Log in to studentaid.gov. All federal student loan borrowers have a My Federal Student Aid account they can access with their FSA ID. Sign in to your account, select a loan and look at its repayment status to see if it's listed as in default. Your account also includes information about your servicer, if you need it.
A loan goes into default when you fail to repay the loan according to the terms you agreed to in the promissory note. For most federal student loans, your loan will go into default if you haven't made a payment in more than 270 days.
Understanding Default
For a loan made under the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program or the Federal Family Education Loan Program, you're considered to be in default if you don't make your scheduled student loan payments for at least 270 days.
With a personal loan, default typically occurs once you've gone 90 days without making a payment.
If you haven't made a payment on your federal student loan for at least 270 days (nine months), and you have not entered into an agreement with your lender or servicer to postpone your payments (like deferment or forbearance), you are probably in default.
Some lenders may send the notice after six months of missed payments. With others, it might be less. Most importantly, if you can repay the money or agree on a payment plan with your lender within 14 days of the default notice, you can stop the default from being added to your credit report.
How Many People Are Currently in Default on Their Student Loans? By the end of 2021, roughly 3 million people were in student loan default — that's about 7% of all borrowers. Another 270,000 were 90-270 days delinquent on their student loans — meaning they missed a payment but hadn't defaulted yet.
Defaulted loans are not eligible for any of our student loan forgiveness programs. But if you take advantage of Fresh Start, you'll get out of default status. Then you'll regain the ability to apply for forgiveness programs, including Public Service Loan Forgiveness.
Student loans don't go away after seven years. There is no program for loan forgiveness or cancellation after seven years. But if you recently checked your credit report and wondered, “why did my student loans disappear?” The answer is that you have defaulted student loans.
You can check your credit file to find out who you owe money to. It will show if you have any defaults, County Court judgments (CCJs) or decrees. This is the first step in dealing with your debt problems.
You don't get reported when you're in forbearance. During the on-ramp period (through Sept. 30, 2024), we automatically put your loan in a forbearance for the payments you missed. Here's what this means: Your account was no longer considered delinquent and was made current.
Neither any Credit Information Company nor a credit bureau issues any defaulters list. However, if you want to check your loan defaults, you can directly contact your lending bank or NBFC and gather information regarding your debt obligations.
If you are a California resident and are experiencing issues with your loan servicer, contact the DFPI's Consumer Services Office via email at ASK.DFPI@dfpi.ca.gov, call toll-free at (866-275-2677), or file a complaint online.
Pay Off High-Interest Loans First
With this approach, you pay off your loans from the highest interest rate to the lowest. You make the minimum payments on each balance except the highest-rate loan. You also make an extra monthly payment based on how much you can put toward the debt.
What happened? Student loans disappear from credit reports 7.5 years from the date they are paid in full, charged-off, or entered default. However, education debt can reappear if you dig out of default with consolidation or loan rehabilitation. Student loans can have an outsized impact on your credit score.
The Fresh Start program for borrowers with previously defaulted student loans will prevent withheld tax refunds through at least September 2024. And borrowers won't newly fall into default as payments resume. The White House announced a 12-month student loan on-ramp from Oct. 1, 2023 to Sept.
After 270 days, or roughly nine months, of past-due payments: Your federal loan goes into default and you could see your debt go to collections.
Roughly 42.7 million Americans have outstanding federal student loan debt — that's about 12.5% of the U.S. population, per census data.
Key Takeaways. We expect the U.S. leveraged loan default rate to fall to 1% by September 2025, from 1.26% in September 2024.
The default notice you receive will usually be written up as a formal letter, explaining that you've broken the terms of your agreement with your creditor. It should include the following information: Details of your name and address, as well as the name and address of the company you owe money to.
There are some differences around how the various data elements on a credit report factor into the score calculations. Although credit scoring models vary, generally, credit scores from 660 to 724 are considered good; 725 to 759 are considered very good; and 760 and up are considered excellent.
Also, the amount and date shouldn't change, so you won't need to pay more or wait longer for your default to be removed. You can see if you have a default on your credit profile by checking your Experian Credit Report.