Student Loan Freeze Extended
Updated 4/6/22
The Biden-Harris Administration has announced the student loan repayment pause has been extended through August 31st, 2022.
Originally Published 12/23/21
In March of 2020, the Department of Education issued a freeze on all federal student loans, directing these loans to be automatically placed in forbearance for a period of 60 days. Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic public health emergency, the date for the freeze to end has been extended multiple times. The Biden-Harris Administration announced the freeze has been extended again, with the new end date of May 1, 2022.
The original freeze lowered federal student loan interest to 0% and suspended the requirement to make monthly payments. During this time, any borrower taking part in a federal student loan repayment program, such as the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, will have each month considered as if a qualifying payment was made, as defined by program requirements
If a loan payment was made in error after March 13th, 2020, the borrower can contact their loan servicer to obtain a refund of that payment. During the freeze, while payments aren’t required, they are allowed. Any payment made during this time will go toward paying down the principal. Required payments are currently scheduled to start on May 1, 2022.
If you have additional questions about how the recent actions affect your loans, visit the Office of Federal Student Aid’s Coronavirus page for additional information.