The Trump administration’s April 2025 announcement targeted borrowers with defaulted federal student loans; it did not mean every borrower with a current account had to restart payments at once. Since then, collection timelines and repayment rules have changed. Check your own status and instructions in your StudentAid.gov account before acting.
Do I have to start paying my student loans again?
It depends on your loan status. The April 21, 2025, Department of Education announcement concerned federal loans in default and said the department would begin collections, including Treasury Offset Program collections and Administrative Wage Garnishment. It was not a blanket notice that all federal borrowers with current accounts had a new payment due.
In a May 5, 2025, Federal Student Aid notice, the department urged borrowers to sign in to StudentAid.gov, update their profile, review repayment options and check whether their accounts were in good standing. It also directed institutions to contact former students who had left since January 1, 2020, and remind them about repayment when their loans were not being repaid or in deferment or forbearance.
The department estimated in that May 2025 notice that 38% of Direct Loan and Department-held Federal Family Education Loan Program borrowers in repayment were current. It also estimated that almost 25% of the entire federal student loan portfolio was in default or late-stage delinquency. Those are dated department estimates, not a measure of borrowers’ status today.
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Are student loan collections restarting?
The 2025 announcement described the department’s plan to collect on defaulted federal loans. But it is not a complete account of the current timeline: in January 2026, the department announced a temporary delay in involuntary collections while it implemented repayment reforms. The September 30, 2026, announcement of a new support portal does not, by itself, establish whether involuntary collections have resumed for every borrower or what deadline applies to an individual account.
Do not infer a payment or collection date from an old message or a general announcement. Check your current account and follow the instructions from your federal loan servicer.
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What if my federal student loan is in default?
As of September 30, 2026, Treasury and Education said a Defaulted Loans Support Center was available through StudentAid.gov. The centralized portal provides information about default consequences, compares ways to get out of default, and offers online rehabilitation or consolidation applications, payment options, and plan and discharge information.
The release says applicants can upload documents, review an estimated rehabilitation payment, sign an agreement electronically and track progress. It does not establish that the same option or terms are right for every borrower, so check eligibility and the consequences of each route before applying.
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How do I get out of default on a federal student loan?
- Sign in to StudentAid.gov. Confirm which loans are in default and review the current notices and options shown for your account.
- Use the Defaulted Loans Support Center. Compare the available paths, review eligibility and consequences, and check what documents or steps an application requires.
- Compare before choosing. Consider the immediate payment amount, interest and total amount repaid, timing, credit and reporting consequences, and whether a choice affects access to discharge or forgiveness paths. The portal offers comparisons and information, but there is no universally best route established for all borrowers.
- Track the application and follow official instructions. The portal’s announced features include document upload, electronic agreement signing and progress tracking. Confirm any deadlines and payment instructions in your account.
What repayment plan should I choose?
Repayment rules changed in 2026. Department of Education fact-sheet summaries said the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) and Tiered Standard plan would take effect July 1, 2026. The summaries also said some borrowers with loans made before that date and enrolled in phased-out plans would have until July 1, 2028, to choose RAP, Tiered Standard or Income-Based Repayment (IBR).
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Those dates and plan descriptions come from indexed Department fact-sheet summaries; the underlying department pages were not available for review. Whether a plan is available or suitable depends on your loans and circumstances. Verify current eligibility, plan terms and transition deadlines on StudentAid.gov before changing plans.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the administration said
In the September 30, 2026, Treasury and Education release announcing the support center, Education Secretary Linda McMahon called it “a historic step toward breaking up the federal education bureaucracy while streamlining critical resources for student loan borrowers in default.” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said, “Under President Trump, Treasury and the Department of Education are restoring fiscal responsibility to our nation’s $1.7 trillion federal student loan portfolio.” These are the officials’ characterizations of the announcement.
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What to check before taking action
- Confirm whether each federal loan is current, delinquent, in default, in deferment or in forbearance.
- Review the account-specific repayment options, collection notices and deadlines on StudentAid.gov.
- Use official account and servicer instructions rather than relying on an old email or a third-party message.
- Before selecting a plan or a way out of default, compare its payment terms and possible effects on total repayment and discharge or forgiveness eligibility.
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