Are Great Lakes Student Loans Federal? | Key Facts

Most loans once handled by Great Lakes are federal student loans, though some private loans were also serviced under the same brand.

Seeing “Great Lakes” on old statements or in email archives can raise plenty of questions. You might wonder who owns the debt now, whether those balances are federal or private, and what that means for repayment plans or forgiveness programs. Sorting this out matters, because federal loans come with protections that private contracts usually do not match.

This guide walks through what Great Lakes actually did, how its role changed, and how you can confirm the legal type of any loan that used to sit on a Great Lakes account. You will also see what changed when those accounts shifted to Nelnet and what practical moves you can take next.

Great Lakes And Your Student Loan At A Glance

Great Lakes Educational Loan Services was a loan servicer, not usually the lender itself. A servicer handles billing, statements, and day-to-day customer contact on behalf of the lender or loan owner. For millions of borrowers, the owner was the U.S. Department of Education, which meant those balances were federal student loans managed through the Great Lakes platform.

At the same time, Great Lakes also handled some private student loans for banks and other lenders. That mix is the reason the question about Great Lakes loans does not have a simple yes or no answer. The brand on your old statement tells you who handled the paperwork; it does not automatically reveal whether the loan is federal or private.

The good news is that you can pin this down with a few clear checks. Once you know the type of each loan, you can use the right repayment tools and protections for that specific balance instead of guessing.

Great Lakes Federal Student Loans Explained For Borrowers

When Great Lakes serviced federal loans, it did so under contract with the Department of Education. Those loans were usually part of the Direct Loan program or older federal programs such as FFEL or Perkins. The money ultimately came from the federal government, while Great Lakes handled billing and routine questions.

If a loan was federal, your rights flowed from federal law and Department of Education regulations. That meant access to income-driven repayment plans, potential Public Service Loan Forgiveness, and options for deferment or forbearance during certain hardships. These benefits did not come from Great Lakes as a company; they came from the fact that the loan itself was federal.

Because Great Lakes could also appear on private loan accounts, borrowers sometimes assumed that all Great Lakes loans had federal protections. That misunderstanding created confusion, especially when payments paused on federally held loans but private contracts kept running.

Are Great Lakes Student Loans Federal? Types And Ownership

The short answer is that Great Lakes serviced both federal and private loans, and the brand name alone does not tell you which kind you have. You need to look at ownership records and program labels rather than the logo at the top of the statement.

Federal loans once handled by Great Lakes will appear on your account at the official Federal Student Aid portal at StudentAid.gov. Private loans will not show up there. Instead, they appear only with the private lender or the company now managing that contract.

Federal Student Aid also explains how federal and private loans differ in interest options, relief programs, and protections in its guide on federal versus private student loans. Reading that overview side by side with your own paperwork makes it easier to see which description fits each balance.

How To Tell If Your Great Lakes Loan Is Federal Or Private

You do not have to guess based on vague memories. A few practical checks will usually sort every loan into the right bucket.

Step One: Check Your Federal Student Aid Account

Start by logging in to your Federal Student Aid account at the official servicer lookup page. Once you sign in, you can see a list of all federal loans tied to your Social Security number, along with the current servicer for each one. If a loan appears on that dashboard, it is federal, even if you once saw Great Lakes on the statement.

Step Two: Read The Loan Name On Your Promissory Note

Next, open the original promissory note or disclosure for the loan. Terms such as “Direct Subsidized Loan,” “Direct Unsubsidized Loan,” “Direct PLUS Loan,” or references to the Federal Family Education Loan Program point toward a federal loan. By contrast, a document that names a bank, credit union, or private lender as the creditor and uses brand names instead of federal program labels usually points to a private student loan.

Step Three: Match The Loan To Your Current Servicer

After Great Lakes left the federal servicing roster, most federal accounts it handled moved to Nelnet. You can confirm where those balances landed and how to reach the new servicer on the Nelnet federal loan servicing site. If your account appears there and in your Federal Student Aid dashboard, it is federal even though the original brand was Great Lakes.

If a loan does not show on StudentAid.gov and sits with a different company today, treat it as private unless you find paperwork that proves federal status.

Clue	Points Toward Federal Loan	Points Toward Private Loan
Shows On StudentAid.gov Account	Yes, with a listed federal servicer	Does not appear at all
Loan Name On Original Documents	Includes terms such as “Direct” or FFEL	Contains a bank or lender brand name
Current Servicer	Nelnet or another servicer listed on Federal Student Aid	Bank, credit union, or private lender portal only
Relief During Federal Payment Pauses	Payments paused with interest changes based on federal policy	Monthly bills continued on the original schedule
Eligibility For Public Service Loan Forgiveness	Listed as eligible when using PSLF help tools	Not accepted for PSLF even with qualifying employment
Income-Driven Repayment Options	Multiple IDR plans offered through the servicer	Only standard or limited alternative plans offered
Interest Rate Structure	Fixed rate tied to federal schedules for that year	Rate set by lender underwriting, sometimes variable

What Happened When Great Lakes Loans Moved To Nelnet

Great Lakes was purchased by Nelnet, another large federal loan servicer, and federal accounts were shifted over in stages. That transfer changed the name on the website and letters, but it did not rewrite the underlying loan contracts. A Direct Loan held by the Department of Education stayed a Direct Loan, with the same interest calculation and principal balance.

As Federal Student Aid explains on its servicer pages, the Department can reassign federal loans to a different servicer while keeping the terms of the original agreement the same. The change mainly affects where you send payments and who answers the phone. If your loans still appear on StudentAid.gov, they remain under federal ownership even though Great Lakes no longer handles them.

Nelnet describes its role as a contractor that manages billing and repayment options on behalf of Federal Student Aid on its federal servicing site. That language mirrors the way Great Lakes handled federal accounts in the past, which is why the transition did not change eligibility for federal benefits.

Private loans that once ran through Great Lakes often moved to different brands or platforms after the corporate changes. In those cases, borrowers usually received letters or emails telling them where to send payments. Those balances remain private even though the servicing company changed.

Protections That Come With Federal Loans Once Handled By Great Lakes

Sorting out whether a Great Lakes account was federal matters because the protections tied to federal law can be extensive. Once you confirm that a loan appears on your Federal Student Aid dashboard, you gain a menu of relief tools that private contracts rarely match.

Income-Driven Repayment Plans

Federal loans qualify for income-driven repayment plans that cap payments based on income and family size. These plans can lower monthly bills and may lead to forgiveness of remaining balances after a set number of qualifying years. Details on eligibility and current formulas are outlined in Federal Student Aid’s guide to federal versus private loans.

Deferment And Forbearance Options

During unemployment, school enrollment, military service, and other qualifying events, federal loans may be placed in deferment or forbearance. That pause can give short-term breathing room when income drops or expenses spike. Some deferments even stop interest from building on certain loan types.

Access To Forgiveness Programs

Federal loans may qualify for programs such as Public Service Loan Forgiveness or Teacher Loan Forgiveness when the borrower meets all program rules. Private lenders are not part of these federal forgiveness efforts, even if Great Lakes once handled the billing.

Federal Feature	Who To Contact	Typical First Step
Income-Driven Repayment	Current federal loan servicer listed on StudentAid.gov	Request plan information and submit an IDR application
Public Service Loan Forgiveness	Federal Student Aid And Your Servicer	Submit an employment certification form and review eligible loans
Deferment For School Or Unemployment	Current federal loan servicer	Ask for deferment forms tied to your situation
Forbearance During Temporary Hardship	Current federal loan servicer	Call or send a message describing the hardship period
Error Or Complaint About Servicing	Servicer and the CFPB student loan portal	File a written complaint through the CFPB student loans page

Handling Private Loans Once Linked To Great Lakes

If your Great Lakes account turned out to hold private loans, the rules are different. Private lenders are not required to offer income-driven plans or federal forgiveness programs, even when the original bill came through Great Lakes. Instead, each lender sets its own repayment options and hardship policies.

You can still take active steps if a balance is private. Start by confirming the current lender and servicer from the most recent statement. Then review the loan contract for variables such as interest rate, term length, and fees. Ask about interest-only payments, temporary reductions, or refinance options that might fit your income and credit profile.

If you believe a private loan servicer has mishandled payments or given inaccurate information, you can submit a detailed complaint through the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau student loan portal. The agency forwards complaints to companies and tracks responses, which can help when you need written records of how a dispute unfolded.

Practical Steps To Take With Former Great Lakes Loans

By this point, the path forward usually breaks into a few clear steps. Working through them in order can turn a confusing list of old Great Lakes accounts into a clear map of who you owe and what options you have.

List Every Loan And Match It To A Servicer

Use your Federal Student Aid dashboard, credit reports, and recent statements to create a list that includes each loan’s current servicer, balance, and interest rate. Mark which ones appear on StudentAid.gov and which ones are private.

Tag Loans As Federal Or Private

Using the checks described above, label each account as federal or private. If you still feel unsure about a specific loan, call the company that holds it and ask directly whether the debt is owned by the Department of Education or by a private lender.

Match Each Loan To A Repayment Strategy

For federal loans, look at income-driven repayment, forgiveness programs, and any ongoing relief options. For private loans, evaluate whether refinancing, extra payments, or lender-specific hardship programs make more sense. You do not need to treat every balance the same way; the goal is to give each loan a plan that fits its type.

Keep Records Of Every Change

Servicer transfers can create gaps in records. Save copies of statements, letters, and email notices showing when Great Lakes stopped handling your account and when Nelnet or another company took over. Those documents help resolve future disagreements about payment histories or interest calculations.

Sorting out whether an old Great Lakes account was federal or private takes some effort, yet it pays off in clarity and control. Once you know exactly what kind of loan you hold, you can use the tools that match that status and avoid missing federal relief on one side or better private terms on the other.