There are two types of forbearance:

There are two types of forbearance:
Discretionary: Your lender has the right to decide whether to grant you forbearance due to illness or financial hardship.

Mandatory: Your lender is required to grant you forbearance if one or more of the following conditions applies to you:

You are serving in a medical or dental internship or residency program (other specific requirements apply).
Your monthly payment for all your student loans is 20% or more of the borrower’s total monthly gross income (additional conditions apply).
You served in a national service position for which a national service award was received.
You are performing a teaching service that would qualify for Teacher Loan Forgiveness.
You qualify for partial repayment of student loans under the U.S. Department of Defense Student Loan Repayment Program.
You are a member of the National Guard and were activated by a governor, and are ineligible for a military deferment.