US Department of Education
Special Programs

The Federal Government and the U.S. Department of Education have recently announced special programs and/or enhancements for borrowers who have federally-owned student loans, such as Federal Direct Loans or federally-owned FFELP Loans. It is important to understand that these same programs and/or enhancements are not available for private student loans, such as the Brazos Student Loan, Brazos Parent Loan, or Brazos Refinance Loan. We encourage you to do your homework before you proceed and make the best decision given your facts and circumstances. Read below for more information.

If you currently have student loans and are unsure what type of loans you have or if you are eligible for any of these programs, contact your current student loan servicer(s), as they are your best source of information about existing loans. If you are unsure how to contact your servicer, read below.

COVID-19 Payment Suspension

In Response to COVID-19, the federal government has put in place relief measures for borrowers who have Government-owned loans (Direct Loans). The relief measures have been automatically applied to Government-owned Loans effective as of March 13, 2020 and, at this time, will extend through June 30, 2023 (with payments resuming 60 days thereafter, at the latest). For more specific information, visit studentaid.gov.

• Payments will be suspended (meaning no payments are due)
• Interest will not accrue

Commercial FFEL program loans and private student loans do NOT qualify for these relief measures.

The Brazos Student Loan, Brazos Parent Loan and Brazos Refinance Loan are private student loans that do not qualify for these measures. Further, if you refinance any of your Government owned loans in to a Private Student Loan, like a private refinance loan, the Government-owned loans you refinance will no longer be eligible for any federal relief measures or programs.

How to find your student loan servicer and loan type.

There are a number of ways you can find the loan servicer for your loan(s):

1. Check your monthly billing statement – your billing statement comes from your loan servicer and will contain all relevant contact information.

2. To find out what federal loans you have and identify your servicer(s) visit studentaid.gov or call at 1-800-4FEDAID.

Click here for more information on how to determine whether your loans are federally or privately held.