Guide · checked October 24, 2026
Extended payment plans: the payday loan exit your state may require
In 15 states, a payday lender has to let you pay off the loan in installments, with no new fee and no new interest, if you ask the right way and in time. That plan is called an extended payment plan, or EPP. It is the cheapest way out of a payday loan there is, and lenders rarely bring it up.
The catch is timing. In most of these states you have to ask before the loan is due, usually by the end of the business day before, and you have to sign an amendment to the loan agreement. Ask after the due date and the lender can say no. Most states also allow one plan per 12 months.
How to ask
- Find your state in the table below and read the rule. Note the deadline.
- Go to the store or call the lender before that deadline and say: "I can't repay this loan in full. I want the extended payment plan under state law." Use those words. "Can I get more time" invites a renewal, which costs another fee.
- Sign the plan amendment and keep a copy. Check that it shows no new fee and lists each installment date.
- If the lender refuses or tries to sell you a renewal instead, file a complaint with the state regulator. The link is on your state's page.
States that require a plan
| State | The rule |
|---|---|
| Alabama | After the initial loan and one rollover, if the customer cannot repay in full, the statute says the lender 'may offer' an extended repayment option of four equal monthly installments (§ 5-18A-12(c)); the Banking Department's posted-notice language says the four-installment option is at no additional cost. The lender may not sue on a defaulted loan until it sends written notice of the customer's rights and the customer fails to exercise them within 15 days (§ 5-18A-12(c)), and by regulation may not file legal claims without first offering in writing an extended repayment plan of four equal monthly payments at no additional cost (Ala. Admin. Code r. 155-2-4-.12(2)). Ask the lender in writing for the four-payment extended repayment plan, especially after receiving a default notice. |
| Alaska | Yes, after default. Before sending the debt to a collector or suing, the lender must try in good faith to contact the borrower and must offer a payment plan lasting up to six months, with at least 5% of the balance due at signing and no added fee except a bad check fee; it must also send a certified letter making that offer at least 15 days before suing (AS 06.50.550(a)). Ask the lender for the AS 06.50.550 payment plan once you are behind. |
| Florida | Yes. Single-payment loans: if by the end of the deferment period you tell the lender in writing or in person that you cannot pay in full, the lender must give a 60-day grace period at no additional charge; as a condition you must make an appointment with a consumer credit counseling agency within 7 days after the end of the deferment period and complete counseling by the end of the grace period, and you may agree to a repayment plan approved by the agency, which the lender must then also follow (Fla. Stat. § 560.404(22)). Installment loans: if you tell the lender in writing or in person by noon of the business day before a scheduled payment that you cannot pay it in full, the lender must let you defer that payment, at no additional fee, until after the last scheduled payment; one deferral per loan (§ 560.404(23)). The lender may not deposit your check after you tell it you cannot pay, unless you fail to meet these conditions (§ 560.404(21)). |
| Idaho | Yes. Once in any consecutive 12-month period, the lender must, on the borrower's request, enter into a written extended payment plan executed no later than the day the loan is due, with at least four equal payments over at least 60 days; the borrower owes no more than under the original loan, the lender may not charge interest or additional fees (other than returned-check charges under § 28-46-413(6)), and it may not start collection while the borrower complies (Idaho Code § 28-46-414). Ask the lender in writing on or before the due date. |
| Indiana | Yes, at no extra cost. The lender must offer an EPP when the borrower enters a third, fourth or fifth consecutive loan. The borrower may ask for an EPP at any time during the term of a third or later consecutive loan if not in default and after the cancellation window has passed. No additional fees may be added. While on an EPP the borrower cannot take another small loan from any lender until the EPP is paid in full. The brochure does not state the number of installments. |
| Kansas | Yes. A consumer who cannot repay may elect an EPP once every 12 months, measured from payoff of the prior EPP. The consumer must ask before close of business on the last business day before the due date and sign an amendment. The plan has at least 4 substantially equal installments due on or after paydays, or at least two weeks apart if there is no regular income. No interest or extra fees while in compliance, and prepayment is allowed. No new payday loan may be made during the plan. Lenders must post and disclose that EPPs are available (16a-2-404(7)). |
| Louisiana | Yes, free, once in any 12-month period per licensee. The consumer must ask before the due date, or within 72 hours after hospital discharge with proof of hospitalization. The plan has at least 4 substantially equal installments, with the first due no sooner than 30 days after signing unless the consumer agrees to a shorter period tied to income. No interest or extra fees, and prepayment at any time. No new loan until the plan is paid. Lenders must post the right and print it on the first page of the agreement (R.S. 9:3578.4.1). |
| Michigan | Yes. If the borrower has entered 8 deferred presentment transactions with any licensee in a 12-month period, the licensee must offer a written repayment plan for the 8th and each later transaction that year. The borrower must ask, orally or in writing at the place of business, within 30 days after the maturity date. Repayment is 3 equal installments due on the next 3 paydays. A plan administration fee applies ($15 in statute, CPI-adjusted to $23.38 for 2026-2030 by DIFS Bulletin 2026-07-CF). No new transactions with any licensee during the plan. The database flags eligible borrowers (MCL 487.2155(2)-(4)). |
| Nebraska | Yes, required by law at no additional cost. A maker who cannot repay may elect it once in any 12-month period; must request it before the due date and sign an amendment to the agreement. At least four equal payments that coincide with the maker's pay dates; no interest or additional fees; may prepay without penalty; on a missed installment the licensee may accelerate (45-919.01). |
| Nevada | Yes. A licensee must allow a customer with an outstanding deferred deposit loan to enter an extended payment plan if the customer has not had one for that loan in the preceding 12 months and requests it before the loan is due. It must be in writing and signed, with at least four payments over at least 60 days, and may not add interest or fees beyond those of the original loan (NRS 604A.5026). Separately, after a default and before any lawsuit or arbitration, the lender must offer a repayment plan of at least 90 days after default, open for at least 30 days, with written notice within 15 days of default; initial payment may be required of no more than 20% (NRS 604A.5027). |
| South Carolina | Yes. A customer unable to repay may elect an extended payment plan once in any 12-month period; must request it and sign an amendment before the loan's due date; at least 4 substantially equal installments due on or after paydays, at no additional cost, no interest or fees, prepayable without penalty. No new loan while the plan is unpaid (§§ 34-39-280, 34-39-270(A)(4)). Lenders must post the right and print it on page 1 of the agreement (§ 34-39-280(F)). |
| Utah | Yes. Lender must allow an extended payment plan at least once in a 12-month period on request, and must offer one after 10 continuous weeks of interest or fees (§ 7-23-403(1)). Terms: at least 4 equal payments over at least the greater of 90 days after default or 60 days after entering the plan, no interest or fees of any kind, no new collateral (except checks for the payments, and up to 20% initial payment if in default), no collection while the borrower complies. Request in writing no sooner than the day before the last day of the term and no later than the business day before the due date (or within 10 days after a default notice). A fee of up to $20 is allowed only if the borrower defaults on the plan (§ 7-23-403(2)-(7)). |
| Washington | Yes. If the borrower says they cannot repay, the lender must say they can convert to an installment plan and must do so on request, at no fee or interest: at least 90 days for loans up to $400, at least 180 days for larger loans; prepay any time; postdated checks returned (RCW 31.45.084; WAC 208-630-531). A one-time $25 default fee is allowed if the plan is defaulted (RCW 31.45.084(3); WAC 208-630-549). |
| Wisconsin | Yes. If the customer cannot repay in full at the end of the term, the lender must offer repayment of the outstanding balance in 4 equal installments due on the customer's paydays. One offer per 12 months across all lenders (§ 138.14(11g)). No penalty may be charged for this repayment (§ 138.14(10)(am)). |
| Wyoming | Yes. A consumer unable to repay may elect a plan once every 12 months (measured from paying off the last plan) by asking and signing an amendment before 5 p.m. Mountain Time on the last business day before the due date. At least 4 substantially equal installments over at least 60 days, due on or after paydays (or at least 2 weeks apart), with no interest or added fees while the consumer complies; prepay any time. On default the lender may accelerate and charge interest at prime plus 6% (W.S. 40-14-366). |
States where a plan is allowed but not required
In California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Mississippi, North Dakota, Oklahoma and Virginia, the law lets the lender agree to a payment plan or workout but does not make it. Ask anyway, in writing, and say you are also talking to a credit counselor. A lender that expects nothing on a defaulted loan often prefers a plan.
If your state isn't on either list
Your state either has no plan rule or does not allow typical payday loans at all. If it is the second, the loan may have been made in breach of the state's rate cap, which can matter a lot; your state page says what the statute provides. Either way the other routes still work: stopping the withdrawals, a credit union payday alternative loan and nonprofit credit counseling.
This is a summary of state law, not legal advice. The statute and the regulator control.
Want help asking for a plan?
A nonprofit credit counselor can help you work out what to ask for and when.