7: Repaying Your Loan or Continuing Interest-Free Status

OSAP loan borrowers are not required to make loan payments for the first six months after leaving their post-secondary studies. These six months are known as the grace period. When the grace period ends, your OSAP loans become repayable.

For example, if you were to finish full-time studies in April, then your six-month grace period would conclude on October 31 of that year and loan payments would begin in November.

During the grace period interest will accumulate on your Canada Student Loan, but not on your Ontario student loan.

If your grace period has not yet elapsed and you are working (paid or volunteer) with an eligible not-for-profit organization in Ontario, you may apply for a six-month extension to your grace period, to a total of twelve months. During that extension, no payments will be required on your OSAP Loans, and no interest will accumulate on your Ontario or Canada Student Loans.  The extension application form and instructions are available on the government OSAP website.

To keep your previous student loans interest-free while you continue your studies you must inform the National Student Loans Service Centre (NSLSC) or any other previous lender that you are a still registered as a full-time student.

To make your full-time status known to the NSLSC, on or after the first day of classes, fill out this Continuation of Interest-Free Status Form:

York University then checks your registration status and posts the update to your OSAP record. The information is sent electronically to the NSLSC and/or previous lenders.

The Continuation of Interest-Free Status form cannot be submitted or posted to your OSAP record before the first day or after the last day of your study period.