EMI Moratorium 2021 Latest News: Everything You Need to Know

Short answer: no COVID-style moratorium is coming back. Neither the 2020 scheme nor the EMI moratorium 2021 scheme has been extended, and both are closed to new requests.

But "nothing since the pandemic" is no longer accurate. RBI has allowed narrower relief since:

• November 2025, exporters only. A deferment of term loan instalments due from 1 September to 31 December 2025, under the Trade Relief Measures Directions.

• From 1 July 2026, calamity areas only. When the Central or State Government declares a calamity, lenders can extend relief, including a moratorium, to eligible borrowers without waiting for a request. Borrowers can opt out until day 135.

Read the details in our guide to the 2026 calamity relief rules. If you simply want to ask your own bank for a moratorium, that page walks through how.

So if you searched for the latest EMI moratorium 2021 news hoping for a new window, there isn't one. What remains useful is understanding what the old schemes did to your loan, because many borrowers are still repaying loans that went through them.

Under Resolution Framework 2.0, lenders could restructure eligible personal loans and small business loans that were standard on 31 March 2021, with a moratorium or tenure extension of up to two years in total. Requests had to be invoked by 30 September 2021.

The 2020 EMI moratorium was a pandemic relief measure. On 27 March 2020, RBI's COVID-19 Regulatory Package permitted lenders to give a 3-month moratorium on instalments due from 1 March to 31 May 2020. On 23 May 2020 it was extended by another 3 months, to 31 August 2020. That is the covid moratorium period most people mean.

Three things are often remembered wrongly.

• It was permitted, not automatic. RBI allowed lenders to offer it. Each lender applied it under its own policy, and many asked borrowers to opt in.

• Interest kept running. The deferred amount was recovered afterwards, through a higher EMI or a longer tenure.

• It was not a default. RBI said the rescheduling was not to be treated as a default when lenders reported to credit bureaus.

When the moratorium ended on 31 August 2020, regular EMIs resumed. Borrowers who still could not pay were pointed to a separate restructuring route, covered in the next section.

For anyone comparing it with the EMI moratorium 2021 scheme, the key difference is this: the 2020 measure was a blanket pause that lenders could offer, while the 2021 measure needed an application and the lender decided.

First, a step that is often skipped. After the moratorium ended, RBI's Resolution Framework for COVID-19 Stress (RF 1.0, 6 August 2020) let lenders restructure personal loans that were standard and not more than 30 days overdue on 1 March 2020. Requests had to be made by 31 December 2020, and a moratorium of up to 2 years was allowed.

The second wave then led to Resolution Framework 2.0, announced on 5 May 2021. This is the EMI moratorium 2021 people search for.

• For individuals (including personal loans) and small businesses hit by the second wave.

• The account had to be standard on 31 March 2021.

• Business borrowers needed exposure of up to Rs. 25 crore.

• Invoked by 30 September 2021, implemented within 90 days.

• A moratorium or tenure extension of up to 2 years in total. Borrowers restructured under RF 1.0 with less than 2 years could get the remainder.

It needed an application, and the lender decided. Read how RF 2.0 differed from the first round for the detail.

If you restructured under RF 1.0 or 2.0, your account may still show as restructured. That is accurate, not an error, but check that the dates and amounts are right.

This is the one fact from the moratorium years that a borrower can still act on.

On 23 March 2021, the Supreme Court delivered its judgment in Small Scale Industrial Manufacturers Association v. Union of India concerning relief during the COVID-19 loan moratorium. Following the judgment, the RBI directed lending institutions to refund or adjust the interest-on-interest charged during the moratorium period from 1 March to 31 August 2020. The relief did not amount to a general waiver of the ordinary interest due on loans.

On 7 April 2021, RBI told lenders to refund or adjust the amount: credited against the next instalment, or paid back if the account had been closed.

Two limits are worth knowing. The Court did not waive the interest itself, only the interest on interest. And it did not extend the moratorium.

What to do now:

• Open your loan statement and look for a credit around April to June 2021.

• If you cannot find one, write to your lender and ask in writing whether the adjustment was made.

• Keep the reply with your loan papers.

Many people who took the 2020 pause never checked this. If you did take it, it takes ten minutes and can be worth the effort.

Whether you used the 2020 pause or the EMI moratorium 2021 restructuring, run through this checklist once.

1. Your revised repayment schedule. Confirm how the deferred interest was added: a higher EMI or a longer tenure.

2. The interest-on-interest credit. See the section above.

3. Your credit report. A moratorium month should not show as overdue. If it does, raise a dispute.

4. Whether a balance transfer or prepayment makes sense now. Worth a look if your income and score have recovered.

One practical note: old "moratorium EMI calculator" Excel sheets were built for the 2020 scheme. Use your lender's current statement instead.

FREED does not grant moratoriums. For a pause, ask your lender. Our page on EMI moratorium extension shows how.

If you are managing multiple unsecured debts, you may be able to explore a consolidation option, subject to programme eligibility and lender approval. Consolidation may combine eligible debts into one repayment, but approval, terms and costs depend on the product offered. Confirm the current credit-score criteria and any customer charges before applying.

If you truly cannot pay, settlement is the other route. Settlement is not something a borrower chooses out of preference. FREED negotiates with lenders and can reduce what you owe by up to 50%*. The "Settled" status can stay on your report for up to 7 years. There is a non-refundable evaluation fee. See the debt resolution programme.

If recovery calls turn abusive or agents arrive unannounced, FREED Shield helps, and it is open to everyone. FREED does not handle secured loans such as home, car or gold loans.

*Terms apply. Outcomes vary by lender and case.