Lana Oconnell
Edfinancial Services is a private company that manages billing, questions, and payments for Federal Student Aid (FSA). They also help students enroll in the best repayment plan for them. Generally, repayment for student loans begins six months after graduation, dropping below half-time enrollment, or withdrawing from school. Students have up to ten years to repay their federal student loans, with various repayment and postponement options available. Edfinancial offers multiple payment methods, including Auto Pay, which automatically withdraws payments from a designated bank account each month, and online payment.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| When does repayment start? | Six months after you graduate, drop below half-time enrollment, or withdraw from school. |
| How long do you have to repay? | Generally up to ten years, but you may be eligible to extend up to 25 years or repay based on your income. |
| What are the repayment options? | Auto Pay, online payment, Direct Consolidation Loan, Parent PLUS Loan, Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans, and more. |
| How are payments allocated? | Edfinancial follows the standard allocation method. Payments are applied to the total amount due for each loan. Any excess is applied to the highest-interest loan first, then unsubsidized loans, then subsidized loans. |
| How to make payments? | Online account, bank or online bill pay service, check or money order by mail, Auto Pay. |
| What if you can't pay? | There are options to temporarily postpone repayment, such as deferment, forbearance, or income-based repayment plans. Rehabilitation is also available for defaulted federal student loans. |
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Payment methods
Edfinancial Services is a private company that manages billing, questions, and payments for your federal loan provider, Federal Student Aid (FSA).
There are several payment methods available to you when paying back your student loan with Edfinancial.
Auto Pay
Auto Pay is Edfinancial's automatic-debit payment program. You can register for Auto Pay by logging into your online account. Once set up, your payments will be automatically debited each month from your designated checking or savings account. This option allows for convenient and timely payments without the hassle of mailing your payment or remembering to pay online each month. You could even save 0.25% on your interest rate!
Online Payment
You can pay online at your convenience by logging into your online student loan account. Here, you can also view the latest information about your student loans, explore repayment options, and more.
Pay by Mail
You can also make a payment by sending a check or money order through the mail. Be sure to mail your payment several days prior to your due date to ensure that it is received on time. Your payment will be made effective for the date it was received. Your payment mailing address may be different, depending on your loan program. Please check your billing statement, log into your online account, or contact Edfinancial to get the correct payment mailing address for your loans.
Through Your Bank or Another Online Bill Pay Service
You can make your student loan payments through your bank or another online bill pay service. Ensure your service is updated with the correct account number and payment address, which you can find on your billing statement or by logging into your online account.
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Repayment plans
Generally, you will have up to ten years to repay your federal student loan, but you may be eligible to extend your repayment term up to 25 years or repay your loans based on your income. There are also several options available to temporarily postpone repayment if you meet certain requirements.
Auto Pay
Auto Pay is Edfinancial's automatic-debit payment program, which automatically withdraws payments from your designated bank account each month. Auto Pay may also reduce your interest rate.
Online Payment
Online payment allows you to pay online at your convenience.
Direct Consolidation Loan
If you have multiple student loans, you may consider a Direct Consolidation Loan to combine the loans into one loan with a single monthly payment.
Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) Plans
Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans are based on your income and are only good for a year. Your monthly payments will be either 10 or 15 percent of discretionary income, depending on when you received your first loans, but never more than you would have paid under the 10-year Standard Repayment Plan. Payments are recalculated each year and are based on your updated income and family size.
The U.S. Department of Education's Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan is the lowest monthly payment amount of any IDR plan available to most borrowers. However, a federal court injunction has prevented the Department of Education from implementing the SAVE Plan and parts of other IDR plans. Interest will begin accruing again for borrowers in the SAVE forbearance starting August 1, 2025.
Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP)
The Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) is a Graduated Income-Contingent Repayment plan.
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Payment timing
Payments for a FFELP Stafford and Direct Subsidized or Unsubsidized student loan begin six months after you graduate, drop below half-time enrollment, or withdraw from school. Generally, you will have up to ten years to repay your federal student loan, but you may be eligible to extend your repayment term up to 25 years or repay based on your income.
If your loans have a standard, six-month grace period, your first payment will be due approximately six months after you graduate or drop below half-time enrollment. You will receive periodic updates on your outstanding balance, payment due dates, etc., as long as your servicer has your current contact information.
You can make payments online through your online student loan account or by mailing a check or money order. To avoid significant delays, ensure that you mail your payments to the correct address, as this may vary depending on your loan program. You can find the correct payment address on your billing statement, by logging into your online account, or by contacting Edfinancial.
You can also set up Auto Pay to automatically withdraw payments from your designated bank account each month. Auto Pay may also reduce your interest rate. If you have multiple student loans, you may consider a Direct Consolidation Loan to combine the loans into one loan with a single monthly payment.
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Rehabilitation
Certain eligible events, such as being in school deferment, receiving unemployment benefits, or other select qualifications, will clear any previous negative reporting if the qualifying period for the event occurred simultaneously with the negative reporting period. If you believe that Edfinancial has incorrectly reported information to a consumer reporting agency (CRA), you may dispute your credit reporting.
To maintain eligibility for borrower benefits and repayment incentives, you may be required to continue making monthly payments even if your current amount is $0.00. If you are pursuing Public Service Loan Forgiveness, your due date cannot be advanced beyond your annual IDR anniversary date. You can also instruct Edfinancial not to advance your due date by more than one month.
If you have multiple loans, you may consider a Direct Consolidation Loan to combine them into one loan with a single monthly payment. However, it is important to consider the pros and cons of consolidation before proceeding.
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Payment allocation
Edfinancial Services is a student loan servicer that provides customer service on behalf of your lender, including answering your questions, helping you with repayment plans, and processing your student loan payments.
If you have multiple student loans, you may consider a Direct Consolidation Loan to combine the loans into one loan with a single monthly payment. Overpayments made to consolidated loans will automatically go to the unsubsidized portion of the consolidation loan.
If you do not provide special instructions on how to apply your payment, Edfinancial will follow the standard allocation method:
- If a payment is made for the total amount due, it will be applied to the total amount due for each loan.
- If a payment is made in excess of the total amount due, the excess amount (also known as the overpayment) will be applied to the highest-interest-rate loan first.
- If you have multiple loans with the same interest rate, the overpayment will be applied to the unsubsidized loan(s) first, then to the subsidized loan(s).
- If you have multiple loans with the same interest rate and subsidy, the overpayment will be applied in proportion to those loans with a regular monthly payment.
You can also instruct Edfinancial not to advance your due date more than one month, as a one-time or recurring special payment instruction.
If a payment is made for less than the current amount due (a partial payment), it will be allocated across loans from most to least delinquent, in proportion to each loan’s regular monthly payment amount, less any amount already paid for that month until each loan is at the same level of delinquency or all loans are up to date.
If you wish to make extra payments without Auto Pay, you can submit one-time payments at any time through your online account. You can click on the “Make a Payment” section, and choose how you would like the payment allocated to your account. You can select “Auto Allocate” to have your payment applied based on the standard allocation method, or you can select “Specify for Each Loan” to apply specific amounts to specific loans.
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Frequently asked questions
Repayment for a FFELP Stafford and Direct Subsidized or Unsubsidized student loan begins six months after you graduate, drop below half-time enrollment, or withdraw from school.
There are several ways to pay back your student loan with Edfinancial. You can set up Auto Pay, which automatically withdraws payments from your designated bank account each month, or you can pay online, by mail, or through your bank or another online bill pay service.
It is recommended that you keep your student loan payments at 8-10% of your monthly income or less. You can also use the Loan Simulator to help estimate the potential repayment time and interest savings of making a small, additional monthly payment.
If you are having trouble making payments, there are options available such as Income-Driven Repayment Plans, which are designed to reduce your monthly payment amount. You may also be eligible to extend your repayment term up to 25 years or repay your loans based on your income.
