| If you believe you do not owe, should not have to pay, are being charged the wrong amount for, or are suffering financial hardship because of a student loan, see below for what to do: I believe I do not owe the student loan because: I believe I should not have to repay the student loan because: I believe I am being charged the wrong amount for the student loan because: The defaulted student loan that I owe is causing me financial hardship because:
Identity and Unauthorized Signature Disputes Find the statement below that most accurately describes your situation, and then follow the instructions for resolving that problem: This loan has my SSN, but not my name,
and I did not sign a promissory note for this loan | This can happen if the SSN is mis-typed. Typically, you will be required to send photocopies of the following to the agency that holds the loan: - Social Security Card
- Driver's license or government-issued ID card
- Passport or Birth Certificate
| This loan has my name, but not my SSN,
and I did not sign a promissory note for this loan | This can happen if the agency that holds the loan is trying to locate the borrower (who happens to have the same name as you). Contact the agency that holds the loan and describe your problem. You may be required to submit examples of your signature if your date of birth matches that of the borrower, or if you attended the school for which the loan was borrowed. | | This loan has my name and SSN, but I did not sign a promissory note for this loan | This can happen if somebody else uses your identity to borrower a loan. You may be required to submit photocopied examples of your signature from around the time that the loan was made (e.g., from tax returns for that year, driver's licenses issued at that time, cancelled checks that you wrote at that time). The agency that holds the loan will compare the signature on the promissory note to the signature examples you provide. Alternatively, you can provide proof that you could not have attended the school for which the loan was made (e.g., proof that you were employed or enrolled elsewhere, were living in another location, etc.) If you are unable to provide such proof, but the signature is clearly not yours, you can provide an affadavit from an independent hand-writing analyst. |
Disability A student loan can be discharged (forgiven) if either the borrower or the student for whose education the loan was borrowed is totally and permanently disabled. However, PLUS loans are not dischargeable on the basis of the student's disability. This means a physician (either an M.D. or a D.O.) will certify that the individual is unable to work in any capacity and will never be able to work. It is important to note that: - you may receive Social Security, VA or other disability benefits and still not meet the definition of total and permanent disability
- you may not have suffered from the disabling medical condition at the time the loan was borrowed, unless the condition has significantly deteriorated since then. In other words, if the individual was already totally and permanently disabled when the loan was borrowed, it cannot be discharged for that reason.
What to Do: If you believe you qualify for a disability discharge you must complete, and your doctor must sign, a discharge application form. You can request this form from the agency that holds your loan, or you can download it now. Check a recent demand letter or bill for this loan; if the address to which you are requested to send payment is the National Payment Center in Greenville, TX, you should submit your completed form to: U.S. Department of Education
P.O. Box 4222
Iowa City, IA 52244-4222
You may request a copy of this discharge application form by calling 1-800-621-3115 or download a copy here. Note: in order to guard against fraud, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) will contact your doctor directly to confirm the nature and severity of your disability if you apply for a disability discharge. In addition, ED may look for evidence that you are gainfully employed.
Death If the borrower of a student loan, or, in the case of a parent PLUS loan, the student for whose education the loan was borrowed dies, the loan can be discharged (forgiven). What to Do: Send an original or certified copy of the death certificate (must have the raised seal of the issuing records office) to the agency that holds the loan. Check a recent demand letter or bill for this loan; if the address to which you are requested to send payment is the National Payment Center in Greenville, TX, you should submit this documentation to: U.S. Department of Education
P.O. Box 4222
Iowa City, IA 52244-4222
Closed School You may be eligible to have your loan discharged (forgiven), if you did not complete the program of study and either of the following is true: - the school closed while you were attending, or
- the school closed within ninety days after you withdrew from the school
What to Do: You must complete and submit a closed school discharge application form. You can request this form from the agency that holds your loan, or you can download it now. Check a recent demand letter or bill for this loan; if the address to which you are requested to send payment is the National Payment Center in Greenville, TX, you should submit your completed form to: U.S. Department of Education
P.O. Box 4222
Iowa City, IA 52244-4222
You may request a copy of this discharge application form by calling 1-800-621-3115.
Unpaid Tuition Refund If you did not complete the program, course of study or semester for which you borrowed the loan, you may be eligible to have the loan discharged (forgiven), or to have the amount you owe on the loan reduced. Loans are not always forgiven entirely in this circumstance because the school had to reserve a place for you and could not have offered that spot to another student after the semester already began. Whether and how much your loan will be reduced will depend on how long you attended and the policies of the school and/or the state in which that school operated. What to Do: You must complete and submit an unpaid tuition refund discharge application form. You can request this form from the agency that holds your loan, or you can download it now. Check a recent demand letter or bill for this loan; if the address to which you are requested to send payment is the National Payment Center in Greenville, TX, you should submit your completed form to: U.S. Department of Education
P.O. Box 4222
Iowa City, IA 52244-4222
You may request a copy of this discharge application form by calling 1-800-621-3115.
False Certification of Ability to Benefit If you did not have a high school diploma or general equivalency diploma (G.E.D.) at the time you borrowed the loan, you may qualify to have the loan discharged (forgiven)--but not necessarily. Not all courses of study require a high school diploma or G.E.D. (e.g., cosmetology or truck driving). The school may have given you a test to see whether you were able to benefit from the education. What to Do: You must complete and submit a false certification of ability to benefit discharge application form. You can request this form from the agency that holds your loan, or you can download it now. Check a recent demand letter or bill for this loan; if the address to which you are requested to send payment is the National Payment Center in Greenville, TX, you should submit your completed form to: U.S. Department of Education
P.O. Box 4222
Iowa City, IA 52244-4222
You may request a copy of this discharge application form by calling 1-800-621-3115.
False Certification of Ability to Benefit - Disqualifying Condition If you were unable to benefit from the education you received, you may be eligible to have the loan discharged (forgiven), depending on your circumstances. Your loan cannot be discharged because you were dissatisfied with the quality of the education you received, or because you failed to find employment in the field for which you received the education. It is the borrower's responsibility to research the quality of the school before enrolling--though the government guarantees or issues the loan, that does not mean that the government guarantees the quality of the education offered. If you were unable to benefit from the education because of some disqualifying condition, you may be eligible for discharge if the school wrongfully ignored this condition. For example, if you attended a truck-driving school but did not have a driver's license and could not obtain one because you are legally blind, you may qualify for a discharge. What to Do: You must complete and submit a false certification of ability to benefit due to disqualifying condition discharge application form. You can request this form from the agency that holds your loan, or you can download it now. Check a recent demand letter or bill for this loan; if the address to which you are requested to send payment is the National Payment Center in Greenville, TX, you should submit your completed form to: U.S. Department of Education
P.O. Box 4222
Iowa City, IA 52244-4222
You may request a copy of this discharge application form by calling 1-800-621-3115.
Defense of Infancy Student loans are not dischargeable on the basis of the borrower's age (per the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended by the Higher Education Amendments of 1986, P.L. 99-498).
Statute of Limitations There is no statute of limitation for collecting Federal student loans (per Section 484(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, 20 U.S.C. 1091a(a), as amended by the Higher Education Technical Amendments of 1991, P.L. 102-26, and the Higher Education Technical Amendments of 1992, P.L. 102-325)
Bankruptcy Federal student loans are not automatically dischargeable in bankruptcy. Whether your loan was dischargeable depends largely on when you filed for bankruptcy, and how old your loan was at the time you filed. The chart below will help you understand the requirements for discharging student loans based on when the bankruptcy was filed. If your bankruptcy petition was dismissed rather than discharged, then your loan would not be dischargeable. | If you filed for bankruptcy... | Then | | Before 9/30/1977 | Your loan is probably dischargeable | | Between 9/30/1977 and 11/5/1978 | Your loan was only dischargeable if you had been required to make payments on the loan for at least five years prior to the date you filed. | | Between 11/6/1978 and 8/13/1979 | Your loan is probably dischargeable | | Between 8/14/1979 and 5/27/1991 | Your loan was only dischargeable if you had been required to make payments on the loan for at least five years prior to the date you filed. | | Between 5/28/1991 and 10/7/1998 | Your loan was only dischargeable if you had been required to make payments on the loan for at least seven years prior to the date you filed. | | On or after 10/8/1998 | Your loan is probably not dischargeable unless the bankruptcy court specifically determined that requiring you to repay the loan would constitute an undue hardship for you or your dependents. |
There are exceptions to these general guidelines. What to Do: You must submit the following proof of your bankruptcy to the agency that holds your loan: - Copy of the notice of the first meeting of creditors
- List of creditors (schedule A-3)
- Final Discharge
Be sure to include a cover letter stating your name, social security number and the account number(s) of the loan(s) you believe should be discharged (in many cases your social security number is your account number). Check a recent demand letter or bill for this loan; if the address to which you are requested to send payment is the National Payment Center in Greenville, TX, you should submit your documentation to: U.S. Department of Education
P.O. Box 1920
St. Paul, MN 55101
Balance Disputes A Federal student loan, like most loans, accrues interest over time. In addition, the balance on defaulted student loans may be further increased by the addition of collection costs and fees that are allowed for in the promissory note that you signed. As a result, the balance that you currently owe will be larger than the amount you borrowed if the amount you have paid does not equal the amount of interest and/or fees that have been added. You should also keep in mind that you may have taken out multiple loans that were serviced by different agencies after you graduated. Thus, payments that you made may have applied to a different loan than the one you are currently disputing. What to Do If you have proof that your loan was paid in full, discharged or otherwise satisfied, you should send a copy of that proof to the agency that holds your loan. If you believe that one or more of the payments you have made toward your loan(s) has not been credited, you should send proof to the agency that holds the loan(s). The kind of proof you need to submit depends on how the payment was made; see below for more information. | If you sent payment via... | Then you need to submit the following proof | | Personal check | A copy, front and back, of the cancelled check. | | Cashier's check, money order or Western Union Quick Collect payment | A copy, front and back, of the cancelled payment instrument. You will have to obtain this from the bank or agency that issued the check or money order. A copy of your receipt is not sufficient. | | Federal Treasury Offset Payment | A copy of the notice from the U.S. Treasury's Financial Management Service (FMS), or from the Internal Revenue Service, notifying you that your federal payment was offset. If you do not have this notice, you may obtain a copy by calling FMS at 888-304-3107. | | Credit Card | A copy of the credit card's billing statement that shows the transaction in question. |
Be sure to include a cover letter with any proof you submit that includes your name and social security number. Check a recent demand letter or bill for this loan; if the address to which you are requested to send payment is the National Payment Center in Greenville, TX, you should submit your proof to: U.S. Department of Education
P.O. Box 4222
Iowa City, IA 52244-4222
Defense of Laches When you signed for your student loan, it became your responsibility to let your lender know whenever your address changed. If you failed to do so, the lender or other agencies that have held your loan may not have been able to reach you, but you are still responsible to repay the loan as well as any interest that has accrued and any collection costs and fees that have been added. Certain debts may not be enforceable if the lender fails to attempt to collect them for a period of time; debtors may invoke a legal principle called the "defense of laches". This defense may not be used against Federal student loans.
Hardship Caused by Tax Refund Offset When a Federal student loan goes into default it becomes due and payable in full immediately. Before offsetting your Federal tax refund, the agency that holds your loan was required to send you a letter giving you at least 60 days notice and allowing you to avoid offset by either entering repayment or proving that you do not owe the loan. If you failed to do either of these things within the 60 day time period, then any Federal payments owed to you, including tax refunds, become eligible for offset for as long as you owe the defaulted loan. In most instances, these offsets will not be returned to you. However, you may contact the agency that holds your loan to discuss your circumstances. You may be required to complete a statement of financial status, which you can download now. Injured Spouses If you filed jointly with your spouse, the entire refund, even the part belonging to the spouse who does not owe the student loan, may be offset. The non-liable or "injured" spouse may attempt to reclaim his or her portion of the refund by filing an injured spouse claim form (IRS Form 8379) with the Internal Revenue Service. You may download this form at the IRS web site or may request one from the IRS by calling 1-800-829-1040. You also may be able to obtain the form at your local library, IRS office or from your tax preparer. Only the IRS will be able to answer questions about whether you qualify for an injured spouse refund and how much you may receive. Earned Income Tax Credit The earned income tax credit portion of your refund may legally be offset in order to pay your defaulted Federal student loan.
Hardship Caused by Offset of Social Security Benefits or Other Federal Stipends When a Federal student loan goes into default it becomes due and payable in full immediately. Before offsetting your Federal payment, the agency that holds your loan was required to send you a letter giving you at least 60 days notice and allowing you to avoid offset by either entering repayment or proving that you do not owe the loan. If you failed to do either of these things within the 60 day time period, then any Federal payments owed to you, including social security benefits, become eligible for offset for as long as you owe the defaulted loan. However, you may contact the agency that holds your loan to discuss your circumstances and possibly negotiate to have the offset reduced or stopped. You may be required to complete a statement of financial status, which you can download now.
Hardship Caused by Wage Garnishment When a Federal student loan goes into default it becomes due and payable in full immediately. Before garnishing your wages, the agency that holds your loan was required to send you a letter giving you at least 30 days notice and allowing you to avoid offset by either entering repayment or proving that you do not owe the loan. If you failed to do either of these things within the 30 day time period, then your wages become eligible for offset for as long as you owe the defaulted loan. However, you may contact the agency that holds your loan to discuss your circumstances and possibly negotiate to have the garnishment amount reduced. You may be required to complete a statement of financial status, which you can download now.
Hardship Caused by Unreasonable Payment Requirement When a Federal student loan goes into default it becomes due and payable in full immediately, and the agency that holds the loan you owe has the legal right to demand that you repay the balance immediately or as quickly as possible. The agency may legally demand that you attempt to borrower funds or sell some of your assets in order to pay in full. However, you may provide proof to the agency that you are unable to meet their demands, especially in the form of a completed statement of financial status, which you can download now. You should also understand that any payments you make voluntarily while you are negotiating a payment schedule will both reduce the amount you owe and will demonstrate that you are acting in good faith. | 
