The Biden and Harris administration has implemented student debt relief aimed at helping working families. The student loan debt relief plan includes loan forgiveness of up to $20,000 for Pell Grant recipients, and $10,000 for non-Pell grant recipients. The process is already ongoing.
***Update: This application is open, but the program is paused due to a lawsuit by a student loan servicer.***
To apply you just need to fill out a 1-minute application form. Here is a link to the official government website: https://studentaid.gov/debt-relief/application
You’ll have until Dec. 31, 2023, to apply.
Important things to note:
Part 1: Final extension of the student loan repayment pause
The Biden and Harris administration put a pause to student loan payments during the pandemic due to economic hardship. The pause in payments is scheduled to continue until Dec 31st. Payments are set to resume in Jan 2023.
NB: The pause in payments is automatic, so no extra steps are required for this step.
Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Borrowers employed by nonprofits, the military, or federal, state, Tribal, or local government may be eligible to have all of their student loans forgiven through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. (This is because of time-limited changes that waive certain eligibility criteria in the PSLF program. These temporary changes expire on October31, 2022. For more information on eligibility and requirements, go to PSLF.gov. )
- The Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program forgives the remaining balance on your federal student loans after 120 payments working full time for federal, state, Tribal, or local government; the military; or a qualifying non-profit.
- Temporary changes, ending on Oct. 31, 2022, provide flexibility that makes it easier to receive forgiveness by allowing borrowers to receive credit for past periods of repayment that would otherwise not qualify for PSLF.
- Enrollments on or after Nov. 1, 2022, will not be eligible for this treatment. Visit PSLF.gov to learn more and apply.