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Six Percent on Pre-Service Debt — and No Filing Fee to Enforce It

State law caps interest at six percent a year on an obligation incurred before entering active service, and defines interest broadly enough to swallow service charges, renewal charges and fees. Separately, a member of the organised militia bringing a civil action about their service — including a claim under this article or under military-status discrimination law — pays no court costs or filing fees at all.

Verified August 23, 2026

What this benefit is

State law caps interest at six percent a year on an obligation incurred before entering active service, and defines interest broadly enough to swallow service charges, renewal charges and fees. Separately, a member of the organised militia bringing a civil action about their service — including a claim under this article or under military-status discrimination law — pays no court costs or filing fees at all.

What it's worth: Interest capped at 6% a year on obligations incurred before active service, with service charges, renewal charges and fees counted as interest; and a full waiver of court costs and filing fees for a qualifying civil action

  • Section 323-A applies to an obligation or liability bearing interest at a rate above six percent per year incurred by a person in active military service before entry into that service.
  • The section defines interest to include service charges, renewal charges, fees and any other charges, expressly excepting bona fide insurance.
  • A creditor may apply to a court for relief from the cap, and the court may grant it where the ability of the person in service to pay the higher interest is not materially affected by reason of that service.
  • The section text read this session does not itself impose a notice requirement on the service member; the federal Act does, which is why notice is still the practical step.
  • Section 323-B waives all court costs or filing fees for the commencement of a civil action by an active member of the organised militia where the action relates to militia or reserve service.
  • The 323-B waiver reaches claims based wholly or partly on this article, on the human rights law provisions about military status, or on federal law in titles 38 or 50 of the United States Code.

Who is entitled to it

  • Your home is in New York.

Not sure whether that describes you?

Answer a few questions about this benefit specifically — we only ask what this one actually depends on, and we stop as soon as we know.

From what you have told us so far, you appear to qualify.

How to claim it

  1. 1List every debt you took on BEFORE service started. That is the entire test — the cap does not touch anything you signed after you went on duty.
  2. 2Write to each lender with a copy of the orders even though this section does not spell out a notice requirement. The federal Act does, lenders are set up to act on written notice, and a letter is what creates the paper trail if it later goes to court.
  3. 3Read the definition of interest before you accept a lender's figure. Service charges, renewal charges and fees are inside the cap here; only bona fide insurance is carved out. Lenders routinely reduce the headline rate and leave the fees alone.
  4. 4Expect the possibility of a creditor going to court to lift the cap. They must show your ability to pay the higher rate is not materially affected by your service — the burden sits with them, not with you.
  5. 5If you are a serving member of the state organised militia and the claim relates to that service, ask the court for the fee waiver at the moment you commence. It is all court costs and filing fees, not a reduction.
  6. 6The fee waiver expressly covers a claim under the human rights law about military status. If you are contemplating a discrimination claim about your service, the cost of starting it is not the obstacle you think it is.
Form
A written request to the lender for the capped rate; for the fee waiver, a request to the court on commencing the action
File with
Your lender or servicer; and the court where the civil action is brought
No renewal needed
CorrectionThis is a state cap at the same six percent as the federal one — it is not a lower cap. What it adds is a state forum and a state definition of interest wide enough to include the fees that lenders leave attached after cutting the rate.
Worth knowingThe filing fee waiver is narrower than the interest cap: it is written for an active member of the state organised militia and for actions relating to that service. A separated veteran with an unrelated civil claim is not in it.
Known gapNeither section states how a lender must be notified or what proof of service satisfies them in practice. Ask a legal assistance officer or a state benefits adviser to send the first letter if a lender resists.

Sources

This finder provides an informational match, not a government eligibility determination. The responsible agency decides your application.