Borrower Defense FAQs — Project on Predatory Student Lending (2024)

Borrower Defense FAQs

• A Borrower Defense to Repayment application is a form you can fill out to let the Department of Education know that you have been cheated, lied to, or misled by your school and that you are eligible to have your federal student loans canceled.

• You can go to the Department of Education’s website for information on how to apply. You can apply in two ways:

  BY MAIL:

  U.S. Department of Education – Borrower Defense to Repayment

  P.O. Box 1854

  Monticello, KY 42633

  THROUGH THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION PORTAL: https://studentaid.gov/borrower-defense/login

  If you have any supporting documents or paperwork, you should include it, but don’t worry if you don’t. Please be aware of any scam emails or phone calls you may receive related to applying for borrower defense. Submitting a Borrower Defense to Repayment application is free and you should always apply directly to the Department of Education.

• Yes, anyone with federal student loans who feels like they were defrauded can apply.

• That’s okay! You should still apply. All you have to do is talk about your experiences with the school in as much detail as you can recall.

  If you need help filling out a borrower defense application, you can find the Department of Education’s official guide and requirements for applying for borrower defense here.

  If you need additional guidance with applying for borrower defense you can also consult the New York Legal Aid Group’s guide here.

• If you are unsure if you already have an application pending or if you would like to know the status of your application, you can call the Department of Education’s borrower defense hotline at 855-279-6207 (open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET Monday through Friday) and ask them. Each application should have a claim number associated with it.

• There is no deadline to apply for Borrower Defense to Repayment. The 6/22 deadline was to be a class member of the Sweet v. Cardona case. More information about that case can be found here.

• Please visit the Department of education’s website to find out more about what happens when the Covid-19 payment pause ends. https://studentaid.gov/announcements-events/borrower-defense-update.