Repayment Plans

To make your payments more affordable, repayment plans can give you more time to repay your loans or can be based on your income.  Although you may select or be assigned a repayment plan when you first begin repaying your student loan, you can change repayment plans at any time—for free. Contact your loan servicer if you would like to discuss repayment plan options or change your repayment plan. You can get information about all of the federal student loans you have received and find the loan servicer for your loans by logging in to “My Federal Student Aid.”

Overview of Direct Loan and FFEL Program Repayment Plans

• Standard Repayment Plan– Payments are a fixed amount that ensures your loans are paid off within 10 years (within 10 to 30 years for Consolidation Loans).
• Graduated Repayment Plan– Payments are lower at first and then increase, usually every two years, and are for an amount that will ensure your loans are paid off within 10 years (within 10 to 30 years for Consolidation Loans).
• Extended Repayment Plan– Payments may be fixed or graduated, and will ensure that your loans are paid off within 25 years.
• Revised Pay As You Earn Repayment Plan (REPAYE)– Your monthly payments will be 10 percent of discretionary income. Payments are recalculated each year and are based on your updated income and family size. You must update your income and family size each year, even if they haven’t changed. If you’re married, both your and your spouse’s income and loan debt will be considered, whether taxes are filed jointly or separately (with limited exceptions). Any outstanding balance on your loan will be forgiven if you haven’t repaid your loan in full after 20 years (if all loans were taken out for undergraduate study) or 25 years (if any loans were taken out for graduate or professional study).
• Pay As You Earn Repayment Plan (PAYE)– Your monthly payments will be 10 percent of discretionary income, but never more than you would have paid under the 10-year Standard Repayment Plan. Payments are recalculated each year and are based on your updated income and family size. You must update your income and family size each year, even if they haven’t changed. If you’re married, your spouse’s income or loan debt will be considered only if you file a joint tax return. Any outstanding balance on your loan will be forgiven if you haven’t repaid your loan in full after 20 years.
• Income-Based Repayment Plan (IBR)– Your monthly payments will be either 10 or 15 percent of discretionary income (depending on when you received your first loans), but never more than you would have paid under the 10-year Standard Repayment Plan. Payments are recalculated each year and are based on your updated income and family size. You must update your income and family size each year, even if they haven’t changed. If you’re married, your spouse’s income or loan debt will be considered only if you file a joint tax return. Any outstanding balance on your loan will be forgiven if you haven’t repaid your loan in full after 20 years or 25 years, depending on when you received your first loans. You may have to pay income tax on any amount that is forgiven.
• Income Contingent Repayment Plan (ICR)– Your monthly payment will be the lesser of 20 percent of discretionary income or the amount you would pay on a repayment plan with a fixed payment over 12 years, adjusted according to your income. Payments are recalculated each year and are based on your updated income, family size, and the total amount of your Direct Loans. You must update your income and family size each year, even if they haven’t changed. If you’re married, your spouse’s income or loan debt will be considered only if you file a joint tax return or you choose to repay your Direct Loans jointly with your spouse. Any outstanding balance will be forgiven if you haven’t repaid your loan in full after 25 years.
• Income-Sensitive Repayment Plan– Your monthly payment is based on annual income, but your loan will be paid in full within 15 years.

Repay Your Federal Perkins Loan
Perkins Loan repayment plan options are not the same as those for the Direct Loan Program or FFEL Program loans. Please log in to your studentaid.gov account for details.

Consolidate Your Loans
If you have multiple federal student loans, you can consolidate them into a single Direct Consolidation Loan. This may simplify repayment if you are currently making separate loan payments to different loan holders or servicers, as you’ll only have one monthly payment to make. There may be tradeoffs, however, so you’ll want to learn about the advantages and possible disadvantages of loan consolidation before you consolidate.

_{Source: Federal Student Aid}

Last updated: 5/8/2023