what is a moratorium 
a moratorium is a temporary suspension of an activity or law until future consideration warrants lifting the suspension such as if and when the issues that led to the moratorium have been resolved a moratorium may be imposed by a government regulators or a business moratoriums are often imposed in response to temporary financial hardships for example a business that has exceeded its budget might place a moratorium on new hiring until the start of its next fiscal year in legal proceedings a moratorium can be imposed on an activity such as a debt collection process during bankruptcy proceedings 