Here you will find information about the one-time Student Loan Debt Relief program recently introduced by the President. We will keep this page updated with the most recent information, deadlines, borrower information and more. You can also find information on the government website here: https://studentaid.gov/debt-relief-announcement/one-time-cancellation
The student debt cancellation program is currently paused and applications closed, but borrowers are still encouraged to complete an application as soon as they reopen: https://studentaid.gov/debt-relief/application
The US Department of Education will be providing up to $20,000 in student loan debt cancellation. This is a one-time debt relief for students who qualify. Here is the most up-to-date information:
What loans are eligible for cancellation?
- This one-time debt cancellation is for all federally held loans, including: Federal Direct subsidized and unsubsidized loans, Parent PLUS loans, Graduate PLUS loans, and any federal consolidation loans that were first disbursed on or before June 30, 2022.
- Relief will be applied in the following order:
Who qualifies for this debt cancellation?
- Individuals whose annual income is less than $125,000 and married couples whose annual income is less than $250,000 are eligible to have a portion of their debt cancelled.
How much of my loan debt will be cancelled?
- All students who fall under the income limit will be eligible for up to $10,000 in debt cancellation. Students who received a Pell grant in college are eligible for up to $20,000 in debt cancellation. (Please note, that is not an additional $20,000, but $20,000 total.) The "up to" means that if your debt is under $10,000 or $20,000, it will be cancelled up to the total amount. Ex. if you have $9,500 in federal student loans, you will have $9,500 cancelled. If you have $25,000 (and were a Pell Grant recipient) you will have $20,000 cancelled and will have $5,000 in loan debt remaining.
- To verify if you received a Pell Grant in college, or to review your student loan totals, log in here: https://studentaid.gov/.
How do I apply for the debt cancellation?
-The debt cancellation program is currently paused, but applications are now open. Borrowers are encouraged to submit an application as soon as possible: https://studentaid.gov/debt-relief/application
- The US Department of Education has access to pertinent income information that will make more than 8 million borrowers eligible automatically. If the government doesn't have your information, an application for debt relief is currently on hold due to pending litigation. The repayment pause has been extended until June 30, 2023 or until 60 days after the litigation has been resolved.
-To receive a notification when the application is available, please subscribe here: https://www.ed.gov/subscriptions
For additional information on this debt cancellation, please visit https://www.nasfaa.org/debt_cancellation
Student loan repayment has been extended due to pending litigation. The repayment pause has been extended until June 30, 2023 or until 60 days after the pending litigation has been resolved. Payments are automatically paused and there is nothing further you need to do for this repayment pause.
To be prepared for when payments restart, please contact your student loan servicer for information on your current repayment plan and make any adjustments necessary. You can find your servicer by logging in to https://studentaid.gov/h/manage-loans. For more information on the different types of repayment plans, please visit https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/repayment/plans.
Borrowers who are employed by non-profits, the military, or federal/state/Tribal/local government may be eligible to have all of their student loans forgiven through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. Temporary changes were put in place to waive certain eligibility criteria in the PSLF program. Borrowers have until October 31, 2022 to apply for the PSLF program under these changes.
For more information on the PSLF program, please visit https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/forgiveness-cancellation/public-service.
To apply for the PSLF program, use the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Help Tool here: https://studentaid.gov/pslf/