Student Loan Repayment

There are three things you'll want to understand while considering what to choose:

• repayment period - the number of years to repay
• repayment plan - how much your monthly payment will be and how your payments will be applied
• payment structure - fixed payments that do not change (unless the interest rate changes) or variable payments that can change over time either in a structured manner or based on how your income changes

Remember, you can make pre-payments whenever you want with no penalty. This reduces the principal balance and the total interest paid.

Important Tip: If you decide to prepay your loans, pay down your highest cost debt first (the debt with the highest interest rate).

The following are payment plans offered on Access Group federal loans and private student loans:

• Standard Repayment Plan
• Graduated Repayment Plan
• Extended Repayment Plan*
• Income Based Repayment Plan (IBR)*
Income-Sensitive Repayment Plan*

*Note: These options are for federal loans only.

Try our calculators to help you pick a payment plan.

Compare repayment examples on Federal Stafford and PLUS loans using the standard and expanded repayment plans. Stafford | PLUS

• Up to 10 years for federal loans and up to 20 years for Access Group private loans
• Payment is a fixed amount (amounts on variable rate loans may vary as interest rates change)
• Requires the highest initial monthly payment, but lowest total interest paid
• Good choice for those whose goals are to pay off their loans quickly and at the lowest overall cost, and who can afford to pay the required minimum monthly payments

• Up to 10 years for federal loans and up to 20 years for Access Group private loans
• Monthly payments start lower and increase at scheduled intervals (early payments typically cover only interest charges)
• Total finance charges are higher over the length of repayment than with the Standard Plan
• Good choice for those who need an initial lower monthly payment but will be able to afford larger monthly payments later in repayment

• Access Group's Graduated Repayment Plan - EasyPay 2 Step
  Begins with payments of interest only for the first two years, followed by payments of interest and principal for the balance of the loan repayment period

• Eligible borrowers can reduce student loan monthly payments by up to 40%*
• Up to 25 years using either equal payments or graduated payments
• Monthly payment is lower than with the Standard plan, resulting in a higher overall cost
• Eligibility:
• Must have FFELP loan debt in excess of $30,000*
• For borrowers (1) whose first FFELP loan was borrowed on or after October 7, 1998, or (2) who, on the date he or she obtained the post-October 7, 1998 FFELP loan, had no outstanding balance on a FFELP loan obtained prior to October 7, 1998.
• Good choice for many borrowers seeking a low monthly payment

Compare monthly payment amounts between the standard and extended payment options

Enroll in extended repayment

* Eligible loans include Federal Stafford, Federal PLUS, and Federal Consolidation Loans. Federal Direct and Perkins loans are not eligible and should not be considered for the purposes of meeting the $30,000 minimum. Savings rate assumes a fixed 6.8% interest rate.

• IBR may not provide you with the lowest monthly loan payment on your eligible federal student loans (including Federal Consolidation Loans). In IBR, your monthly payment when experiencing a “partial financial hardship” is based on your household’s adjusted gross income (AGI), household size, the federal poverty guideline and your state of residence. As your AGI increases so will your monthly loan payment in IBR. As such, your monthly payment may be lower in certain situations using other repayment plans such as the Extended Repayment Plan. Calculators are available at MappingYourFuture.Org that allow you to estimate your monthly federal student loan payment under each of the available repayment plans.
• May be a good choice for borrowers whose annual adjusted gross income is considerably less than their outstanding eligible federal student loan debt.
• Borrowers must demonstrate “partial financial hardship” to enter this plan. To enter this plan borrower must meet the Partial Financial Hardship (PFH) requirement. To determine whether you have “partial financial hardship” PFH, use this calculator at Mapping Your Future.
• IBR payments are based on your household’s adjusted gross income, your household size, and the federal poverty guideline for your household size and state of residence. Payments change as these factors change.
• Borrowers must reapply yearly using the application materials required by their loan holder/servicer to determine if they still meet the partial financial hardship requirement and to evaluate if the monthly payment amount needs to change. The annual reapplication process includes providing information about household adjusted gross income and household size.
• Calculated annual payment is 15% of “disposable” income; monthly payments are 1/12 of that amount
• Borrowers must request this plan from each of the loan holder/servicer and provide any requested income documentation
• Upon approval, your IBR set monthly payment amount may take 1-2 billing cycles to be in effect. If you can not make your Standard payment, you may request forbearance (note: the forbearance may affect your borrower benefits).
• Any outstanding eligible loan balance is forgiven after 25 years of being “economically challenged”
• Monthly payment in this plan can be less than the accrued interest (it allows for negative amortization)

For more information on IBR, including definitions and forms, visit our IBR page.

• The borrower must request this plan from the loan holder/servicer and provide an application along with any requested income documentation
• Monthly payment amount is based on 4% of your gross monthly income or the amount equal to your monthly interest accrual, whichever is greater
• Monthly payments are based on the borrower's expected total monthly gross income and are adjusted annually
• Monthly payments must at least equal the accrued interest and be no more than three times greater than any other payment
• Payment must at least equal interest charges
• Length of repayment period is up to 15 years
• Offers lower monthly payments, but incurs higher interest paid than the standard 10-year payment plan