How you pay back an SBA loan depends on who services it. If your loan is a COVID-19 EIDL, a traditional SBA disaster loan, or a 7(a) or 504 loan that SBA has purchased from the original lender, you pay SBA directly through the MySBA Loan Portal at lending.sba.gov. If your 7(a) or 504 loan is still in good standing with the bank or Certified Development Company that issued it, you pay that lender, not SBA.1U.S. Small Business Administration. Make a Payment to SBA
Which Loans SBA Services Directly
The MySBA Loan Portal handles five loan types: COVID-19 EIDL loans, traditional SBA disaster loans, guaranty-purchased PPP loans, guaranty-purchased 7(a) loans, and debenture-purchased 504 loans. The purchased 7(a) and 504 categories only reach SBA after a default triggers the lender to file a claim on the guarantee. Until that happens, your regular 7(a) or 504 payments go to the lender under the terms in your note.1U.S. Small Business Administration. Make a Payment to SBA
The old Pay.gov Form 1201 Borrower Payments option was retired on January 1, 2024. Everyone who used it was redirected to the portal.2Pay.gov. 1201 Borrower Payments
Setting Up MySBA and Paying Online
Registration at lending.sba.gov requires your 10-digit SBA loan number, which sits on your loan authorization paperwork or promissory note and is not the same as your original application number.3U.S. Small Business Administration. SBA Form 1502 and Instructions You’ll create a username and password, supply home and mobile phone numbers, a valid email address, your Social Security Number, and date of birth. The system emails a verification link, and after clicking it you’ll pick three security questions. Accounts go inactive after 90 days without a login, so keep your credentials somewhere you can find them.4Small Business Administration (SBA). Instructions for Borrowers – MySBA Loan Portal
If your business is a nonprofit or your loan was originally registered under an EIN rather than an SSN, you’ll need to associate an SSN with the loan before the portal will let you create an account.
From the dashboard you can see your balance, accrued interest, and payment history. Payment happens two ways: a one-time ACH payment, or recurring ACH transfers pulled automatically each month. Both require your bank’s nine-digit routing number and your account number. Payments take about four business days to post.5Small Business Administration (SBA). 1502 Reporting User Guide and FAQ The portal generates a digital receipt after each transaction; save them. If you set up autopay, verify the first couple of transfers actually posted before you assume it’s running on its own.
Watch the interest accrual figure on the dashboard. If your monthly payment isn’t covering both principal and interest, a small residual will compound over time.
Phone, Bill Pay, and Mailed Checks
SBA accepts payments by phone for the same loans handled online. COVID-19 EIDL borrowers call 833-853-5638 (TTY: 711), Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET. Traditional disaster loan borrowers call the SBA Disaster Assistance Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955.1U.S. Small Business Administration. Make a Payment to SBA
Your bank’s bill pay service can also send payments to SBA. Enter the Small Business Administration as the payee and put your full 10-digit SBA loan number in the memo or account number field so the payment reaches the correct loan.
For mailed checks, send them to SBA’s designated lockbox and include any payment coupon that came with your loan documents. Mail at least a week before the due date. A check that arrives after the grace period can still trigger late fees and negative credit reporting even if you postmarked it on time.
What Happens If You Fall Behind
Missed payments on 7(a) loans can carry a late fee of up to 5 percent of the regular payment amount.6eCFR. 13 CFR Part 120 – Section 120.221 Fees and Expenses That the Lender May Collect From a Loan Applicant or Borrower On a $2,000 monthly payment that’s $100.
After 120 days of delinquency, your account can be referred to the Treasury Bureau of Fiscal Service’s Offset Program, which intercepts federal payments owed to you, including tax refunds, and applies them to your balance. If delinquency continues, the loan can be transferred to Treasury’s Cross-Servicing Program. Once Treasury takes it over, SBA no longer handles your account and cannot help you; you deal with Treasury’s collectors directly.7U.S. Small Business Administration. Manage Your EIDL
If you’re struggling, act before you hit 90 days past due. That’s the cutoff for most relief options.
Hardship Relief for EIDL Borrowers
SBA offers a reduced payment program for COVID-19 EIDL borrowers experiencing short-term financial difficulty. Approval drops your monthly payment by 50 percent for six months, and you can use the program once every five years. Your loan must be less than 90 days past due when you apply, and charged-off loans are not eligible. You submit a brief explanation of the difficulty through the MySBA portal.7U.S. Small Business Administration. Manage Your EIDL
Interest keeps accruing on the full outstanding balance during the reduced-payment period, so you’ll owe more at the end of the loan term. If you never make up the difference, a balloon payment comes due at maturity.
For other SBA loan types still serviced by a lender, hardship options like deferment or modification are negotiated with that lender, not SBA. Lenders generally have more flexibility before a loan defaults than after, so contact them early.
Paying Off Early: 7(a) and 504 Rules
Early payoff can save real money in interest, but some SBA loans carry prepayment penalties.
7(a) Loans
A prepayment penalty on a 7(a) loan only applies when all four conditions are met: the loan has a maturity of 15 years or more, the prepayment is voluntary, the amount prepaid within a 12-month period exceeds 25 percent of the highest outstanding principal balance, and the prepayment occurs within the first three years after disbursement. Miss any one condition and no penalty applies.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 636 – Additional Powers
When it does apply, the fee steps down each year: 5 percent of the prepayment amount in the first year after disbursement, 3 percent in the second year, and 1 percent in the third. After year three there is no prepayment fee. Loans with terms shorter than 15 years never face one.9eCFR. 13 CFR Part 120 – Section 120.223 Subsidy Recoupment Fee Payable to SBA by Borrower
504 Loans
Prepaying a 504 loan requires paying the entire remaining principal plus unpaid interest, fees, and a prepayment premium set in the loan note.10eCFR. 13 CFR Part 120 – Section 120.940 Prepayment of the 504 Loan or Debenture The premium is tied to the debenture rate and declines over time. On 20- and 25-year terms it phases out over roughly 10 years; on 10-year terms it phases out over roughly five. Because the exact figure depends on your debenture rate and how far into the term you are, ask your Certified Development Company for the payoff number before committing.
Payoff and Lien Release
When you’re ready to close out the loan, request a formal payoff statement from SBA or your lender. That figure includes principal, interest accrued through the anticipated payoff date, and any applicable fees or prepayment premium. Don’t rely on the portal balance alone; interest accrues daily and the displayed number may not match what’s actually due on the day your payment posts.
SBA loans are typically secured by UCC-1 financing statements, deeds of trust, or similar instruments filed against your business assets or real property. Once the loan is paid in full, the lender or SBA notifies the appropriate office to begin the lien release.11U.S. Small Business Administration. Liquidation Process Allow several weeks for the release documentation to be processed and filed with the county recorder or secretary of state. Recording fees vary by jurisdiction. Follow up if you haven’t seen confirmation within 60 days.12U.S. Small Business Administration. Release of Collateral Requirement Letter
Keep your payoff letter and recorded lien release documents permanently. A lingering lien can block a sale, prevent refinancing, or create title problems that are far more expensive to fix later than to prevent now.