Forbearance
If
you are committed to repaying your student loans, but are unable to make payments because of a temporary financial strain, your lender or servicer may agree to grant a forbearance, during which payments on your
student loan account are postponed. Your lender or servicer may also agree to a forbearance if you are currently able to make payments, but not able to make
up previous payments in one lump sum.
With a forbearance, you remain responsible for the interest accruing on your loans. You may continue to make monthly payments to cover interest, or you may allow the interest that has accrued during the
forbearance to be capitalized, or added to the principal balance of your loan(s). This means that you will pay interest on a higher balance when you resume payments, possibly causing your
monthly payment amount to go up.
Forbearance policies vary from servicer to servicer. Your servicer may ask you to provide evidence of your temporary financial situation. Also, if you have not yet made any payments to your account, or if you have already received a forbearance, your servicer
may ask you to make one or more payments to your account as an expression of your commitment to repay.
If you wish to request a forbearance, you must contact your loan servicer. Please
click here for a list of servicers for forbearance forms and contacts. If your servicer is not listed, contact your servicer directly for a forbearance form.
If you don’t think that a forbearance is the best option for you, review any other
option on your Results Page, or return to the Solution Finder to make another selection.
