Student loan borrowers have more time to reduce their interest rate. Here's what to know

NEW YORK (AP) — Student loan borrowers now have until the end of 2026 to enroll in auto pay and have their interest rate reduced by 1%.

The original deadline was Sept. 30, but the U.S. Department of Education extended it to give borrowers more time to enroll. The rate reduction will last through June 2028.

Borrowers who currently use auto pay already receive an interest-rate discount of 0.25%, so the new reduction takes off just 0.75%.

This temporary benefit is meant to support borrowers, along with those who are returning to repayment, and ensure they can stay on top of the new Repayment Assistance Plan that requires on-time payments, according to the Education Department.

The interest reduction can benefit borrowers who have large balances and are on fixed payments, said Lesley J. Turner, associate professor of public policy at the University of Chicago.

“For a limited time, borrowers are now able to get a full percentage point reduction in their interest rate if they sign up for auto debit," Turner said. “So this is a quadrupling of the earlier benefit. It’s a pretty big benefit, especially for borrowers who have large balances.”

Since the interest reduction was announced this summer, nearly 2 million borrowers have enrolled in auto pay.

Around 9 million Americans are in default on their federal student loans as of June, according to the Education Department. Hundreds of thousands more are behind on loan payments and at risk of default this year.

If you're looking to enroll your student loans in auto pay, here's what you need to know:

In order to get the 1% interest reduction, you must enroll in auto pay by Dec. 31.

First, log in to your student loan servicer account and select auto pay. You'll need to enter your bank information to automatically withdraw the monthly payment from your checking or savings account.

Even without the rate reduction, auto pay is a good way to stay on top of your student loans, Turner said.

“We all know life gets busy and if you have to log in every month and manually make your payment there may be a chance that you forget and then you end up having your loans go delinquent," she said.

Borrowers who were enrolled in auto pay before the announcement in July have had their interest rate automatically reduced by 1%, according to the Education Department.

If your student loans are in default, you must log in to studentaid.gov and consolidate your eligible loans in order to sign up for auto pay.

Involuntary collections on federal student loans remain on hold. The Trump administration announced earlier this year that it is delaying plans to withhold pay from student loan borrowers who default on their payments. Borrowers are considered in default when they are at least 270 days behind on payments.

The online application for loan consolidation is available at studentaid.gov/loan-consolidation . If you have multiple federal student loans, you can combine them into a single loan with a fixed interest rate and a single monthly payment. The consolidation process typically takes around 60 days to complete. You can only consolidate your loans once.

If your student loans are in default, you can also contact your loan holder to apply for a loan rehabilitation program. Through this program, borrowers are enrolled in a reduced payment plan and, after five successful payments, wage garnishment ends.

Borrowers can find more information about loan rehabilitation here.

The Associated Press receives support from Charles Schwab Foundation for educational and explanatory reporting to improve financial literacy. The independent foundation is separate from Charles Schwab and Co. Inc. The AP is solely responsible for its journalism.