Debt Ceiling Deal Will End the Student Loan Repayment Pause

May 31, 2023

If the debt ceiling bill passes, the Education Department will be barred from extending the student loan repayment pause yet again.

by Emma Camp Reason.com

After over three years, federal student loan borrowers will likely have to start repaying their debt. According to the terms of a debt ceiling deal struck by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Biden, the extended pause on student loan repayment will end on August 30th.

While a previous announcement from the Education Department had vowed to end the pause on August 29—provided the Supreme Court had not yet released a decision on Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan—the debt ceiling deal solidifies this promise. If the bill passes, the Education Department will be statutorily barred from announcing yet another last-minute extension—as officials have done on eight occasions since August 2020, including two separate continuations of supposedly “final” extensions.