Americans' student loan balance tops $1.6 trillion; nearly half of borrowers haven't resumed payments

Student loan borrowers in the U.S. are taking their time resuming repayments after the last pandemic-related pause expired late last year.

Repayments were paused for borrowers of federal student loans from mid-March 2020, when the COVID pandemic began, and remained in effect until Sept. 1, 2023, 3½ years after the repayment pause began.

Data from the Department of Education shows that, as of the end of March 2024, almost 20 million borrowers have resumed making payments on their student loans...