For covered borrowers, there is no action that you need to take to receive relief described above. If you would like to receive credit during this time for Public Service Loan Forgiveness, Income-Drive Repayment loan cancellation, or loan Rehabilitation, be sure that you have the correct loan, are in a qualifying plan, and are otherwise eligible. Call your servicer to discuss. If you experience an issue with your servicer or believe your eligible loan is not receiving the correct relief, please file a complaint with the New York Department of Financial Services.

If you have a federal loan that is covered by the CARES Act—discussed above—there is nothing that you have to do. The federal government will automatically suspend your payments and waive your interest. Any payments you do make will be applied to your loan. You should still read these FAQs to learn about additional programs that might assist with your loans.

For all other loans, you should call your loan servicer.

You can go to the US Department of Education's Federal Student Aid website at https://studentaid.gov/ and click on "Manage Loans" in the tool bar to the right, You will find the log in to find a list of all of your federal loans in "View My Account". It will not list any of your private loans. You can also contact your loan servicer and ask which of your loans are private.

No. Federally-offered repayment plans are only available for your federal loans, and only certain federal loans are eligible for some federally-offered plans. You should talk to your servicer to learn what, if any, plans, are available for your loans, as they will vary loan to loan.

The extended CARES Act relief described above will cover your loans if you have a Direct Loan, a Family Federal Education Loan Program (FFELP) loan owned by the federal government, or a FFELP loan that was privately owned and which defaulted on or after March 13, 2020. You can also call your servicer to ask whether your loans are covered.

On March 30, 2021, the U.S. Department of Education announced that it would extend the CARES Act coverage to include privately-owned FFELP loans that have defaulted since March 13, 2020. When those loans default, they are typically assigned to a Guaranty Agency that will attempt to resolve the default. Now, the Guaranty Agency will assign the loan the Department of Education, which will restore the loans to good standing and apply the CARES Act relief.

Any involuntary payments—garnishments or tax offsets—that were made on these loans since March 13, 2020, will be returned automatically. Any voluntary payments may be returned upon request.

This does not apply to any borrower who had a privately-owned FFELP loan and who paid the loan in full.

This new policy will take effect automatically, and no action is required by the borrower.

No. There are a several kinds of federal loans, and not all of them qualify for all repayment options. You should speak with your servicer or visit the U.S. Department of Education website to learn which loans qualify for which programs: https://studentaid.gov/app/ibrInstructions.action.

For federal student loan borrowers, income-driven repayment (IDR) plans lower your monthly payments to fit with your income. If you have lost your job or part of your income, your IDR payments could be as low as $0. Once you enroll in an IDR plan, you can keep your new monthly payment for a year, even if your income goes up. After a year, you will need to recertify with your current income, at which point your payment may change.

If your loan is covered by the CARES Act and extended relief, you can enroll in IDR and still have your monthly payments suspended for the remainder of the relief period.

Yes. See the section above called Private Student Loans to learn more about your relief options. If you have private loans and are worried about affording your monthly payments, you should call your servicer to explain your situation and to ask for assistance.

No. If you need assistance with your private loans or any federal loans not covered by the CARES Act, you should call your student loan servicer.

If you are not sure what kind of loans you have, you should call your servicer to ask.

If you have been impacted by COVID-19 in any way and are worried about affording your payments, you should explain your circumstances and ask your servicer what options are available for you. When your servicer explains your options, be sure to ask whether interest will continue to accrue during any relief that you receive, whether you will have to repay any months for which you receive relief, when you will be expected to repay, and if there is flexibility to in how you repay. It’s important that you get the full scope of any relief that you are offered before you accept.

If your loan is covered by the federal CARES Act and extended relief, you will not need documentation and your relief will be automatic.

Some, but not all, private student loan servicers may ask you to provide documents that show you have lost your job or have reduced income. Every servicer will have different requirements, but some might ask for recent paystubs or a letter from your employer.

You should start collecting all documents related to your employment and any COVID-19 impact on your life in a single place. This will make it easier if a servicer asks you for documentation.

For most people struggling to pay their loans, IDR plans will be better than deferments and forbearances, which only allow you to stop making payments for short periods of time. In general, interest will continue to be charged during deferments and forbearances, which you will have to payback or which may be added to your principal balance, which is called “capitalization.”

However, under the CARES Act and the remainder of its extended relief, for eligible loans the federal government has effectively reduced monthly payments and interest to $0. This means that, if your loan is covered by the CARES Act and you enroll in IDR, your monthly payments will be $0 for this time period. Once repayments resume your monthly payments will be based on your income. For this reason, most borrowers will benefit from entering an IDR plan now. Call your servicer to discuss what options are best for you.

You can recertify your income at any time, which will change your monthly payment. If you are already in an IDR but your income lowers, call your servicer or go online to change your monthly payments, which could go as low as $0 a month. Your lower payment will remain valid for one year, when you have to recertify. If your income goes back up during the year, you are not obligated to recertify until your one-year recertification date, and can keep your lower monthly payments.

Even if you will be covered by the extended CARE Acts relief, if you need to adjust your IDR payment you should do so soon. This will ensure that when your monthly payments start again the payment amount will be affordable.

On October 6, 2021, the Department of Education announced temporary changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program. The benefits from those changes are available until October 31, 2022 and include:

• Credit for payments on non-Direct federal loans (e.g., FFEL and Perkins loans) made by student borrowers, including credit for certain payments where you were on the wrong payment plan, late payments, and partial payments.
• If you have non-Direct federal loans (e.g., FFEL and Perkins loans), you will need to consolidate those loans prior to October 31, 2022 for payments made on those loans to be counted towards the required 120 loan payments for PSLF, and for loan forgiveness to be granted.

   

  • To find out more about loan consolidation please visit StudentAid.gov/Manage-Loans/Consolidation.
• A full review of previously denied PSLF applications for errors.

It is important to note that these benefits apply only to federal loans taken out by students (not parents), and you will still need to have worked or are working full time at a qualifying employer to be eligible for PSLF.

You may need to take action, such as consolidating your loans and applying for PSLF forgiveness or certified employment, prior to October 31, 2022. For more information, please visit StudentAid.gov/PSLFWaiver and the Student Aid Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) page.

If you are unsure what kind of federal loans you have, you can log into your account on StudentAid.gov.

All Direct Loans are covered by the federal CARES Act and extended relief, which reduces monthly payments, including interest, to $0. These $0 payments will count toward PSLF.

However, PSLF also requires employment with a qualified employer. If you lost your employment or had your hours reduced to less than 30 hours/week, then those months of unemployment or reduced hours may not be eligible for PSLF.

Some servicers may have reduced staff because of COVID-19, causing increased wait times or difficult connecting with a representative. If you have access to the internet, you should go to your servicer’s website and look for instructions for how to do if you are impacted by COVID-19. If you are trying to enroll in an income-driven repayment (IDR) program, you can do that online through the U.S. Department of Education at https://studentaid.gov/app/ibrInstructions.action. You will need to create a Federal Student Aid (FSA) login if you have not done that already.

You can also file a complaint with the Department of Financial Services at www.dfs.ny.gov/complaint.

If you can afford to pay your private loans, your best option is probably to continue making payments. Requesting a deferment or forbearance will pause your loan payment for several months, during which interest may continue to accrue. If you stop making payments under deferments or forbearances, it will take longer to repay your loan and you may pay more over time.

However, if you are a federal loan borrower, you may be able to lower your monthly payments by enrolling in an income-driven repayment (IDR) plan, even if you can afford your current payments. IDR plans also have the benefit of offering loan forgiveness after a certain period of repayment, however they may also have the effect of increasing the total amount you owe over time. Call your servicer to learn more about IDR plans.

If you are a federal borrower whose loan is covered by the extended CARES Act relief, your monthly payments (including interest) will be reduced to $0. If you choose to make any payments, then those payments will go directly to paying down your loan principal. It is up to you whether you want to make these payments.

You should speak with the loan borrower that you co-signed for and get a better understanding of their ability to pay their own loans. In general, co-signers are not responsible for the loan as long as the primary borrower makes payments. Then, you should contact the loan servicer and ask about a “co-signer release.” Most private loan contracts allow for co-signors to be released from the loan after a certain period of on-time payments by the primary borrower. If you are eligible for a co-signor release, you should tell the servicer that you would like to be released. Even once you are released, you can still assist the primary borrower with payments, but you will be not contractually responsible for the loan if the borrower is unable to pay.