Biden Extends Pause on Loan Repayment
Scott Jaschik
April 7, 2022
Federal student loans do not have to be repaid until Sept. 1. President also erases defaults for millions of students.
President Biden on Wednesday extended by four months, to Sept. 1, the pandemic-era pause on repaying federal student loans.
The move appears to have pleased very few in Washington—Democrats urged him to do more and cancel some or all federal student loans. Republicans said he should let the pause end.
In announcing the extension, the fourth of his administration, President Biden noted, “In January 2021, on my first day in office, I directed the Department of Education to pause federal student loan repayments through September of that year. At the time, our economy was barely growing. Fewer than 1 percent of Americans were fully vaccinated. Millions of Americans were struggling to stay afloat. Because of that pause in repayments, 41 million Americans were able to breathe a little easier during some of the toughest days of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
