INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT

FOR RISLA NON-FEDERAL LOANS

More ways to manage student loan debt.

INCOME BASED REPAYMENTS
WHAT IS INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT

Income-based repayment (IBR) is student loan repayment program that adjusts the amount you owe each month based on your income and family size.

INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT CALCULATOR
DO I QUALIFY FOR IBR?

Use the IBR calculator below to see if you are eligible and to access the IBR application!

IBR CALCULATOR

INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT

IBR is designed to reduce monthly payments to help borrowers make student loan debt manageable. 

 

Qualifying for IBR

Borrowers and cosigners must demonstrate financial hardship based on current wages and family size.

Financial Hardship

Can be demonstrated when the monthly payment amount required to pay RISLA's non-federal loans under a standard repayment plan is higher than the monthly amount under IBR.

IBR Payment Amounts

May increase or decrease each year based on the income, family size, and location of the borrower and cosigner.

Qualified Borrowers

Once initially qualified for IBR, RISLA non-federal loans of the qualified borrowers and cosigners are automatically extended to have repayment terms up to twenty-five years. That repayment term begins from the initial repayment date and excludes any periods of deferment or forbearance.

Qualification Expiration

IBR is intended to be short term assistance to help borrowers through a temporary financial setback.  Similar to the federal program, when a RISLA IBR borrower and cosigner no longer qualify for reduced payment, the subsequent required monthly payment will revert back to the initial standard repayment amount that the borrower and cosigner agreed to in the Promissory Note. 

IBR CALCUALTOR
ARE YOU ELIGIBILE FOR IBR?

USE THE IBR PAYMENT CALCULATOR TO DETERMINE ELIGIBILITY

IBR CALCULATOR

INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT

If you’re looking for a way to make your student loan payments more manageable, then you should consider enrolling in an income-based repayment plan.

 

How to Apply

1. Use the IBR payment calculator to determine your eligibility.

2. If eligible, according to the calculator, submit the IBR Application.

Eligible Loans

All non-federal RISLA loans.

Monthly Payments

Under this plan, monthly payments are calculated: 

  • Based on the income and family size of the borrower and cosigner

  • Adjusted each year, based on changes to annual income and family size

  • Never more than the standard repayment amount at the time of election of IBR

  • The repayment term is never more than 25 years after the beginning of the repayment term

 

IBR APPLICATION
IBR APPLICATION

IF ELGIGIBLILE DOWNLOAD IBC APPLICATION & SUBMIT

DOWNLOAD

ADVANTAGES OF INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT

ADVANTAGES OF IBR - 01
Pay Based On What You Earn

Under IBR, monthly payments will not exceed 15 percent of the discretionary income of the borrower and cosigner and will never be more than the amount required to pay under the Standard Repayment Plan.  The minimum monthly payment under the IBR program is $10 per month.

ADVANTAGES OF IBR - 02
Limitation On The Capitalization of Interest

During any IBR payment period, interest does continue to accrue. If the IBR payments are not enough to pay the current accruing interest, the interest will not be capitalized (added to the principal of the loan) until the end of the last qualified IBR repayment period. 

ADVANTAGES OF IBR - 03
25-Year Forgiveness

If the loan balance is not paid in full at final maturity any remaining balance will be forgiven after 25 years of qualifying repayment. Periods of forbearance and deferment other than IBR payments are not qualifying periods of repayment. 

ADVANTAGES OF IBR - 04
Retain Eligibility For RISLA'S Loan Forgiveness Programs

Enrolling in an IBR plan will not disqualify a borrower from RISLA's Nursing Rewards,  Internships Forgiveness, or other loan forgiveness programs. 

DISADVANTAGES OF INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT

As the IBR program is intended to be short term assistance, the program lasts for 12 months with the option to extend the program.  Borrowers and cosigners are alerted that their current IBR program will expire and that new income and family size documentation is needed if the borrower wishes to continue using the IBR program.  If so, both the borrower and cosigner are required to submit updated documentation each year.  If documentation is not received or indicates the borrower no longer qualifies for IBR, the monthly payment amount will revert back to the original standard repayment amount in the Promissory Note and unpaid interest will be capitalized (added to the loan principal).

DISADVANTAGE OF IBR - 01
Borrowers May Pay More Interest

A reduced monthly payment generally means the repayment period will be extended. As in the federal IBR program the borrowers will likely pay more total interest over the life of the loan compared to a 10- or 15-year repayment plan.  

DISADVANTAGE OF IBR - 02
Borrower & Cosigner Must Submit Annual Documentation
DISADVANTAGE OF IBR - 03
Loan Forgiveness Is Taxable

You may have to pay taxes on any loan amount that is forgiven after 25 years. Consult your tax advisor on whether loan forgiveness is taxable. 

INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT

How is the Monthly Payment Amount Calculated During Eligible IBR Periods?
INCONE-BASED REPAYEMTN GUIDELINES
Adjusted Gross Income (AGI)

Under RISLA’s Income-Based Repayment Plan, the amount required to be repaid each month is based on the Adjusted Gross Income and family size of both the primary borrower and cosigner.

If either borrower is married and files a joint federal tax return with their spouse, the AGI includes both the borrower’s income and their spouse’s income.

Primary Borrower

The annual IBR repayment amount is 15 percent of the difference between the primary borrower’s AGI and 150 percent of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Poverty Guideline for the family size and state.

Cosigner

In addition, 15 percent of the difference between the cosigner’s AGI and 150 percent of the HHS Poverty Guideline for the cosigner family size and state. The primary borrower and the cosigner IBR repayment amounts are added together to determine the total IBR annual payments.   

 

Family Size

Family size is determined using the number of dependents on an IBNR applicants' prior year tax returns.  If married and filing separately or if joint custody of children captures family size differently than current living situation, please note that family size is derived solely from tax returns and word of mouth variations are not acceptable.  If one or more children are born increasing the family size since the prior year’s tax returns, providing one or more birth certificates is acceptable to show the increase in family size.  If the IBR applicant is not required to file taxes, a family size of 1 is used.

Multiple Cosigners

For borrowers that have multiple cosigners on their RISLA loans, each cosigner's income will only be considered for the loan(s) applying to that cosigner.  Each cosigner is not required to qualify, but the borrower will only qualify for those loans where the borrower and cosigner both qualify.

Cosigners on Multiple Loans

For cosigners that have cosigned on two or more non-federal RISLA loans, RISLA will prorate the cosigner's income based on the loan balances for all of their non-federal RISLA loans.

U.S. Federal Poverty Guidelines

Similar to federal student loans, RISLA uses the U.S. federal poverty guidelines to determine if a borrower qualifies for IBR.  Each year, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services calculates an updated federal poverty guideline for each U.S. State by family size.  Recent and historic poverty guidelines tables can be found here.

 

Family size is strictly determined by whatever family size is indicated on an IBR applicant's prior year tax returns. If married and filing separately or if join custody of children captures family size differently than current living situation, please note that the family size is derived solely from tax returns and word of mouth variations are not acceptable. If one or more children are born increasing the family size since the prior year's tax returns, providing one or more birth certificates is acceptable to show the increase in family size.  If the IBR applicant does not report taxes, a family size of 1 is used for the calculations.  Family size is taken into consideration for both the borrower and the cosigner independently.

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