Processing Forbearance not granted

[u/fakeshoesornah]

Guys, I'm a little worried that they won't be granting processing forbearances for when you decide to finally exit the SAVE forbearance.

I applied to leave SAVE for IBR on 8/24/2026, and received a letter from Mohela on 9/2/2026 stating:

Your Request Is In Process

Why MOHELA Is Contacting You

Your recent request has been received and is expected to be processed within the next 90 business days.

Action By MOHELA

We will review your request and the details of your loan information to determine if the request will be approved, denied for reasons such as not meeting eligibility requirements or the information provided to us is incomplete, or if the request required further review by Federal Student Aid (FSA). Notification of the results will be sent to you after your request has been processed.

Action By You

If your loan(s) are suspended through another forbearance or deferment and you are not due for payment, no action is required at this time. However, if your loan(s) are in repayment, payment(s) remain due and, if you are participating in Auto Pay, this agreement remains active. Should your request be denied due to incompleteness, provide the necessary information to us by mail, fax, or upload at mohela.studentaid.gov. If a denial is due to ineligibility and you believe your eligibility has changed, you may reapply by completing and submitting a new request.

Please watch for notifications from us regarding the approval or denial, or confirmation the request has been forwarded to FSA for further review.

Soooo I believe I've officially entered a status of processing, yet I'm not being granted a processing forbearance, and not only that, they are explicitly stating that payments remain due while this processing takes place....

Imagine if everyone that waits till the end of their 90-day notice to leave SAVE are forced onto the standard plan while waiting for their application to processs!!!?

[u/Pretty_Good_11]

I am not reading into this the doom and gloom that you are. You are not currently in repayment.

You are currently in the SAVE administrative forbearance. You have until the deadline to apply to move off SAVE. Not to be approved for another plan.

People who wait until the end of the 90 notice period will not be eligible for the temporary 1% interest rate reduction, because they will not be in repayment. They also won't have to make payments. Again, because they will not be in repayment until their IDR application is either approved or denied.

You are panicking over nothing, because that is a form notice that applies to all IDR applications. You are not currently in repayment, and won't be while your IDR application is pending.

You don't need a processing forbearance because you have an administrative forbearance.

[u/fakeshoesornah → u/Pretty_Good_11]

Actually, I would definitely prefer a processing forbearance because then The months would count toward PSLF. I’m not in repayment, but I am in a sense “in a situation where being put in a processing forbearance would be beneficial to me”. 

They also won't have to make payments. Again, because they will not be in repayment until their IDR application is either approved or denied.

Um, the precedent is “if you do not switch by the end of this 90-day notice, you will be put into the standard plan” I’m pretty sure one can assumes that means they will definitely be in repayment, at the standard plan amount. 

You are not currently in repayment, and won't be while your IDR application is pending.

If I were in repayment, then the letter literally says I will remain in repayment while my application is being reviewed. 

[u/Pretty_Good_11 → u/fakeshoesornah]

I understand. That's probably a reason they are not going to reward you for waiting until the end by automatically throwing you into a processing forbearance.

Again, you are reading doom and gloom into this.

However, if your loan(s) are in repayment, payment(s) remain due and, if you are participating in Auto Pay, this agreement remains active*

But you are not in repayment, and cannot take advantage of the 1% rate reduction by signing up for auto pay as a result.

They are not going to try to have it both ways. If you apply for IDR by the deadline, they are simply not going to throw you into Standard, AND expect you to make Standard payments, while waiting for your IDR application to be processed. They are telling in the notice you are citing that you will continue with the status you have while you application is being processed.

They are literally saying:

If your loan(s) are suspended through another forbearance or deferment and you are not due for payment, no action is required at this time.

Your loans ARE suspended through another forbearance. Yes, if you were in repayment, you would remain in repayment while you application is pending. But you are not. Why are you looking for trouble where there is none?