Student Loan Clear

Where you stand

Last verified Oct 17, 2026

Your federal student loan is in default

You haven’t made a payment for at least 270 days, and your loan has moved to the Default Resolution Group (or a guaranty agency for FFEL loans).

  1. 1 What you can pick

    • Rehabilitation: 9 on-time payments within 10 months, at an amount based on your income (minimum $5, $10 from July 1, 2027). Removes the default from your credit history.
    • Consolidation into a new Direct Consolidation Loan: faster, but collection costs are added and the default record can stay up to 10 years. A consolidation loan made now can only use RAP or Tiered Standard.
    • A repayment agreement with the Default Resolution Group, or paying in full.

  2. 2 What each costs

    Each option has a different payment. Work out your payments

  3. 3 What to do next

    • Check your status on your StudentAid.gov dashboard and at MyEdDebt.ed.gov, the official site for defaulted loans.
    • Call the Default Resolution Group at 1-800-621-3115; it doesn’t charge for its services.
    • If you get a wage garnishment notice: a hearing request postmarked within 30 days pauses garnishment; a first payment under a repayment agreement within 30 days avoids it.
    • On Jan. 16, 2026 the Department announced a delay of wage garnishment and Treasury offset; check for a restart notice before assuming it still applies.

Read more

Not financial or legal advice. This page sums up the published rules for this situation. It can’t account for your full loan history; your servicer and StudentAid.gov have your actual record.

Official sources

  1. 34 CFR 685.102, definitions including default (current eCFR)
  2. StudentAid.gov: Student Loan Default and Collections: FAQs
  3. U.S. Department of Education press release, Jan. 16, 2026: involuntary collections delayed
  4. 20 U.S.C. 1095a, wage garnishment (Cornell LII)
  5. 31 CFR 285.4, offset of federal benefit payments (current eCFR)
  6. 34 CFR 685.211, payment application, prepayment and loan rehabilitation (current eCFR)
  7. Public Law 119-21 (H.R. 1, signed July 4, 2025), Title VIII, Secs. 81001–82004
  8. StudentAid.gov: Who’s My Student Loan Servicer?
  9. StudentAid.gov: SAVE Plan Borrowers – FAQs About Choosing a Different Repayment Plan (October 2026)