# Payment Plans

A payment plan lets you pay your balance in smaller pieces over time, instead of all at once.

## How plans work today

Plans are arranged by talking to us — by phone with our agent, or by [sending a message](/for-debtors/debtor-portal/messaging-the-creditor.md) through the portal. Once we agree on the terms, we record them on your account as a payment commitment with the installment dates and amounts. Each payment is then made through the portal's regular [payment flow](/for-debtors/debtor-portal/making-a-payment.md) on the agreed dates.

There is no in-portal "set up a plan" or "manage plan" page yet — every section in this folder describes the conversation you can have with us about a plan, and what happens behind the scenes once one is in place.

## In this section

* [Plan options](/for-debtors/payment-plans/plan-options.md) — what plans we typically agree to.
* [Modifying your plan](/for-debtors/payment-plans/modifying-your-plan.md) — change a plan that's in place.
* [What happens if I miss a payment](/for-debtors/payment-plans/what-happens-if-i-miss-a-payment.md) — what to expect and what to do.
* [Prepayment](/for-debtors/payment-plans/prepayment.md) — paying off the plan early.
* [Plan completion](/for-debtors/payment-plans/plan-completion.md) — what happens when you finish.

## Who this section is for

This section is written for debtors who want to know how plans work. Creditors managing plan approvals should read [Approving a payment plan](/for-creditor-partners/creditor-operations/approving-a-payment-plan.md).

## The basics, fast

* Most plans have a **down payment** today and **monthly payments** over a few months.
* There's **no extra interest or fees** — you pay your current balance over time.
* Each installment is paid by you through the portal on the agreed date (automatic recurring charges aren't wired up yet).
* If you miss a payment, talk to us. Plans don't default after one missed payment.

## When a plan is the right move

A payment plan is a good fit if:

* You owe the debt and you intend to pay.
* You can't pay all at once today.
* You can commit to a monthly amount for a few months.

A plan is not a good fit if:

* You don't think you owe the debt. [Open a dispute](/for-debtors/debtor-portal/opening-a-dispute.md) first.
* You can pay in full. Just pay; there's no benefit to a plan over paying.
* Your income is uncertain to the point that you can't commit to any monthly amount. Talk to us — there may be other options.

## TODO

* Wire up in-portal plan setup and management.
* Add aggregate stats once we have them (median plan length, completion rate, etc.).

***

Last reviewed: 2026-05-12 by Customer Success.


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