Federal student loans can move from servicer to servicer. This can get confusing. You will need to work with all your loan servicers to keep loans in good standing. To find out who holds your federal loans, your best option is www.nslds.ed.gov. You will need the PIN number you used to electronically sign your FAFSA. If you have forgotten that number, go to www.pin.ed.gov to request a duplicate.

For private, non-federal loans, you can usually find those on your credit report. Go to www.annualcreditreport.com to request a free copy of your credit report.

If you need help, ask for it by calling the loan holder. You may qualify for deferment or forbearance. If making payments is a struggle, you have options. Contact your loan holder or servicer to learn more about changing your payment plan (to lower payment amount) or deferment and forbearance options (stop payment for a period of time). It is important to do this before becoming delinquent on the loans.

You can also download a deferment form from your loan servicer’s web site and return it to each of your loan servicers or learn more about deferment options by visiting the student aid government site. Below are deferment forms for the most common types:

• Unemployment form
• Economic Hardship form

First, contact your loan holder for details about payment plans. Most servicers allow you to set up automatic payments, making it easier to pay bills on time.

When you first enter repayment, you have the option to pick a payment plan. If you didn’t pick one, you were automatically placed into standard repayment. Standard plans will usually cost the least because the loan is paid off faster and less interest accrues. If the standard payment is too high for you, there are several other plan options including Graduated, Extended and Income Based Repayment. Learn more about these repayment options and their definitions.

You can use the loan calculators on finaid.org or your servicer’s website to see how your monthly payment and total cost will change under different payment plans.

You can also view the Student Loan Repayment Chart that provides an estimate of your payments based on your loan type and loan balance.

Yes, and we strongly encourage you to do so. Paying while you are in school can save you money in the long run, and helps you track your total debt. Contact your loan holder for more information on how they accept payments before repayment—some will allow you to pay online, over the phone or by mail. No matter how you pay, it’s great to be proactive and take charge of your loans before graduation.

The loan servicers for U.S. Department of Education held loans are FedLoan Servicing, Great Lakes, Nelnet and Sallie Mae.

It’s estimated that a 30-day late payment drops a FICO score by about 90 points and a defaulted loan will generally drop a FICO score about 150-200 points. For most people with average credit, 90 points can damage your credit score.

The following is an example of delinquency and default impact on a $150,000, 30-year mortgage. You’ll see that not paying pack your student loans can have a big impact on your FICO score in turn, affecting the interest rate and monthly payment on a home loan. If you’re having trouble repaying some student loans, think about this chart and remember that you have many options.

A loan is in default when you fail to pay several regular installments on time or otherwise fail to meet the terms and conditions of the loan repayment agreement. Your federal student loan is considered in default when it reaches 270 days of delinquency.

You should never default on your loan. Through your loan holders, you have options to prevent default. Contact your loan holder to use those options.

If you do default on a federal student loan, there are serious consequences:

• Collection costs of up to 25% can be added to the balance.
• The holder of the loan can take legal action to recover the money.
• Your wages can be garnished administratively without a court order.
• Income tax refunds can be seized.
• Default is reported to the national credit reporting agencies.
• Loss of eligibility for future federal financial aid, unless a satisfactory repayment schedule is arranged.
• Generally, your student loan is not dischargeable in bankruptcy.

A consequence of default is losing eligibility for federal financial aid. To qualify, you have to do one of the following:

• Pay the loan in full.
• Make six consecutive, on-time monthly payments.
• You must continue monthly payments to retain eligibility.
• Make three consecutive, on-time monthly payments and then pay the default in full through consolidation.
• Make nine consecutive, on-time monthly payments and qualify to rehabilitate the loan.
• Rehabilitation is a good option because the loan is no longer in default and is reported as such to the national credit reporting agencies.

Students receiving federal financial aid have varying rights and responsibilities. In accordance with the Borrower’s Rights and Responsibilities Statement attached to the Master Promissory Note (MPN), the student has the right to:

• Written information on loan obligations and information on rights and responsibilities as a borrower
• A copy of the MPN, either before or at the time the loan is disbursed
• A grace period and an explanation of what this means
• Notification, if in grace period or repayment, no later than 45 days after a lender assigns, sells or transfers the loan to another lender
• A disclosure statement received before repayment begins that includes information about interest rates, fees, the balance owed and a loan repayment schedule
• Deferment or forbearance of repayment for certain defined periods, if qualified and requested
• Prepayment of loan in whole or in part anytime without an early-repayment penalty
• Documentation that loan is paid in full

In accordance with the Borrower’s Rights and Responsibilities Statement attached to the Master Promissory Note (MPN) the student has the responsibility for:

• Completing exit counseling before leaving school or dropping below half-time enrollment
• Repaying loan according to repayment schedule even if not completed academic program, dissatisfied with the education received or unable to find employment after graduation.
• Notifying lender or loan servicer if student:
• Moves or changes address
• Changes telephone number
• Changes name
• Changes SSN
• Changes employers, or employer’s address or telephone number changes
• Making monthly payments on loan after grace period ends, unless there is a deferment or forbearance
• Notifying lender or loan servicer of anything that might later change eligibility for an existing deferment or forbearance

If you qualify, paying for higher education may provide some tax relief. To learn more about different tax benefits, use the current tax year IRS Publication 970, Tax Benefits for Education.

The benefit most applicable when in repayment is the student loan interest deduction of up to $2,500 paid. The publication will provide more information about if you qualify. If you paid over $600 in interest to one loan holder, that holder will send you a 1098E with the total amount paid. If you do not receive a 1098E from a holder, you can contact them or use their online history to determine how much interest you paid to them.

Our commitment to you doesn’t end when you graduate. We partner with servicers who will communicate with you through mail, email or telephone to keep you informed of student loan options, and to let you know there is help available if you need it.

The servicers we partner with are ECMC Solutions, i3 and Student Outreach Solutions (formerly known as General Revenue Corp. or GRC).

Below are some questions you may ask about their services:

• I am not delinquent on my loans, why are they calling me?
  We assign accounts in repayment, even if they are not delinquent. They contact you to assist with successful repayment and that may involve communication when you are in a non-delinquent status. If the servicer said you were delinquent, please know there can be a lag of approximately one month for status updates between all parties. If your loan holder has notified you that all loans are current, advise the Apollo servicer and then follow-up if you hear from them again next month—it is possible you have other loans that are with a different loan holder.
• I did not authorize University of Phoenix to release my information to any other parties. Should they be calling me?
  The Privacy Act Notice section of the MPN authorizes release of information in your file to third parties permitting the servicing or collection of your loans and to counsel you in repayment efforts. The servicers are calling on behalf of the University to explain repayment options that will help with successful loan repayment.
• Why are the servicers asking for personal information if they called me?
  Servicers confirm your identity before disclosing any personal information and will ask for one of the following: last four digits of your SSN, birth date or home address. They ask for this information to protect your personal information.

A deferment is a temporary suspension of loan payments for specific situations such as unemployment, economic hardship or enrolling in school at least halftime. If you are unable to make your monthly payment and you meet the terms of the deferment, you would complete a deferment form and return to your loan servicer. The two most common types of deferment are unemployment and economic hardship. See a full list of deferment types.