SCRA may allow you to cap the interest rates of your loans at 6% while you are on active duty. Car loans, boat loans, credit card debt, home mortgages, home equity loans, and student loans may all qualify for the 6% cap. To have the interest on your loan capped, you must have taken out the loan prior to entering military service.
If you have a mortgage, the interest is capped at 6% for the time you are in active service and for a full year after active service has ended. For other types of loans, the 6% cap only applies during the period of active service. A creditor must also forgive interest on the loan that accrued while you were on active duty.
Again, you must give written notice of your military service to your creditors within certain timeframes. The sooner you can do so, the better. At the very latest, you must give written notice to your creditor within 180 days after the end of your military service to be eligible for SCRA’s interest rate cap.
Please be aware that a court may find that your ability to pay an interest rate greater than 6% is not materially affected by your military service and may, therefore, find that you are not eligible for this protection. 50 U.S.C. § 3937.