Borrowers who paid down their debt during a pandemic freeze that started in March 2020 can in fact get a refund — and then apply for forgiveness – but the process for doing that hasn't always been clear.
Laura Baum, a 30-year-old resident of Chicago, paid $5,000 during the payment freeze toward her $15,000 remaining debt. She is eligible to have $20,000 canceled since she was a Pell grant recipient when she was an undergraduate. At the beginning of September, Baum called her loan servicer and asked for a refund.
“If you apply first, you can process the refund to get your money back, and then that balance in your account is canceled,” Welbeck said.The Department of Education is offering a subscription pageYou can get a refund for the entire amount you paid during the payment freeze, according to the Department of Education. However, you can choose a lower amount.
Say you had $15,000 worth of debt remaining at the beginning of the payment freeze and have since paid $8,000, but qualify for $10,000 in debt relief. You might decide to ask for a refund of just $3,000. Then, your debt balance will be exactly $10,000, and you can apply for maximum loan forgiveness.Borrowers should expect to receive their refund six to 12 weeks after requesting it, according to the Department of Education. But you might want to double-check with your loan servicer.