How soon will the IRS start collecting from me?

I defaulted on my student loans on December 24 (Merry Christmas) and I was wondering if the IRS would garnish my tax return immediately? Or does it usually take a while for the IRS to flag you?

Public Comments

1. If you just missed your first payment, rest easy. Student loans don't go into formal default status until you are at least 9 months behind on payments. You can call 1-800-304-3107 to see if you've been flagged for an offset.
2. Before they take your refund, you should get a letter from IRS. Read http://taxipay.blogspot.com/2009/01/when-will-i-get-my-tax-refund.html