Get Temporary Relief 
Sometimes , you just need to suspend your student loan payments for a short period. If you re in a short - term financial bind , you may qualify for a deferment or a forbearance. With either of these options , you can temporarily suspend your payments. NEW : Automatic Suspension of Monthly Payments as a Result of the COVID-19 National Emergency To provide relief to student loan borrowers during the COVID-19 national emergency , federal student loan borrowers are automatically being placed in an administrative forbearance, which allows you to temporarily stop making your monthly loan payments. This suspension of payments will last from March 13 , 2020, through Sept. 30 , 2020 , but you can still make payments if you choose. Have questions? Find out what loans qualify and get additional information about this forbearance and other student loan flexibilities due to the COVID-19 national emergency. When it comes to deferment and forbearance , however , there are two important things to consider : In most cases , interest will accrue during your period of deferment or forbearance except in the case of certain forbearances, such as the one offered as a result of the COVID-19 national emergency. This means your balance will increase and you ll pay more over the life of your loan. If you re pursuing loan forgiveness , any period of deferment or forbearance likely will not count toward your forgiveness requirements. This means you ll stop making progress toward forgiveness until you resume repayment. Consider Another Repayment Plan First Because of the impact on interest and potential loan forgiveness , it might be worth exploring another repayment plan before you consider deferment or forbearance. For example , your payments could be more affordable if you change to an income - driven repayment plan. Contact your loan servicer to find out if another repayment plan might be the best option for you. Discuss obtaining a deferment or forbearance with you

user: Hey, I was wondering how to get temporary relief. Can you walk me through the process and answer some questions, please?

assistant: Of course. Sometimes, you just need to suspend your student loan payments for a short period.

assistant: Are you in a short-term financial bind?

user: No, I just wanted to learn about the process, should I ever get into this situation.

user: Can I be eligible for loan forgiveness if I already paid back a large amount of the loan?

assistant: Yes, you can qualify for loan forgiveness on your remaining balance if your loan is not paid in full after 20 or 25 years.

user: What if I'm eligible for a deferment or forbearance?

assistant: In that case you can temporarily suspend your payments.

user: How can you provide relief to student loan borrowers during the COVID-19 national emergency?

assistant: To achieve this, federal student loan borrowers are automatically being placed in an administrative forbearance, which allows you to temporarily stop making your monthly loan payments. This suspension of payments will last from March 13, 2020 , through Sept. 30, 2020, but you can still make payments if you choose.

user: That's good to know. What if I have a loan balance of $ 30,000 and an interest rate of 6 % and you are in forbearance for a year right after you enter repayment ?

assistant: In that case $ 1,800 in interest will accrue on your loans.