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Central Research Inc. (CRI) is a student loan servicer for federal student loans. One of the newest federal student loan servicers, CRI bills and collects student loan payments from borrowers, tracks and processes payments, and provides customer service related to student loans.
Read on to learn more about CRI student loans, how to know if CRI is your loan servicer, and how Central Research Inc. can help borrowers manage student loan payments.
Key Points
• Central Research Inc. (CRI) is a federal student loan servicer for the U.S. Education Department.
• CRI does not own student loans — federal loans are owned by the Education Department, and CRI manages them on behalf of the government, handling billing, payments, and customer service.
• Federal student loan accounts are automatically assigned to servicers like CRI when loans are disbursed, but the Education Department can transfer loans from one servicer to another at any time.
• CRI offers multiple repayment plan options including Standard, Graduated and Extended plans, as well as income-driven repayment plans that base monthly payments on a borrower’s discretionary income and family size.
• Borrowers can enroll in CRI’s Auto Debit feature for timely automatic payments and a small interest rate discount.
What Is CRI (Central Research, Inc.)?
CRI is a student loan servicer that the Education Department (ED) has assigned to collect and process federal student loan payments, help borrowers manage repayments plans, and provide customer service for federal student loans, among other things.
CRI does not own student loans, they manage them. If you are wondering who owns your student loans, your federal loans are typically owned by the government through the Education Department. Loan servicers like CRI manage your loans on behalf of the ED, and they handle billing, payments, repayment options, and customer service.
CRI’s Background and History
CRI, located in Lowell, Arkansas, and Alexandria, Virginia, provides management and business service solutions to the government and commercial sectors, including the federal government. Johnny and Scott Dillard, a father and son, founded the company in 2002.
Johnny Dillard, Ph.D., is a retired Marine Corps officer, Vietnam veteran, and Army National Guard lieutenant colonel. The Dillards started CRI as a veteran-owned small business; today, it is a large multi-million dollar company.
How CRI Became a Federal Student Loan Servicer
CRI became a federal student loan servicer in 2023, when the Education Department overhauled its servicing system to create a centralized loan servicing environment under an initiative called the Unified Servicing and Data Solution.
As part of this program, the ED contracted with five companies to service student loans, including CRI. Although CRI had never before worked as a federal loan servicer, it had previously worked as a private collection agency for the ED by collecting on defaulted student loans. CRI began working with federal student loan borrowers to manage and service loans in the spring of 2024.
How Do CRI Student Loans Work?
Like other federal student loan servicers, CRI handles billing, payment collection and processing, and other services related to federal student loans. Borrowers can create an account with CRI online by plugging in their Social Security number and date of birth and then following the prompts.
Before loan payments are due, CRI will send borrowers a bill or statement with the amount they owe and the payment due date. Borrowers can make payments through their online account.
Along with making payments, borrowers can also learn about different types of student loans through the CRI portal, keep track of their account balance, and adjust or change their monthly payments, including making extra payments toward their student loans if you choose to do so.
CRI can help borrowers explore their different repayment options, as well as student loan forgiveness, or help them find solutions if they are having trouble paying their loans.
How the Education Department Assigns Loan Servicers
The Education Department assigns student loan accounts to loan servicers automatically when the loans are disbursed. However, loans can be transferred by ED from one loan servicer to another. Borrowers will typically be notified if their loan servicer changes.
How to Find Out If CRI Is Your Servicer
To find out if CRI is your federal student loan servicer, log in to your account on the Federal Student Aid (FSA) website using your FSA ID number. On your dashboard, go to the “My Loan Servicers” section. You can also call the Federal Student Aid information center at 800-433-3243.
What Can CRI Help You With?
Federal loan servicers such as CRI manage the servicing for federal student loans. Here are some of the things they can help you with.
Setting Up and Managing Your Account
As noted above, CRI can help you manage your student loan account. This includes sending you bills and due dates, processing payments, maintaining your payment history, and providing your account balance and loan status. They can also help you explore different repayment plans and student loan forgiveness, and answer questions you may have about your loans.
Enrolling in Autopay
CRI offers “Auto Debit,” an autopay option that allows borrowers to schedule payments to automatically debit from a checking or savings account. Once a borrower enrolls in Auto Debit, their payments will be made on time, which may make managing student loan payments easier.
There’s a financial advantage as well. Borrowers who enroll will receive a 0.25% interest rate reduction on their student loan, as long as the loan is in active repayment status.
Income-Driven Repayment Plans
Income-driven repayment (IDR) plans base monthly student loan payments on a borrower’s discretionary income and family size. Monthly payments on an IDR planmay be lower and more manageable, depending on your situation.
Check with CRI to determine your options for an income-based repayment plan and get information on how to apply. Just be aware that you’ll have to recertify your income and family size every year to continue on an IDR plan.
Deferment and Forbearance
Borrowers who are having trouble paying their federal student loans may want to consider student loan deferment or forbearance to pause or temporarily reduce their payments and prevent their loans from going into default.
In deferment, borrowers do not have to pay the interest that accrues as long as they have a qualifying loan, such as a federal Direct Subsidized Loan. Deferment is generally for borrowers who are facing financial difficulties. Borrowers need to decide which type of deferment to request — such as economic hardship deferment or unemployment deferment, for example — and apply for it with their federal loan servicer.
With student loan forbearance, borrowers must pay the interest that accrues during the forbearance period, no matter what type of federal loans they have. There are two types of forbearance — mandatory and general. With mandatory forbearance, borrowers must apply and meet the eligibility requirements, which includes actively serving in the National Guard or AmeriCorps or doing a medical or dental residency, among other things.
General forbearance may be an option for those struggling to make their federal student loan payments. However, your loan servicer, such as CRI, determines if your general forbearance request will be granted.
If you are having difficulty making your student loan payments, contact CRI right away to explore your options, including deferment and forbearance.
Borrowers looking for ways to manage their student loan payments might also consider such options as student loan refinancing or consolidation. With student loan refinancing, for example, you exchange your existing loans for a new private loan from a private lender. Ideally, you might be able to get a lower interest rate, which could lower your monthly payments. You may also qualify for more favorable terms through refinancing.
However, it’s important to understand that refinancing federal loans makes them ineligible for federal benefits like IDR plans, forgiveness, and student loan deferment.
Recommended: Student Loan Consolidation vs. Refinancing
Tracking and Making Payments
You’ll receive monthly billing statements from CRI about three weeks before payments are due. Your account will show your current amount due and the due date. You can pay your monthly bills online or sign up for Auto Debit, as noted above.
Every monthly payment is calculated by CRI to allow borrowers to pay off their loan within their loan term. Late payments may cause a loan to be delinquent, and it may be reported to the consumer reporting agencies. If you are having trouble with your payments, contact CRI.
Recommended: How to Find Your Student Loan Account Number
How to Contact CRI Student Loan Customer Service
You can contact CRI by calling or emailing them. Call 833-355-4311 to speak to a representative on Mondays from 8am to 9pm ET, Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 8am to 8pm ET, and Thursdays and Fridays from 8am to 6pm ET. You can also log into your CRI account to email CRI customer service. Finally, you can write to CRI at P.O. Box 83106, Lincoln, NE 68501-3106.
The Takeaway
CRI is a federal student loan servicer that manages student loans payments on behalf of the Education Department. If CRI is the servicer for your student loans, they will handle billing and payment processing and tracking; they can also help you explore the different student loan repayment options and may be able to help if you are having trouble affording your monthly payments.
Looking to lower your monthly student loan payment? Refinancing may be one way to do it — by extending your loan term, getting a lower interest rate than what you currently have, or both. (Please note that refinancing federal loans makes them ineligible for federal forgiveness and protections. Also, lengthening your loan term may mean paying more in interest over the life of the loan.) SoFi student loan refinancing offers flexible terms that fit your budget.
FAQ
What are CRI student loans?
CRI is a federal student loan servicer for the Education Department that manages student loans. It handles billing, processing, and tracking payments on federal student loans, manages repayment options, and provides customer service for student loan borrowers. CRI is one of several federal student loan servicers; to find out who your loan servicer is, you can log in to your account on StudentAid.gov.
Is CRI a legitimate student loan servicer?
Yes, CRI Loans is a legitimate federal student loan servicer for the Education Department (ED). CRI manages student loans for the ED, handling billing, payment processing, tracking payments, and providing customer service to borrowers. CRI is one of the newest federal student loan servicers; they began working with student loan borrowers in 2024. Previously, the company collected defaulted student loans on behalf of the federal government.
How do I know if CRI is my loan servicer?
You can find out if CRI is your servicer by logging in to your account on StudentAid.gov or calling the Federal Student Aid information center at 800-433-3243.
How do I contact CRI student loan customer service?
You can call CRI customer service at 833-355-4311 Monday to Friday, beginning at 8am ET. You can also email CRI customer service by logging into your CRI account.
What repayment options does CRI offer?
CRI offers a number of student loan repayment options, including the Standard Repayment Plan, which spreads equal payments over the loan term; the Graduated Repayment Plan, in which payments start low and gradually increase over the loan term; the Extended Repayment Plan, which makes monthly payments more affordable but makes the loan term longer; and income-driven repayment plans that base monthly payments on your discretionary income and family size. The repayment options available to borrowers depend on the date their loans were borrowed; find out more information about this at StudentAid.gov.
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