When do payments start on student loans

Graduating from school Withdrawing from or leaving school Dropping below half-time enrollment Your grace period begins the day after your separation date. Can I start making payments early? What if I go back to school? What if I don't earn enough to pay back my loans?

Contact us. Repayment plan comparison calculator Pay as you earn repayment calculator Income-based repayment calculator Value of making interest payments calculator Spending planning worksheet. Download Acrobat Reader View all forms. Frequently asked questions. Where can I find information about my student loans? When do I start repaying my loans? That's because those months of the payment pause count toward the eventual debt forgiveness these programs lead to — whether or not you're paying.

So any money you direct to your loans during this reprieve just reduces the amount of forgiveness for which you'll be entitled. More from Personal Finance: How stimulus checks changed Americans' ability to cover emergencies Early end to federal unemployment pay not getting people back to work Are you protected under the new eviction ban? How to figure that out. But for borrowers in the standard repayment plan who can afford to do so, it may make sense to continue making payments. Because interest is suspended at the moment, your money will go right toward the principal and your debt will shrink faster.

Still, others may want to use this time to tackle other debt with higher interest rates, such as a mortgage or balances on a credit card. If you were in default and working to rehabilitate your loan, you're in luck. That's because the Education Department's rehabilitation program requires nine consecutive on-time payments, and the months during the payment pause count toward this process, whether or not you made a payment.

Depending on when you started rehabilitation, your loans may already be out of default. The payment pause has now been in effect for 16 months. If you weren't in the rehabilitation process, collection activity may resume come February. To avoid that, experts recommend reaching out to your servicer and asking about the process of getting current.

During the payment pause, defaulted borrowers are protected from garnishments of their wages, Social Security checks and tax refunds. While we adhere to strict editorial integrity , this post may contain references to products from our partners. Here's an explanation for how we make money. Founded in , Bankrate has a long track record of helping people make smart financial choices. All of our content is authored by highly qualified professionals and edited by subject matter experts , who ensure everything we publish is objective, accurate and trustworthy.

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For others, payments won't be a problem. For some — new grads, borrowers in forgiveness plans and those whose loans were in default before the pandemic began — restarting payments may require some advance planning. The ongoing forbearance gives you enough time to make a change to your federal loan payments and avoid defaulting on the loans. Consider making payments to lower your overall debt, depending on your original repayment strategy. Your payments will be applied to any interest accrued first before your principal, but any payment will help you reduce the total amount you'll pay over the life of the loan.

You can also make a dent in other financial goals, such as paying down credit card debt or padding your emergency fund. All collection activities on federal student loans are suspended through January , such as wage garnishment and collection calls as part of the CARES Act and the December memorandum extending relief, according to the Department of Education.

This is expected to be extended along with the payment forbearance. Federal student loan borrowers pursuing Public Service Loan Forgiveness don't need to make payments until payment eventually begins.

All months of nonpayment will still count toward the payments needed to qualify for PSLF as long as you're still working full time for an eligible employer. Use this time to find out who your servicer is and what your first bill will look like. Apply for income-driven repayment at least two months before repayment starts.