If you have received a loan from Aide financière aux études, normally you must begin repaying your debt when you finish your studies or interrupt them for more than 6 months. You must then conclude a repayment agreement with your financial institution.
However, in certain situations you may be eligible for postponed repayment, deferred payment or loan remission.
Repayment after Finishing or Interrupting your Studies
At the beginning of the month after you finish or interrupt your studies, the Ministère de l’Éducation et de l’Enseignement supérieur stops paying interest on your loan.
You must then choose, for the next 6 months, the appropriate option for your financial situation:
- immediately start repaying both the principal and interest on your loan; or
- wait until the end of the partial exemption period, called the 6-month option, during which you are exempted from payments on the loan principal, and can either:
- repay just the interest each month, or
- not repay the interest, which will be added to the principal of your loan
As the date approaches when you must begin repaying your debt, your financial institution will send you a notice with the terms of your repayment agreement: the amount and frequency of payments, and the number of years over which repayment will be spread. The payments will be drawn directly from your bank account.
Postponing Repayment Due to a Temporary Interruption
Repayment can be postponed if you interrupt your studies temporarily for one of the following reasons:
- being at least 20 weeks pregnant
- birth or adoption of a child
- disability preventing the pursuit of studies for at least 1 month
- term as an executive officer in a recognized province-wide student association
- deployment as a member of the Reserve Force
The length of the postponement granted will depend on your situation, as follows:
| Pregnancy |
4 months, starting from the 1st day after the month of the 20th week of pregnancy |
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| Birth or adoption |
8 months, starting from the 1st day after the birth or adoption |
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| Disability |
8 months, starting from the 1st day after the beginning of the disability |
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| Election as an executive officer |
Duration of mandate, capped at 24 months per education level |
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| Deployment as a reservist |
Duration of deployment, capped at 24 months |
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During this period, the Ministère continues to pay the interest on a debt incurred under the:
- Loans and Bursaries Program, if you are a full-time student
- Loans Program for Part-time Studies, if you are a part-time student. However, if you also have a debt on a loan obtained under the Loans and Bursaries Program, you must continue repaying it yourself.
If you do not resume your studies in the month after the end of the postponement period, you will be considered to have abandoned your studies.
Deferred Payment Plan
The Deferred Payment Plan allows students who are in a difficult financial situation to temporarily reduce the monthly payments on their student debt. The amount of the reduced payments will depend on their income and family situation.
Thus, for a period of up to 6 months:
- you can repay the principal in accordance with your means (or not all, if warranted by your situation)
- the interest on your debt will be paid by the Ministère, and you will not have to repay it
You can take advantage of Deferred Payment more than once, for a total of up to 60 months over the 10 years after the assumption of your loan. You must submit a new application for each additional deferral, since your eligibility must be evaluated each time.
Loan Remission Program
The purpose of the Loan Remission Program is to reduce the student debt of those who have obtained a Diploma of College Studies (DSC, in French DEC) or a university degree (bachelor’s, master’s, doctorate) within the period prescribed.
The prescribed period for completing your studies is generally:
- for a technical training program at the college level: 27 months
- for a 3-year undergraduate program: 24 months
- for a 4-year undergraduate program: 32 months
- for a master’s program without thesis: 16 months
- for a master’s program with thesis: 20 months
- for a doctoral program: 32 months
Only months in which you are enrolled full-time are counted in determining whether your degree or diploma was completed within the prescribed period.
Since the clientele and the conditions vary according to the service, the information is provided under each service.
