Deferring student loans.
The staggering cost of higher education has made it necessary for many people to amass enormous student loan debt. Everyone who has a student loan and meets the lender's criteria is eligible for at least one period of student loan deferment. Deferment allows you to suspend your student loan payments until you are able to meet the minimum monthly payments. Extreme financial hardship, going back to school at least half-time, and disability are common reasons for deferring student loans.
Instructions
1. Get on the National Student Loan System website.
Find out what kind of loan you have. You will find a list of all of your student loans and lenders on a government website called the National Student Loan Data System website (there's a link in the resources section below). On the main page, click on "Financial Aid Review" and follow the instructions.
2. What type of loan do you have?
Analyze the data from the National Student Loan Data System, and research your options. If you have a Stafford Loan, you may be eligible for deferment if you can't find full-time employment after you graduate, if you experience severe economic hardship, or if you become a full-time teacher for five years straight in a low-income area. You may also be eligible to defer your loans if your school closes before you can complete your program and the school does not reimburse you for the amount of the loan. If you file for bankruptcy, the bankruptcy court might also decide that your student loan needs to be discharged. If you die or become disabled, your loans may also be deferred.
Perkins Loans are automatically deferred for nine months, but you may qualify for further deferment if you are unable to find work on a full-time basis, encounter severe economic hardship, or you work in law enforcement, corrections, or teaching in designated low-income areas. Your loans may be canceled if you become a full-time special education teacher or a teacher of children with diagnosed learning disabilities, serve as a full-time corrections officer, work full-time in the education division of the Head Start Program, or if you perform early intervention services for the elderly on a full-time, professional basis.
3. Talk to your lender.
Contact your lender to submit your deferment request. Be prepared to produce any documentation that they might require of you, such as proof of financial hardship or proof that you have gone back to school.
4. Give them two weeks.
Allow two weeks for your loan deferment request to be processed. If you haven't heard back from the loan company by the end of two weeks, follow up with a phone call to make sure that they are not holding your deferment up because they need further documentation or information.
5. Calculate your options.
Decide whether or not you will continue to pay the interest on your student loan while deferring the balance. If you continue to pay the interest, your loan balance will remain the same. If you choose not to do so, the amount of interest will be added to the principal of the loan, and you will then pay interest on the interest.
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