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Even when the job market is strong, student debt loads are high enough to make it difficult for many people to afford repayments. Because of this, most student loans come with a break: deferment or forbearance. If you’re facing financial troubles or a tough personal situation, consider your options to help relieve some student loan stress.
Deferment and forbearance allow you to postpone your student loan payments for a few months to a few years. Both are available for federal loans and some private student loans.
In most cases, interest will continue to add up while you’re in deferment or forbearance. After it’s over, your lender will add the total amount of interest that’s accrued during that time to your principal. This is called interest capitalization, and it can make your loan more expensive because of the larger principal.
Your monthly repayments won’t necessarily go up, however — especially if you have federal loans. With many type of loans, you can revise your repayment plan to extend your loan term while you’re in forbearance or deferment.
There are a few exceptions. Federal Perkins Loans never undergo interest capitalization. You also might not gain interest at all during deferment if you’re on active military duty or you have a federal subsidized loan.
Due to the coronavirus outbreak, interest on federal student loans will be waived until September 30, 2021 — including for borrowers who are in deferment or forbearance. This will prevent interest from accruing, making it less expensive when you do resume payments.
If you’ve been considering either program, now may be a good time. Discuss your options with your servicer to begin the process. Federal loans already make exceptions for people in difficult financial situations, so if COVID-19 has resulted in temporary or permanent job loss, you may qualify.
But keep in mind that this will not affect your private student loans. You will need to keep making repayments at your usual interest rate, or contact your lender. Because of the coronavirus outbreak and financial difficulty surrounding it, your lender may be more lenient. Check its deferment and forbearance policies and contact customer service to see if it may be willing to waive interest on, reduce or suspend your monthly repayments.
How interest capitalization increases the cost of your loans
With some types of deferment or forbearance, you need to prove you’re in a situation where you can’t afford your payments — things like losing a job, going back to school or large amounts of medical debt might qualify you. Others allow you to qualify without giving a reason as long as you’ve made a certain number of payments on time.
Student loan deferment is when you put your loan repayments on hold, including interest. It’s typically only an option with federal student loans, though many private lenders offer deferment while you’re still in school and in extreme situations, like deployment to a war zone.
You don’t typically have to request deferment while you’re still in school and during your six-month grace period after you drop below half time. After that, you’ll have to reach out to your lender or loan servicer to request deferment.
Deferment options for private student loans vary. Often lenders have the option to defer repayments until six months after you graduate or drop below half-time. You can also typically defer repayments while you’re on active duty. In some rate cases, you can also defer your loan for around three months at a time after you’ve made on-time repayments, though forbearance is more common. It also usually comes with a maximum amount of time you can defer your loans, typically between 12 and 36 months.
Federal student loans come with multiple deferment options. Generally, interest continues to add up with a few exceptions: If you have a federal subsidized or Perkins Loan or during active military duty .
Option | Eligibility | How long it lasts |
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In-school deferment |
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Graduate fellowship deferment |
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Rehabilitation training program deferment |
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Unemployment deferment | Either:
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Economic hardship deferment | The main requirements are you must work full time and meet the poverty requirements provided in the application. You’ll have to attach additional documentation if you:
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Military service and post-active duty student deferment | You must either be:
The active duty must involve either a:
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Parent PLUS borrower deferment | Generally, parents must have a Direct or PLUS Loan in their name disbursed after June 30, 2008 and students must either be enrolled more than half time within the past six months | Six months after the student drops below half-time |
Student loan forbearance is another option to pause repayments that is generally more widely available than deferment. Like with deferment you have the option to pay interest that adds up during the forbearance period or after you start repayments. How it works can vary between private and federal loans.
With private student loans, you can usually qualify for a total of between 12 and 36 months of forbearance in one- to three-month increments, depending on your lender. Like with deferment, you might have to prove financial or personal hardship and make at least one or two years of on-time repayments to qualify. To apply, reach out to your lender or loan servicer to ask about the application process. Usually, it involves a one- or two-page form that takes a few minutes to complete.
With federal student loans, forbearance is a bit more complicated. That’s mainly because there are two different types of forbearance: mandatory and general forbearance.
Mandatory forbearance doesn’t mean that you’re automatically enrolled in forbearance if you qualify: You still have to apply. The difference is that your servicer is required to grant your request. You can qualify for mandatory forbearance if you’re:
You can only get up to 12 months of mandatory forbearance at a time. If you still need forbearance after that time, you can apply for more.
With general forbearance, you aren’t guaranteed to qualify. Requirements might vary by servicer, but typically you can apply for general forbearance when you’re:
You can qualify for forbearance up to 12 months at a time if you have a Direct, FFEL or Perkins Loan. With Perkins Loans, you’re limited to a total of 36 months. Other loans might have limits set by the loan servicer for how much time you can request.
No. In fact, it can preemptively help your credit by helping you avoid missing repayments. Your payment history makes up the largest percentage of your FICO credit score — the most commonly used credit scoring system — so missing repayments can cause that number to seriously drop.
There is one case where deferment or forbearance might hurt your credit score: When your financial need lasts longer than you’re able to pause repayments. Not only will you have to start making repayments before you can afford them, you’ll be on the hook for more money than you would have been, thanks to interest capitalization. If you don’t qualify for a modified repayment plan after pausing your loan — as is the case with most private loans — you’ll make higher monthly repayments and be at risk of default.
Before applying, weigh the drawbacks of deferment and forbearance. Start by asking yourself these three questions:
How to choose between student loan deferment and forbearance
Requesting deferment or forbearance depends on your servicer or lender. Generally, you need to:
However, there are some more steps you’ll need to take to fill out a deferment request form. Consider each type carefully to determine which best applies to your situation.
If you’re applying for forbearance on a federal loan, you might want to talk to your servicer about reworking your repayment plan to make sure your monthly repayments don’t increase after your interest is capitalized. This can involve extending your loan term, signing up for a new type of repayment plan or both.
If you decided that forbearance or deferment aren’t the right steps for you to take with your student loans, here are a few other alternatives to consider:
If you can’t see an end to your financial situation in the next few months or years, you might want to switch to an income-based repayment plan.
With federal loans, you can do this by reaching out to your loan servicer. With private loans, first reach out to your lender and explain your situation. If it’s really not an option, you might have to refinance your student loan with a lender that offers that option.
If you think your salary will improve over time, you might want to sign up for a graduated repayment plan instead of applying for forbearance or deferment. These start with low payments that increase every two years, regardless of your income. They’re available for federal loans and some private lenders offer similar options.
Take out a new loan with more favorable terms and repayment options to pay off your current student debt. This is typically a better option for private loans: You stand to lose several benefits that only federal loans offer and might not be able to find better terms than what you already have.
5 options if you can’t afford your student loan repayments
Deferment and forbearance are like bandaids: They’re temporary fixes for temporary problems. If you’re unable to make your student loan repayments for a short period of time, these options can be a lifesaver, helping you avoid missing payments or even going into default.
But don’t use these bandaids for a bullet wound. Deferment and forbearance aren’t going to help you if you’re experiencing long-term problems. Applying for forbearance or deferment will also make it take longer for you to pay off your student loans and increase how much you pay in interest.
Want to learn more about student loans? Read our student loans guide to find out how they work and compare lenders.
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