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Apply for a deferral of a student loan repayment

As a general rule, you must repay your education loan in monthly installments to the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW). Interest accrues on the loan. You can repay the loan early, in full or in part, at any time without incurring additional costs or fees.

If you are temporarily unable to make your monthly payments, you can apply to KfW for a deferment. In justified cases, KfW may grant you a deferment of up to 24 months.

If you do not make payments and do not apply for a deferment, late payment interest will accrue. KfW will invoke the federal guarantee for the education loan, particularly if you fall more than 6 months behind on payments and have not applied for a deferment, or if KfW is unable to grant your deferment request.  In that case, the federal government will first pay the outstanding loan amount, as well as any accrued interest and costs, to KfW.

KfW will transfer further processing of your repayment to the Federal Administrative Office (BVA). The BVA will issue a recovery notice requiring you to pay the outstanding amounts—including the loan principal, interest, and fees—to the BVA.

You must pay the outstanding amounts in a single lump sum. If you are financially unable to do so, you can apply to the BVA for a deferral. If you do not pay the amount owed by the due date and have not submitted a deferral request, you will be required to pay late payment interest. Late payment interest may also accrue if the BVA is unable to process your deferral request due to missing information.

  • The education loan must be repaid in monthly installments to the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW)
  • Interest is charged on the loan
  • The loan can be repaid early, in full or in part, at any time without additional costs or fees
  • If you are temporarily unable to make monthly payments, you can apply to KfW for a deferment
  • KfW may grant a deferment of up to 24 months
  • If payments are not made and no deferment request is submitted, late payment interest will accrue
  • KfW will invoke the federal guarantee for the education loan, in particular, if payments have not been made for more than 6 months and no deferment request has been submitted, or if KfW cannot approve a deferment request
  • In that case, the federal government will initially pay the outstanding loan amount, as well as any accrued interest and costs, to KfW
  • KfW transfers further processing of the repayment to the Federal Administrative Office (BVA)
  • The BVA demands payment of outstanding amounts by means of a recovery notice
  • Outstanding amounts must be paid in a single lump sum
  • Those who are financially unable to do so may apply to the BVA for a deferral
  • If the amount owed is not paid by the due date and no deferral request has been submitted, interest on arrears must be paid
  • Interest on arrears may also accrue if the BVA is unable to process a deferral request due to missing information

  • Request for Deferral (Form)
  • Pay stubs or income statements for the past 3 months
  • List of your assets: for example, real estate, bank accounts, savings accounts, home equity savings accounts, and securities, with copies of the corresponding supporting documents
  • List of your current expenses, such as rent, electricity, insurance, and loans, including their terms, with supporting documentation
  • Installment payment proposal (optional)

  • The Federal Administrative Office (BVA) is responsible for collecting repayment of your student loan because the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) has transferred the claim to the BVA.
  • You are unable to repay the amount due.

However, due amounts may only be deferred if the following conditions are met:

  • Immediate payment would cause you significant hardship. This is particularly the case if
    • you are temporarily experiencing serious financial difficulties due to your personal economic situation, or
    • you would face financial difficulties if you were required to pay the amount due in full immediately.
  • The federal government’s claim must not be jeopardized by the deferral. This means that it must be reasonable to expect that you will be able to pay the debt once the deferral period has ended.

For the deferral period, deferral interest is generally charged at a rate of 2 percentage points above the applicable base interest rate announced by the Deutsche Bundesbank. Deferral interest is determined by official notice only after the deferral period has ended. In the case of a deferral with monthly installments, interest is due monthly and is already included in the respective deferral installment. 

Administration fee: 30,00 EUR
Payment in advance: no
If you have moved and do not notify the Federal Administrative Office (BVA) of your new address, you will have to pay for the necessary address search.
Administration fee: 5,00 EUR
Payment in advance: no
Reminder fees may apply.

As a rule, you repay an education loan to the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) . If you are unable to pay all or part of your installments to KfW, KfW may, in certain cases, grant you a deferment of up to 24 months.

In certain cases, the KfW will refer your case to the Federal Administrative Office (BVA) for further processing.

You can then apply for a deferment of your education loan repayment by mail or fax to the BVA.

  • Download the deferment application from the BVA’s website or use the form provided by the BVA.
  • Fill out the application, attach the supporting documents, and send all documents to the BVA by mail or fax.
  • The BVA will review your application.
  • You will receive a decision. If you meet all the requirements, you will be granted a deferment of your student loan.

Processing time: 1 - 3 Months

You may request a deferral until the date specified in the recovery notice. If you request the deferral after that date, you will be in default.

If a deferral is granted, you will find the new individual payment deadlines in your notice.

  • Appeal

For more information on how to file an appeal, please refer to your notice.

Federal Administrative Office (BVA)


Redirect service: Deep link to the original portal

The text was automatically translated based on the German content.

Source: Serviceportal Saarland