Federal Loan Repayment

For Federal Direct Subsidized, Unsubsidized, and Grad PLUS loans, students are not required to make payments while enrolled at least half-time. Required repayment begins after the student's six-month grace period. The grace period goes into effect on the last day of the semester for a graduating student, on the last day of enrollment for a student who withdraws, or the date on which the student drops to less than half-time enrollment. Federal Perkins Loans have a nine-month grace period. Direct PLUS loans for parent borrowers enter repayment when they are fully disbursed, but parents may defer making payments while their child is enrolled in school at least half-time and for an additional six months after their child graduates, withdraws, or drops below half-time enrollment.

All borrowers are assigned to a federal loan servicer and will make payments to their loan servicer. Borrowers may determine the name and contact information for their loan servicer at studentaid.gov. Borrowers may also use the Repayment Estimator to help determine their monthly payment amount based on their specific circumstances.

Federal Direct Loans have a number of repayment plans with repayment periods ranging from 10 to 30 years. Summary information on each repayment plan is listed below. Links are provided for more detailed information.

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