The U.S. Department of Education will restart collections on federal student loans in default beginning May 5, ending a pause that began in March 2020 at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic[1][2][3][4].

If your student loans are in default, you have less than two weeks to stop them from being sent to collections, which can result in the government garnishing your wages and possibly withholding your tax refund and Social Security benefits.

The Department of Education is restarting its collection of defaulted student loans after a five-year halt. Repayment requirements have been halted since March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However,