Repaying your student loan | Alberta Student Aid

Overview

Most students leave school with an Alberta student loan and a Canada student loan.

Having two loans means you need to handle two debts and two payment schedules.

Your Alberta loan is managed through Alberta MyLoan and your Canada loan is managed through the National Student Loans Service Centre (NSLSC) Online Services. You must create individual accounts through these websites and handle your repayments separately.

This is what the lifecycle of student loans looks like:

If you have Alberta student loans:

While you’re a student	Loans are interest-free and you don’t need to make payments.
Grace period The first 12 months after you leave school, beginning the first day of the month after your end date	Loans are interest-free, and you don’t need to make payments.
Repayment Begins 12 months after you leave school	Interest is added to your loan balance monthly.
Repayment Begins 12 months after you leave school	Repayment begins. A monthly repayment schedule is set up for you automatically.
Alberta Student Loans \| Grace Period Extension The grace period for Alberta student loans is extended from six months to 12 months as of July 1, 2023. This change includes students who completed studies on or after December 1, 2022. Prior to Dec 1, 2022: Repayment begins six months after you leave school. Interest is added to your loan balance monthly.

If you have Canada student loans:

While you’re a student	No interest and you don’t need to make payments.
Non-repayment period The first six months after you leave school, beginning the first day of the month after your end date	No interest, and you don’t need to make payments.
Repayment Begins six months after you leave school	No interest.
Repayment Begins six months after you leave school	Repayment begins. A monthly repayment schedule is set up for you automatically.
Canada Student Loans \| Permanent Elimination of Interest The Government of Canada permanently eliminated the accumulation of interest on all Canada student loans including loans currently in repayment as of April 1, 2023. Students are still responsible to pay any interest that may have accrued on their Canada loans before April 1, 2023.

Start your loan repayment

You’ll start repaying your loans:

Alberta student loans - 12 months after you leave school
Canada student loans - 6 months after you leave school

Your monthly payment is automatically calculated. Your repayment schedule depends on:

Your loan balance (how much you owe)
Your interest rate (the fee you pay to borrow money)
Your repayment term (how many months it will take you to pay off your loans based on your repayment schedule)

Repayment term for Alberta loans		Repayment term for Canada loans
$0 - $3000	3 years	You can determine using the Government of Canada’s loan repayment estimator.
$3001 - $6000	8 years
$6001 and more	9.5 years

Customize your loan repayments

You can adjust your repayment details at any time to accommodate your life and financial situation.

You can:

change your repayment schedule to match when you get paid
adjust the frequency of your repayments from monthly to bi-weekly or weekly
increase or decrease your payment amount

To customize your repayment details:

Alberta loans	Canada loans
Use your MyLoan account	Use your NSLSC account
Change the frequency of payments by calling the Student Aid Service Centre	Change the frequency of payments by calling the National Student Loans Service Centre

Learn more about adjusting repayment details.

Understand your interest rates

When you start paying back your loans, your interest is automatically set to a floating interest rate. You can view your interest rate in your MyLoan and NSLSC accounts.

A floating interest rate follows the current prime rate. If the prime rate changes, your interest rate also changes.

Prime rates

Prime rates are numbers set by Canadian banks that are used to determine interest rates across the country.

Alberta loans	Canada loans
Interest rates on Alberta loans depend on the prime rate set by CIBC	Interest rates on Canada loans depend on the prime rates set by the 5 biggest Canadian banks.

Fixed vs. floating interest rates

You can request to have a fixed interest rate. You can only make this change once. Contact the National Student Loans Service Centre or the Alberta Student Aid Service Centre for more information.

	Alberta loans	Canada loans
Floating rate	CIBC prime rate	Prime rate of Canadian banks
Fixed rate	CIBC prime rate	Prime rate of Canadian banks plus 2%
Alberta Student Loans \| Interest Rate Change Floating and fixed interest rates on Alberta student loans is reduced to the prime rate as of July 1, 2023. Alberta Loans Prior to July 1, 2023: The floating rate is CIBC prime rate plus 1%, and the fixed rate is CIBC prime rate plus 2%.

To compare the cost of choosing floating and fixed rates, use the Government of Canada’s loan repayment estimator.

Get tax credits for interest paid

You may be eligible to receive a tax credit for interest paid on your student loans.

Missed payment consequences

Missing payments on your student loans has consequences. This can:

put your loans in default
lower your credit score
send your loans to collections
cause the government to take legal action against you
make you ineligible for future student loans

If you miss a payment on your loan, Student Aid will contact you by phone and email to help you get back on track.

If you have trouble making payments, contact Student Aid to learn about applying for repayment assistance or adjusting your repayment details.

Learn more about the consequences of defaulting on your loans.

Special circumstances

If you have difficulty making payments, you can apply for the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP). Under special circumstances, you may qualify for additional support:

Borrowers with disabilities

You may qualify for an enhanced Repayment Assistance Plan (for Alberta loans only).

In extreme circumstances, a borrower with a disability may be eligible for loan forgiveness.

Borrowers who declare bankruptcy

You are still expected to repay your student loans. You must continue to make monthly payments.

However, you may request a court-ordered discharge once 7 years have passed since you left school (5 years in the case of extreme financial hardship).

Learn more about declaring bankruptcy and defaulting on your loans.

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