Student Loan Servicer Information

During the application process, applicants provide information about their lenders or loan servicers and the amount owed on each loan. ISAC confirms this information through the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS). 

Once an applicant is selected for an award through one of ISAC’s loan repayment programs, ISAC sends them an award notification letter that includes the total award amount and the name of the lender(s) or loan servicer(s) that will receive the funds. Awardees are encouraged to contact their lender(s) or loan servicer(s) to inform them of the award and to discuss how payments will be applied to their accounts. 

Once an awardee is notified of their award, ISAC begins processing their award and requesting payment to be sent to the lender(s) or loan servicer(s). ISAC only sends payments to lenders or loan servicers that have an established partnership with ISAC. 

Payments are issued through the State of Illinois Office of the Comptroller (IOC) on behalf of ISAC. ISAC submits a voucher to the IOC that includes the total amount to be sent to the lender or loan servicer for all awardees included on that check. View a sample check from IOC.

The IOC does not issue individual checks for each awardee; instead, payments are sent as a lump sum containing multiple awards. The check’s ‘Payment Description’ section will list the account numbers for the awardees included in the payment. Payment timing varies based on the IOC’s payment processing schedules, but payments are typically made within 12 weeks of the IOC receiving an invoice from ISAC. 

Once the IOC disburses the funds, lenders and loan servicers will receive an email and additional information from ISAC confirming that a payment has been requested. Please add [email protected] to your safe senders list to ensure you receive these communications from ISAC.  

Once ISAC has confirmation that a check has been issued by the IOC, ISAC prepares a Borrower Manifest. This document is sent to lenders and loan servicers typically within 1-4 weeks after payments are issued. ISAC must wait for the check to show on the Comptroller’s website as issued before they send the Borrower Manifest to lenders and loan servicers. This can take up to 4 weeks. Each check sent to the lender or loan servicer will have a corresponding Borrower Manifest.

ISAC’s invoice number and the borrower details included on the password-protected manifest help ensure payments are applied to the correct accounts. These details include:

• Last name
• First name
• Date of birth
• Last 4 digits of Social Security number
• Account number 
• Approved amount to be applied to the borrower’s account 

ISAC may request confirmation that funds were applied to the awardee’s account. Lenders and loan servicers may also send confirmation proactively using the ISAC contact email. In instances where funds cannot be applied to a borrower’s account, ISAC can arrange a return of funds. Lenders and loan servicers should be prepared to provide borrower identification details, the reason for return, payment reference number, and the date funds were received.

Handling Unexpected Payment Scenarios 

Please follow the guidance below when these scenarios occur:

• Partial Payment: If a payment does not cover the full amount of the borrower’s outstanding balance, the borrower’s balance remains their responsibility. 
   
• Overpayment: If ISAC’s payment exceeds the borrower’s balance, do not return funds to the borrower. The refund must be issued back to ISAC. Please contact ISAC for refund instructions.
   
• No Balance: If the borrower’s loan has been paid in full, discharged or cancelled and the payment cannot be applied, do not return funds to the borrower. The refund must be issued back to ISAC. Please contact ISAC for refund instructions.
   

Resolving Special Situations

• Loan transferred to another servicer: If you receive a payment for a borrower whose loan has been transferred, please contact ISAC for refund instructions. After funds are returned, ISAC can reissue payment to the appropriate servicer.
   
• Borrower’s account cannot be located: Contact ISAC for additional borrower information. If the account cannot be identified after verification, ISAC may request that funds be returned.
   
• Borrower is deceased: Please contact ISAC for refund instructions.
   

ISAC must collect the following information from lenders and loan servicers that have borrowers receiving benefits from one of our loan repayment programs. If a borrower is awarded and their lender or loan servicer does not already have a relationship with ISAC, ISAC will reach out and request the following information:

• A completed W-9
• Confirmed lockbox address for payment or account information for electronic payment
• Contact person name, position, email address, and phone number (email is required to receive payment information details)
• General Payment Email box information (needed to provide the borrower manifest information to lender/loan servicer)