3,789. Choosing to Repay a Canceled Loan

Hilchos Shemittah v’Yoveil 9:27

If Torah scholars extend loans to one another and one of them expresses to his students that he intends to collect all debts owed to him any time he wishes, he doesn’t need to write a prozbul. This is because Torah scholars know that the cancelation of debts nowadays is a Rabbinic law and they can also be voided verbally.

Hilchos Shemittah v’Yoveil 9:28

If someone repays a loan even though shemittah has passed, the Sages are pleased with him. When the lender is paid, he must tell the borrower that he forgives the debt and the borrower owes him nothing. If the borrower still wants to repay the loan, the lender should accept it. This is because Deuteronomy 15:2 tells us not to demand payment, and the lender didn’t demand it. The borrower may not tell the lender that he’s repaying the loan; rather, the borrower should say that the money is his and he is giving it to the lender as a gift.