associated with your underlying loans including:
  • Progress toward Income-Based Repayment (IBR) loan forgiveness, and
  • Borrower incentive programs such as interest rate reductions for making on-time payments.
• The consolidation process normally takes approximately 30 days but will likely take longer due to the COVID-19 emergency.

You are free to choose which loans to include in a consolidation, in case you prefer the benefits of one or more existing loans and wish to continue paying them as individual loans. To learn more about the pros and cons of consolidating some or all of your loans, visit StudentAid.gov/consolidation.

No. Navient follows industry standards for credit reporting. Consistent with those standards, we will report loans enrolled in the short-term coronavirus forbearance program as "current" with a payment history of "deferred" and a special comment of "affected by natural or declared disaster." Keep in mind that delinquency reported prior to your coronavirus-related hardship will remain on your credit report.

We cannot provide advice on how credit scores are calculated; we report specific loan information to credit bureaus. Credit scores are available through several companies using confidential and proprietary methods. If you have questions about a specific credit score, please contact the company that issued it.

Rest assured, we have several programs that could potentially reduce your private student loan payments. These programs were designed for private borrowers experiencing economic stress who are able to make a reduced payment. Please call us at 888-272-5543 to discuss these options, which include Interest-Only repayment plans, Extended Repayment, and the Rate Reduction Program.

You may receive a periodic statement that will reflect outstanding interest, in case you would like to pay some or all of your unpaid interest. Rest assured, unpaid interest on your private loans will not be capitalized (added to the unpaid principal) at the end of the short-term coronavirus forbearance. (See information above if you have Department of Education-owned federal loans, as different rules apply.) We encourage you to make payments during a forbearance but it is not required. To confirm the current status of your loans, log in to your Navient.com account and view your Loan Details.

Even though interest will not be capitalized at the end of the short-term coronavirus forbearance, there are other considerations you should be aware of. Your Monthly Payment Amount and total cost of your loan may increase due to the additional interest accrued during the forbearance. Your estimated payoff date will be extended by forbearance because the period of forbearance is not considered part of your repayment period.

Auto Pay and any interest rate reduction associated with Auto Pay are suspended during a forbearance.

This is a limited-time program. We expect that the short-term coronavirus forbearance program will be phased out over time, as public health and economic conditions return to normal. Please contact us right away if you are having difficulty.

We strongly encourage you to explore your options as soon as possible. There are several existing programs for private borrowers who are experiencing difficulty but can pay a reduced payment amount.

You may be eligible for a standard hardship forbearance if your difficulty is unrelated to coronavirus or its impact on the economy, but note that all normal terms and conditions (including capitalization of interest) would apply. Please call us at 888-272-5543 if you are nearing the end of your coronavirus forbearance and anticipate difficulty making payments.

The interest waiver and payment suspension, announced by the White House and extended by the CARES Act and U.S. Department of Education action, is for federally-held student loans only. Private education loans are not federally owned or guaranteed. Many borrowers also have federally owned loans, and if so, other options may be available for those loans.

No. Navient follows industry standards for credit reporting. Consistent with those standards, we will report loans enrolled in the short-term coronavirus forbearance program as "current" with a payment history of "deferred" and a special comment of "affected by natural or declared disaster." Keep in mind that delinquency reported prior to your coronavirus-related hardship will remain on your credit report.

We cannot provide advice on how credit scores are calculated; we report specific loan information to credit bureaus. Credit scores are available through several companies using confidential and proprietary methods. If you have questions about a specific credit score, please contact the company that issued it.