Student loan borrowers will begin loan repayment as early as September 1, 2023, after a lengthy pause both in repayment requirements and accumulation of student loan interest during the COVID-19 pandemic. Congress recently passed legislation related to increasing the federal debt ceiling that included a requirement that the pause end at the end of August.
Visit the Federal Student Aid (FSA) website
It is not too soon to take action on your student loans! The best place to start is at the FSA website. Here you will find information about the restart of loan repayments as well as how to learn
- how much you owe and how to calculate your monthly payment
- who your current loan servicer is and how to contact them (many servicers stopped servicing loans during the pandemic, so yours may have changed!)
- what repayment plans may be available to you
- how to get support from FSA
Contact your loan servicer
- Go to their website and create an account, if you have not already done so.
- Update your contact information so they can always reach you easily. You don't want them to have to track you down for anything.
- Link a bank account to your loan servicer account to make your payments automatic. You will likely get a slight break in your interest rate by doing so, and you'll never miss a payment.
Consider additional trusted online resources
- See this e-guide from Inceptia, a leading non-profit providing resources for higher education.
If you anticipate having any difficulty whatsoever in making your loan payments, start a conversation now with your loan servicer. The best path is to talk with those who can best help you. Be patient, be persistent, and start sooner rather than later.