Yes, Parent PLUS Loans can be deferred, but whether you qualify depends on when the loan was disbursed and which type of deferment you’re asking for. If your loan was first disbursed on or after July 1, 2008, you can pause payments while the student you borrowed for is enrolled at least half-time, and for six months after they leave school.1Federal Student Aid. Parent PLUS Borrower Deferment Request Other deferments cover unemployment, economic hardship, active military service, and cancer treatment. In every case, interest keeps building while payments are paused, so a deferred loan is almost always a bigger loan when it comes back.
In-School and Post-Enrollment Deferment
The most common pause for parent borrowers runs while the student is enrolled at least half-time at an eligible school, plus a six-month window after graduation, withdrawal, or dropping below half-time.2Federal Student Aid. Parent PLUS Borrower Deferment Request Form Information Half-time is defined by the school; for standard semester-based undergraduate programs it usually means at least six credit hours per term.3FSA Partner Connect. Federal Student Aid Handbook Chapter 4
Two things catch borrowers off guard here. First, this deferment only applies to Parent PLUS Loans disbursed on or after July 1, 2008. If your loan predates that cutoff, you’ll need forbearance or another option instead. Second, nothing is automatic. The school certifies enrollment, but you still have to request the deferment from your loan servicer. Payments won’t pause just because classes started.
If you’re the parent borrower and also enrolled at least half-time yourself, you qualify for in-school deferment on that basis too. The six-month post-enrollment clock then starts from whichever date is later: the day your child drops below half-time, or the day you do.4eCFR. 34 CFR 685.204 – Deferment
Deferment for Unemployment, Hardship, Military Service, and Cancer Treatment
Several life circumstances qualify for a pause regardless of the student’s enrollment status.
- Unemployment deferment is available for up to 36 months total if you’re actively seeking full-time work or receiving unemployment benefits. It’s granted in six-month increments, so you’ll reapply. Proof means registering with an employment agency or listing at least three employers you’ve contacted in the past six months.5Federal Student Aid. Unemployment Deferment Request
- Economic hardship deferment covers borrowers receiving means-tested public assistance such as SNAP, TANF, or SSI, Peace Corps volunteers, and borrowers whose income falls below 150% of the federal poverty guidelines. For 2026, that threshold is $23,940 for a single-person household and $49,500 for a family of four in the 48 contiguous states.6Federal Student Aid. Economic Hardship Deferment Request
- Military service deferment applies during active duty connected to a war, military operation, or national emergency, plus 180 days after your qualifying service ends.7Federal Student Aid. Military Service and Post-Active Duty Student Deferment Request
- Cancer treatment deferment covers the entire treatment period plus six months afterward.8Federal Student Aid. Cancer Treatment Deferment Request
What Deferment Actually Costs You
Parent PLUS Loans are unsubsidized. The government does not cover interest during any deferment period, and when the deferment ends, unpaid interest capitalizes: it’s added to your principal, and you start paying interest on interest.4eCFR. 34 CFR 685.204 – Deferment
The Federal Student Aid office gives this example. A $30,000 unsubsidized loan at 6% deferred for 12 months, with the interest allowed to capitalize, grows to $31,800, and you’ll pay roughly $600 more over the life of the loan than if you’d paid the interest as it accrued.2Federal Student Aid. Parent PLUS Borrower Deferment Request Form Information Parent PLUS Loans disbursed for the 2025–2026 academic year carry an interest rate of 8.94%, so real-world capitalization bites harder than that example.
You can pay the interest as it builds up during deferment to prevent it from capitalizing. There’s no requirement to do so, but it’s the single biggest lever you have to keep a deferment from quietly expanding your balance.
How to Request a Deferment
The Department of Education publishes a separate request form for each deferment type. The Parent PLUS Borrower Deferment Request handles in-school and post-enrollment pauses; economic hardship, unemployment, military service, and cancer treatment each have their own form.2Federal Student Aid. Parent PLUS Borrower Deferment Request Form Information You can download them from the Federal Student Aid site or request them from your servicer.
For education-related deferments you’ll need the student’s name, Social Security number, and enrollment dates, and the school’s financial aid office must certify enrollment status on the form.9Federal Student Aid. In-School Deferment Request Other categories require their own documentation: official military orders, a state-agency letter confirming unemployment benefits, or proof of public assistance.
Your current federal loan servicer processes the request. The main servicers handling Parent PLUS Loans include Aidvantage, MOHELA, Nelnet, and Edfinancial Services.10Department of Education. Complete List of Federal Student Aid Loan Servicers Online submissions through the servicer’s portal are faster, with some processed within 24 hours; mailed or faxed forms typically take about 10 business days.11Central Research Inc. FAQ – Deferment and Forbearance Keep making your regular payments until you receive written confirmation that the deferment has been approved. Stopping too early can push the loan into delinquency.
When Forbearance Makes More Sense
If you don’t qualify for deferment, forbearance is the next option. Loans disbursed before July 2008 and situations that don’t fit any of the qualifying categories often end up here. During forbearance you can stop payments or reduce them, and your servicer has discretion to grant it.
Interest still accrues. But here’s a quirk worth knowing: interest that builds up during forbearance is not capitalized when the forbearance ends. During deferment, it is.12Federal Student Aid. What Is the Difference Between Loan Deferment and Loan Forbearance For Parent PLUS Loans specifically, that makes forbearance slightly less damaging to the balance than deferment, which is counterintuitive given that deferment is usually described as the better status.
When Deferment Isn’t the Right Fix
Deferment pauses the problem; it doesn’t shrink it. If you need a durable reduction in monthly payments, the path for Parent PLUS borrowers runs through a Direct Consolidation Loan and then into the Income-Contingent Repayment plan. ICR is the only income-driven option available to Parent PLUS borrowers, and you can’t enroll without consolidating first.13Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Options for Repaying Your Parent PLUS Loans Under ICR your monthly payment is recalculated each year based on income, and any remaining balance is forgiven after 25 years of qualifying payments. Consolidation also opens eligibility for Public Service Loan Forgiveness if you work for a qualifying employer.
There’s a hard date to watch. Under current rules, Parent PLUS Loans consolidated into a Direct Consolidation Loan before July 1, 2026, remain eligible for income-driven repayment. The Department of Education recommends submitting consolidation applications by April 1, 2026, to allow processing time. Missing this window may permanently lock Parent PLUS Loans out of income-driven plans. Consolidating before the deadline preserves the option even if you don’t enroll in ICR right away.14Edfinancial Services. Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR)
Consolidation has trade-offs. It resets any progress toward forgiveness and can increase total interest costs by recalculating the repayment term. If you’re close to paying the loan off or don’t need lower payments, it may not be worth it. But if you’re staring at years of unaffordable payments, ICR through consolidation usually works out better than cycling through repeated deferments while interest compounds.