Are my Student Loans Federal or private?

This is a very important question if you have Student Loans that you still owe.  It may have been a long time since you took out the Student Loans or the name of the company to whom you are writing the check may have changed.

But, this is a very important question to ask.  The reason why this is so crucial is that there are certain flexibilities and programs to alter the terms of your payments that are only available on Federal Loans.  If you have a Private Student Loan, you will not be eligible for these reductions in payments.

So, how do you know if the loan giving you so much trouble is a Federal Loan or a Private Loan?

Simply go to this website-  WWW.NSLDS.ED.GOV and put in the information requested when requested at the followinga page, including your PIN-  https://www.nslds.ed.gov/nslds_SA/SaFinLoginPage.do

(If you cannot remember your PIN, go this webpage to retrieve or change it-  https://pin.ed.gov/PINWebApp/pinindex.jsp  )

Once you have entered the information on the NSLDS page, including your PIN, you will receive a list of all of your Federal Student Loans.  If the loan giving you the difficulty is not on that list, it is a Private Student Loan.  How to resolve your dilemma or default will be greatly different depending on whether you are dealing with a Federal Loan or a Private Student Loan.