Consumer complaint received 2017-07-03
Product: Student loan — Federal student loan servicing
Issue: Struggling to repay your loan — Problem lowering your monthly payments
Company: Navient Solutions, LLC. (MD)

My student loans are more than {$180000.00}. My lender is Navient. I am currently enrolled in the Income Based Repayment Plan ( IBR ). In XX/XX/XXXX, I discovered the existence of the Revised Pay As You Earn Repayment Plan ( REPAYE ). In mid XX/XX/XXXX, I filed an application with Navient to switch from my current IBR plan to the REPAYE plan, a move that would lower my monthly payments by a much needed {$300.00} per month. I was notified that the application had been received and would take 15-20 days to process. I was advised by Navient customer service that in order to process the application for the REPAYE plan, I need to make a payment of at least {$5.00} in the old IBR plan, which I did. By the end ofXX/XX/XXXX when I had not heard anything from Navient regarding my REPAYE application, I contacted them. I was told that my application was never forwarded for processing after I made the {$5.00} payment. That customer service representative assured me that he would forward the application and that it should be approved within ten day. When I still heard nothing, I contacted Navient on two additional occasions, the beginning of XX/XX/XXXX and again in XX/XX/XXXX. I was informed by customer service on each occasion ( by XXXX and XXXX ) that they had no idea why my application for REPAYE had not been approve given that I had followed all of the necessary steps. They both assured me again that they were submitting the application for approval. On XX/XX/XXXX when I still had no response regarding my application, I contacted Navient again. I was informed by that customer service representative that they found an error in my original application ( I applied for both the REPAYE and, in the alternative, the Pay As You Earn ( PAYE ) plan ). I was advised that I needed to resubmit my application again, which I did and they received on XX/XX/XXXX. The disturbing part of this conversation with this Navient Representative ( XXXX ) was that she told me that had to pay a minimum of {$2200.00} to be removed from my old IBR plan. I was told that once I made that payment, my application for the REPAYE would be submitted for approval. I am a lifetime government employee and do not have {$2200.00} to give them, which is the reason I am applying for the REPAYE program in the first place. I equate the request for a {$2200.00} payment before my application will be forwarded for approval to extortion. I have made the necessary minimum of {$5.00}, which documentation shows is acceptable to be removed from my old IBR plan. I have waited patiently for my initial application to be processed. What was supposed to have taken 15-20 days to process has now taken nearly three months and I have gotten nothing but the run-around from Navient. I am ready, willing and able to make my monthly payments on a regular basis on the REPAYE plan. However, time is of the essence as my next payment on under he old IBR plan is due on XX/XX/XXXX. I am requesting that my application for the REPAYE plan be forwarded and approved prior to XX/XX/XXXX. I have read that a lawsuit was filed inXX/XX/XXXX  against Navient for similar illegal practices, to include advising students to file for forbearance and for failing to processing legitimate applications for eligible repayment plans. I simply want this issue resolved immediately in my favor.