Federal Student Loan Forgiveness

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In some situations, you can have your federal student loans forgiven. This means you don’t have to pay some or all of your loans.

You can learn about federal forgiveness and repayment programs run by the U.S. Department of Education.

Important: Several changes to federal student loan repayment, including the end of the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan and the new Repayment Assistant Plan (RAP), go into effect July 1, 2026.

Learn more about key changes to federal student loan repayment.

If you need help managing student loan debt, you can get free financial counseling at an NYC Financial Empowerment Center. Visit the Financial Counseling page to schedule an appointment.

The U.S. Department of Education (U.S. ED) ran the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan, an income-driven repayment (IDR) plan.

Starting July 1, 2026, The SAVE Plan is no longer available. Borrowers currently enrolled in the SAVE Plan will begin to receive notifications from their student loan servicer. They will be given 90 days to switch to a different repayment plan.

Borrowers who do not enroll into a different repayment plan will be automatically placed into the Standard Plan or the new Tiered Standard Repayment Plan, which generally have higher payments than IDR plans.

Learn more about next steps for SAVE plan borrowers.

The Supreme Court blocked the Biden-Harris Administration’s One-Time Student Loan Debt Relief Plan. This plan would have canceled up to $20,000 in student debt on federal student loans for low- and middle-income borrowers.

Your student loans are not eligible for student loan cancellation under this program. This is true even if you got confirmation or acceptance of submitted application.

Learn more about student loan forgiveness.

The Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program forgives the remaining balance on your Direct Loan.

To qualify, you must:

Work for a qualifying employer, such as a U.S. federal, state, local, or tribal government or non-profit
Work full-time
Make 120 qualifying monthly payments under a qualifying repayment plan while working for a qualifying employer

Learn more about PSLF.

Use the PSLF Help Tool.

Get answers to FAQs about PSLF.

Check the status of your PSLF application.