Personal Home > Products and services > Loans, lines of credit and credit cards > Student loans and credit > Government Guaranteed Student Loan > Pay off your student loan

Pay off your student loan

After your studies

Partial exemption period

While you are studying, the government pays the interest on your student debt. At the beginning of the month following termination of or withdrawal from your studies, the government ceases to pay the interest on your student debt, and you assume responsibility for it.

However, during the 6-month period immediately following the completion of or your withdrawal from your studies, you can benefit from a partial exemption, i.e. you do not have to begin repaying your student debt. You are responsible for the interest on your loan, but you can have it capitalized, i.e. converted into principal.

After that 6-month period, if you have not resumed your studies, you must begin repaying your debt (principal and interest).

Important! After that 6-month period, if you begin studying on a part-time basis, you must begin repaying the student loan debt contracted during your full-time studies, whether or not you are receiving a loan under the Loans Program for Part-Time Studies.

Source : http://www.afe.gouv.qc.ca/en/apresEtudes/remboursement.asp

Interest rate

The interest rate is fixed during the partial exemption period, unless you have an agreement with the Desjardins Group Student Service Centre before the end of this period. As soon as the loan is consolidated, the interest rate becomes variable. The variable interest rate is equal to Desjardins prime rate plus 0.50% and is set by the Aide financière aux études. Go to the Aide financière aux études (AFE) website to find out what the interest rate payable during the partial exemption period is.

Paying off your debt

To do so, you must conclude a repayment agreement with the Desjardins Group Student Service Centre before the end of the partial exemption period. Find out why it is important to contact the Student Service Centre:

BEFORE the end of the partial exemption period	AFTER the partial exemption period
You must conclude a repayment agreement with the Student Service Centre. The agreement terms are based on your financial situation and ability to pay off your debt within the maximum amortization period allowed for your balance. The Student Service Centre agent can help you determine the following: payment frequency (weekly, every 2 weeks or monthly) amortization period (total pay-down period) based on certain criteria date of payments etc. You will receive a copy of the repayment agreement by mail. No signature is required.	The Student Service Centre automatically sends you a repayment agreement. The terms are based on your loan balance. The automatic consolidation (or automatic repayment agreement) comes with Desjardins Financial Security's Loan Insurance. The 1st payment is due 1 month after the agreement has been sent. Contact a Student Service Centre agent to bring necessary changes to your repayment agreement (e.g. changes to the terms, payment date, pay-down amount), make an early repayment or inform the Student Service Centre of particular circumstances.

Contact a Desjardins Group Student Service Centre agent.

Desjardins Financial Security's Loan Insurance

Loan Insurance is automatically included with your repayment agreement. It includes:

• life insurance, which ensures repayment of the loan in the event of the borrower's death
• disability insurance, which covers the insured portion of the loan payments payable to the caisse while the borrower is totally disabled.

By taking out Loan Insurance, you agree to an increased rate. The loan rate is the sum of 2 rates, i.e. the basic interest rate charged by your financial institution and an additional interest rate for the insurance. This approach enables your premium instalment to be calculated based on the balance due. Generally, the premium decreases as the loan balance decreases since it automatically reflects the payments made on the principal. You therefore pay a fair premium for the real risk that your loan represents. Find out more about Loan Insurance.