Paying your student loans isn’t optional
If you stop paying your student loans, they quickly move from delinquent status to default. Default takes away your options and leaves you with a rapidly growing debt that will not go away.
If you default on your loans, you lose access to important loan features that could help you manage your debt, such as deferment, forbearance and other repayment plans.
If you are at risk of default, contact your lender before it’s too late.
Default severely damages your financial health
Depending on the loan type and date on which you received your loan, your account can enter default after as few as 9 months of missed payments. Your lender will report your default to national credit bureau agencies, which will damage your credit score, making it difficult to get credit, finance a vehicle, buy a home and in some cases even get a job.
You will also lose all the benefits of being current with your student loans, including eligibility for:
- Flexible repayment options
- Deferment and forbearance
- Subsidized interest benefits
- More Title IV financial aid
Default does a lot more than damage your credit and restrict access to federal financial aid. Federal law specifies several ways to make you pay, including:
- Garnishing your wages
- Withholding a portion of your state and federal tax refunds
- Withholding a portion of your Social Security benefits
- Withholding stimulus payments and special tax credits
In short: you will be required to pay back your loans on very tough terms with little or no recourse. In almost all cases, not even bankruptcy will eliminate student loan debt.
Default can have many other costs, including: collection fees, legal fees, and court costs. To learn more, visit our Manage default section.
Are you at risk of default?
If you don’t know the current status of your loans, you may already be delinquent or in default. Contact your lender immediately. If you don’t know who your lender is, go to the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS), which is the central database for all federal student loan information.
Don’t wait to ask for help. If you do, it might be too late for your lender to help you and keep you from defaulting.
