(a) The borrower may defer repayment on an NDSL Loan made on or after October 1, 1980, but before July 1, 1993, during the periods described in this section.

(b)(1) The borrower need not repay principal, and interest does not accrue, during a period after the commencement or resumption of the repayment period on a loan, when the borrower is at least a half-time regular student at—

(i) An institution of higher education; or

(ii) A comparable institution outside the U.S. approved by the Secretary for this purpose.

(2) The institution of higher education does not need to be participating in the Federal Perkins Loan program for the borrower to qualify for a deferment.

(3) If a borrower is attending as at least a half-time regular student for a full academic year and intends to enroll as at least a half-time regular student in the next academic year, the borrower is entitled to deferment for 12 months.

(4) If an institution no longer qualifies as an institution of higher education, the borrower's deferment ends on the date the institution ceases to qualify.

(c) The borrower need not repay principal, and interest does not accrue, for a period of up to 3 years during which time the borrower is—

(1) A member of the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, or Coast Guard or an officer in the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service (see § 674.59);

(2) A Peace Corps volunteer (see § 674.60);

(3) A volunteer under the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (ACTION programs) (see § 674.60).

(4) A full-time volunteer in service which the Secretary has determined is comparable to service in the Peace Corps or under the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (ACTION programs). The Secretary considers that a borrower is providing comparable service if he or she satisfies the following four criteria:

(i) The borrower serves in an organization that is exempt from taxation under the provisions of section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954.

(ii) The borrower provides service to low-income persons and their communities to assist them in eliminating poverty and poverty-related human, social, and environmental conditions.

(iii) The borrower does not receive compensation that exceeds the rate prescribed under section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (the Federal minimum wage), except that the tax-exempt organization may provide health, retirement, and other fringe benefits to the volunteer that are substantially equivalent to the benefits offered to other employees of the organization.

(iv) The borrower has agreed to serve on a full-time basis for a term of at least one year.

(5)(i) Temporarily totally disabled, as established by an affidavit of a qualified physician, or unable to secure gainful employment because the borrower is providing care, such as continuous nursing or other similar services, required by a spouse who is so disabled.

(ii) “Temporarily totally disabled” with regard to the borrower, means the inability by virtue of an injury or illness to attend an eligible institution or to be gainfully employed during a reasonable period of recovery; and

(iii) “Temporarily totally disabled” with regard to a disabled spouse, means requiring continuous nursing or other services from the borrower for a period of at least three months because of illness or injury.

(d)(1) The borrower need not repay principal, and interest does not accrue, for a period not to exceed two years during which time the borrower is serving an eligible internship.

(2) An eligible internship is an internship—

(i) That requires the borrower to hold at least a bachelor's degree before beginning the internship program; and

(ii) That the State licensing agency requires the borrower to complete before certifying the individual for professional practice or service.

(3) To qualify for an internship deferment, the borrower shall provide to the institution the following certifications:

(i) A statement from an official of the appropriate State licensing agency that the internship program meets the provisions of paragraph (d)(2) of this section; and

(ii) A statement from the organization with which the borrower is undertaking the internship program certifying—

(A) The acceptance of the borrower into its internship program; and

(B) The anticipated dates on which the borrower will begin and complete the program.

(e) An institution may defer payments of principal and interest, but interest shall continue to accrue, if the institution determines this is necessary to avoid hardship to the borrower (see § 674.33)(c)).

(f) The institution shall not include the deferment periods described in paragraphs (b), (c), (d), and (e) of this section and the period described in paragraph (g) of this section when determining the 10-year repayment period.

(g) No repayment of principal or interest begins until six months after completion of any period during which the borrower is in deferment under paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) of this section.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control number 1845-0019) (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1087dd) [52 FR 45754, Dec. 1, 1987, as amended at 53 FR 49147, Dec. 6, 1988; 57 FR 32345, July 21, 1992; 59 FR 1652, Jan. 12, 1994. Redesignated and amended at 59 FR 61410, 61411, Nov. 30, 1994; 62 FR 50848, Sept. 26, 1997; 64 FR 58315, Oct. 28, 1999; 85 FR 49820, Aug. 14, 2020]