ED Grants Final Extension on Federal Student Loan Interests, Repayment, and Collections

Today, Friday, August 6, 2021, the U.S. Department of Education (Department) announced in a press release, a final extension of the COVID-19 forbearance set to expire on September 30, 2021.

The forbearance, which granted federal student loan borrowers relief from interest accural, paused loan repayments and collection of defaulted federal student loans, will continue to be deferred for an additional 3 months. The new expiration date is now, January 31, 2022. According to the press release, the Department said it "believes this additional time and a definitive end date will allow borrowers to plan for the resumption of payments and reduce the risk of delinquency and defaults after restart."

The announcement today will help provide some financial relief for many borrowers impacted by the pandemic. Particularly with the recent surges in the COVID-19 delta variant.