(a) Commencement of repayment. (1) The borrower's repayment period begins the first day of the 10th month after the month he or she ceases to be a full-time student at a HEAL school. The 9-month period before the repayment period begins is popularly called the “grace period.”

(i) Postponement for internship or residency program. However, if the borrower becomes an intern or resident in an accredited program within 9 full months after leaving school, then the borrower's repayment period begins the first day of the 10th month after the month he or she ceases to be an intern or resident. For a borrower who receives his or her first HEAL loan on or after October 22, 1985, this postponement of the beginning of the repayment period for participation in an internship or residency program is limited to 4 years.

(ii) Postponement for fellowship training or educational activity. For any HEAL loan received on or after October 22, 1985, if the borrower becomes an intern or resident in an accredited program within 9 full months after leaving school, and subsequently enters into a fellowship training program or an educational activity, as described in § 681.12(b)(1) and (2), within 9 months after the completion of the accredited internship or residency program or prior to the completion of such program, the borrower's repayment period begins on the first day of the 10th month after the month he or she ceases to be a participant in the fellowship training program or educational activity. Postponement of the commencement of the repayment period for either activity is limited to 2 years.

(iii) Non-student borrower. If a nonstudent borrower obtains another HEAL loan during the grace period or period of internship, residency, or deferment (as defined in § 681.12), the repayment period on this loan begins when repayment on the borrower's other HEAL loans begins or resumes.

(2) An accredited internship or residency program must be approved by one of the following accrediting agencies:

(i) Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education.

(ii) Council on Optometric Education.

(iii) Commission on Accreditation of Dental and Dental Auxiliary Programs.

(iv) American Osteopathic Association.

(v) Council on Podiatry Education.

(vi) American Council on Pharmaceutical Education.

(vii) Council on Education for Public Health.

(viii) American College of Veterinary Surgeons.

(ix) Council on Chiropractic Education.

(b) Length of repayment period. In general, a lender or holder must allow a borrower at least 10 years, but not more than 25 years, to repay a loan calculated from the beginning of the repayment period. A borrower must fully repay a loan within 33 years from the date that the loan is made.

(1) For a HEAL borrower who received any HEAL loan prior to October 22, 1985, periods of deferment (as described in § 681.12) are not included when calculating the 10 to 25 or 33 year limitations.

(2) For a borrower who receives his or her first HEAL loan on or after October 22, 1985, periods of deferment (as described in § 681.12) are included when calculating the 33 year limitation, but are not included when calculating the 10 to 25 year limitation.

(c) Prepayment. The borrower may prepay the whole or any part of the loan at any time without penalty.

(d) Minimum annual payment. During each year of repayment, a borrower's payments to all holders of his or her HEAL loans must total the interest that accrues during the year on all of the loans, unless the borrower, in the promissory note or other written agreement, agrees to make payments during any year or any repayment period in a lesser amount.

(e) Repayment schedule agreement. At least 30 and not more than 60 days before the commencement of the repayment period, a borrower must contact the holder of the loan to establish the precise terms of repayment. The borrower may select a monthly repayment schedule with substantially equal installment payments or a monthly repayment schedule with graduated installment payments that increase in amount over the repayment period. If the borrower does not contact the lender or holder and does not respond to contacts from the lender or holder, the lender or holder may establish a monthly repayment schedule with substantially equal installment payments, subject to the terms of the borrower's HEAL note.

(f) Supplemental repayment agreement. (1) A lender or holder and a borrower may enter into an agreement supplementing the regular repayment schedule agreement. Under a supplemental repayment agreement, the lender or holder agrees to consider that the borrower has met the terms of the regular repayment schedule as long as the borrower makes payments in accordance with the supplemental schedule.

(2) The purpose of a supplemental repayment agreement is to permit a lender or holder, at its option, to offer a borrower a repayment schedule based on other than equal or graduated payments. (For example, a supplemental repayment agreement may base the amount of the borrower's payments on his or her income.)

(3) The supplemental schedule must contain terms which, according to the Secretary, do not unduly burden the borrower and do not extend the Secretary's insurance liability beyond the number of years specified in paragraph (b) of this section. The supplemental schedule must be approved by the Secretary prior to the start of repayment.

(4) The lender or holder may establish a supplemental repayment agreement over the borrower's objection only if the borrower's written consent to enter into a supplemental agreement was obtained by the lender at the time the loan was made.

(5) A lender or holder may assign a loan subject to a supplemental repayment agreement only if it specifically notifies the buyer of the terms of the supplemental agreement. In such cases, the loan and the supplemental agreement must be assigned together.

(6) As authorized by section 525 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014, any repayment plan available under part B of title IV of the HEA (the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP)) is available for servicing, collecting, or enforcing HEAL loans. Such repayment plans are set forth in 34 CFR part 682, and in particular in §§ 682.102, 682.209, and 682.215.