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Pause On Student Loan Payments Extended Through May 1

WASHINGTON (CBSMiami/AP) — A student loan moratorium that has allowed millions of Americans to put off debt payments during the pandemic has been extended by the Biden administration.

Under the action Wednesday, payments on federal student loans will remain paused through May 1.
Interest rates will remain at 0% during that period, and debt collection efforts will be suspended.

Those measures have been in place since early in the pandemic but were set to expire on January 31. This is the second extension from the administration.

President Joe Biden says the administration understands that borrowers are still coping with the impact of the pandemic.

"The Department of Education will continue working with borrowers to ensure they have the support they need to transition smoothly back into repayment and advance economic stability for their own households and for our nation," he said in a statement.

"As we are taking this action, I'm asking all student loan borrowers to do their part as well: take full advantage of the Department of Education's resources to help you prepare for payments to resume; look at options to lower your payments through income-based repayment plans; explore public service loan forgiveness; and make sure you are vaccinated and boosted when eligible," he concluded.

(© Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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