How To Get My Student Loan Forgiveness
If you’ve been paying back student loans for years and are still struggling to get out of debt, it might be time to consider student loan forgiveness. There are several options available to help people get rid of their student loan debt, including specific repayment plans or programs that forgive all or part of your debt in exchange for working for a certain number of years. Here are some ways you can eliminate your loans once and for all:
How To Get My Student Loan Forgiveness
1 You must have made payments for at least 10 years since October 2007 or since the qualifying loan was handed over to the department.
In order to receive student loan forgiveness, you must have made payments for at least 10 years since October 2007 or since the qualifying loan was handed over to the department. You must also have made 120 payments on a qualified repayment plan (like an income-driven repayment plan). In addition, you’ll need to be working for a qualified employer and be in one of the following repayment plans:
- Income-Based Repayment (IBR)
- Pay As You Earn (PAYE)
- Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE)
2 If you are also working full-time for a qualifying employer like a government agency or non-profit organization, your student loan debt can be reduced by up to $17,500 per year.
If you are also working full-time for a qualifying employer like a government agency or non-profit organization, your student loan debt can be reduced by up to $17,500 per year.
To qualify, you must:
- Be employed by the qualifying employer for at least three consecutive months and make 120 on-time payments on your federal student loan(s) during that time.
- Be making payments on your loans in an income-driven repayment plan such as REPAYE or PAYE. This means that after 20 years of consistent payment history, any remaining balance will be forgiven (if there’s still money left). You can use this calculator to see if your current income qualifies for an IBR plan. If not, check out these other options!
3 Benefits include a monthly stipend and financial aid during the program
- Stipend: A stipend is a salary that’s given to you by your employer. If you qualify for an Income-Based Repayment plan, the government will pay your monthly payments (minus taxes) and take out what would be covered by a standard 10% income deduction under IBR.
- Financial Aid: Financial aid is money in the form of grants, scholarships or other types of financial aid that schools offer their students. The Department of Education offers these programs through its website College Goal Sunday® . These programs can help with paying for school or covering expenses like books or housing costs while at school.
4 Under this option, all of your loans could be forgiven
Under this option, all of your loans could be forgiven. Under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF), a federal program created in 2007, borrowers who work full-time for a qualifying employer can have their student loan balances wiped away after 10 years. If you’re eligible for PSLF and haven’t started working for an approved public service job yet, you should do so as soon as possible — otherwise, there’s no guarantee that forgiveness will still be available when your 10 years are up.
To qualify for PSLF, you must:
- Work full-time at one of these types of jobs: government organizations; 501(c)(3) nonprofits; hospitals or other health care providers; AmeriCorps or Peace Corps volunteers (for those who served before 9/30/2007); other types of nonprofits designated by law
5 This program offers qualification based on length of service
In order to qualify for forgiveness, you must have made payments for at least 10 years since October 2007 or since the qualifying loan was handed over to the department. If you have not yet satisfied those requirements, don’t worry. You can still be eligible for a different program that may offer lower monthly payments.
6 There are several ways to take advantage of different programs and eliminate your student loan debt!
Student loan forgiveness is a great way to get out from under the weight of your student loans, but it’s not always easy to find. You can try working for a qualifying employer, or you may be able to opt into an income-driven repayment plan that will help lower your monthly payments.
There are several programs available for people with federal student loans, including:
- Public Service Loan Forgiveness – Under this program, if you work full-time in public service (for example as a teacher) and make 120 monthly payments on time while enrolled in an income-driven repayment plan (IBR), then your remaining debt will be forgiven after 10 years.
- Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program – If you teach full time at an eligible elementary or secondary school for five consecutive years, then up to $17K worth of your outstanding principal and interest will be forgiven every year (up to $5K per year).
Closing
It’s important to note that these programs aren’t available for everyone. You must meet certain requirements, such as being a full-time employee at an eligible organization or working in public service. The repayment plan also needs to be in good standing before you can apply for loan forgiveness. It might take some time, but if you follow these steps and make sure all documents are up-to-date, then your student loans will be paid off sooner than later!