Overview
- Over the past few days borrowers managed by MOHELA received emails and letters saying their loans were past due or ‘critically past due’ even though StudentAid.gov showed no payment required for those accounts.
- The U.S. Department of Education confirmed the problem affected a small number of accounts, said the issue has been fixed, and said impacted borrowers will be notified by email of the mistake.
- Many of the notices went to borrowers moving off the SAVE plan, which the department is phasing out while it rolls out a new Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) that changes how monthly payments are calculated.
- MOHELA acknowledged it is reviewing reports of inappropriate delinquency notices and asked borrowers to monitor accounts, and advocacy groups and forum posts described sharp borrower alarm and confusion about budgeting and default risk.
- The error highlights wider operational strains: MOHELA faced a major penalty in 2023 and a pending lawsuit over servicing, and a March GAO report found Federal Student Aid paused routine billing‑accuracy checks because of staffing cuts, weakening oversight during the transition.