Resolve Student Loan Disputes
If you and your loan servicer disagree about the balance or status of your loan, follow these steps to resolve your disputes:
1. Talk with your loan servicer
You may be able to solve a dispute by simply contacting your loan servicer and discussing the issue. Get tips on working through an issue with your loan servicer to resolve the dispute.
2. Request help from the FSA Ombudsman Group
If you have followed the guide and still cannot resolve your issue, as a last resort, contact the Federal Student Aid Ombudsman Group. The FSA Ombudsman works with student loan borrowers to informally resolve loan disputes and problems.
Struggling ‘until The Day I Die With This Crappy Debt’
The onerous cost of higher education is a persistent challenge as communities continue to encourage college completion, especially for groups such as Latinos who lag in the number of adults with college degrees, with recent gains set back by the pandemic.
Going to college is credited with greater opportunities for socioeconomic mobility.
For Daisy Pérez, 49, earning a college degree and becoming a registered nurse helped her family get out of poverty and at least make ends meet, her daughter Cristher Estrada-Pérez said.
Estrada-Pérez said her mother may never be able to pay off the $90,000 in student debt, which includes a Parent Plus loan for Estrada-Perezs college tuition.
Shes never going to be able to own a home and earn enough to retire, Estrada-Pérez, 32, said.
The crisis has left parents and their adult children grappling with how to pay off student debt, which has been steadily rising in the U.S. for more than a decade, reaching $1.745 trillion this year. The average federal student loan debt nears $30,000.
Estrada-Pérez, who is also the executive director of the Student Loan Fund in Connecticut, which helps predominantly Black and Latino borrowers navigate their debt, is paying off $80,000 for her student loans.
Estrada-Pérez, who majored in history at St. Joseph’s University in West Hartford, had aspired to become a lawyer, but I couldnt think about what my debt would look like if I even attempted to go to law school.
Student Loan Forgiveness: Will You Qualify For $0 Payments Under Bidens New Plan
With the legality of President Bidens broader federal student loan forgiveness program in question, the U.S. Department of Education has proposed revisions to income-driven repayment plans that could result in considerable cuts to loan payments. In fact, some borrowers will have $0 monthly payments.
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The ED-proposed regulations will amend the Revised Pay As You Earn Repayment plan and phase out the three other existing IDR plans available to lower-income debtors Pay As You Earn Repayment , Income-Based Repayment and Income-Contingent Repayment plans.
Borrowers participating in existing IBR, ICR and PAYE plans will follow the new plan when enacted into law, but will need to enroll through their student loan provider or through the Federal Student Aid site. The new proposed regulations do not include changes to accommodate those holding Parent PLUS loans, which are not repayable on an IDR plan.
To qualify for $0 monthly payments, borrowers must make less than around $30,600 a year, while individuals in families of four much make less than roughly $62,400, per the ED press release.
Today the Biden-Harris administration is proposing historic changes that would make student loan repayment more affordable and manageable than ever before, U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said in a statement.
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In response to these issues, the Biden administration is rolling out the IDR Account Adjustment. Im incredibly proud the Biden-Harris teams temporary changes to key federal student loan forgiveness programs to improve access, said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona last October.
Under the initiative, the Education Department will conduct a one-time account adjustment to borrower accounts that will count time toward IDR forgiveness, including the following periods:
- Any months in a repayment status, regardless of the payments made, the type of federal loan, or the specific repayment plan
- 12 or more months of consecutive forbearance, or 36 or more months of total forbearance
- Any months spent in economic hardship or military deferments after 2013
- Any months spent in any deferment prior to 2013 and
- Any time in repayment on earlier loans prior to consolidation of those loans into a consolidation loan.
According to Education Department guidance, Any borrower with loans that have accumulated time in repayment of at least 20 or 25 years will see automatic forgiveness, even if you are not currently on an IDR plan. Another three to four million borrowers will advance their progress towards eventual student loan forgiveness by several years as a result of the one-time adjustment.
Borrowers working in public service careers may also receive credit towards Public Service Loan Forgiveness under the adjustment.
The Latest On Biden Administrations Mass Student Loan Cancellation
Note: As of Nov. 10, 2022, the government has temporarily stopped taking applications for this student loan forgiveness program until legal challenges to it have been resolved. Currently, the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to hear the challenges in late February 2023. See Federal Student Aids statement for more information.
As announced on Aug. 24, 2022, the federal government is offering nationwide forgiveness of up to $20,000 per borrower for federally held student loans.
The eligibility requirements are pretty straightforward:
- Income limits: If your annual income during the pandemic was under $125,000 or $250,000 , you might be eligible for up to
- $20,000 in federal student loan cancellation if you previously received a Pell Grant
- $10,000 in federal student loan cancellation if you didnt have a Pell Grant.
The application for this student debt cancellation is available online at the Federal Student Aid website. You wont need to document your income, just provide your name, Social Security number, date of birth, email and phone number.
At the same time, approximately 8 million borrowers may receive automatic relief since their income data is already in the system. If in doubt, you can check your student loan balance to track any progress.
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Full Debt Forgiveness For Approved Borrower Defense To Repayment Discharge Claims
The Trump administration implemented a scheme in which defrauded borrowers received only partial forgiveness of their loans. The partial relief methodology was flawed. The U.S. Department of Education has decided that all borrowers whose borrower defense claims were approved will receive a full discharge of their loans. This will affect 72,000 borrowers who were subject to predatory student lending.
What Happens Now For Borrowers
Borrowers will have to wait for the lawsuits to play out.While it can be tough to follow all the various legal challenges, borrowers can from the Department of Education and check the Federal Student Aid website for further information.
Initially, the Biden administration said that it would start granting student loan forgiveness before payments are set to resume in January after a yearslong pandemic pause.
But that timeline is now in jeopardy.
For the 26 million borrowers who have already given the Department of Education the necessary information to be considered for debt relief 16 million of whom have already been approved for relief the Department will hold onto their information so it can quickly process their relief once we prevail in court, said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre in a statement following the Texas ruling that struck down the program.
We strongly disagree with the District Courts ruling on our student debt relief program, she said.
The Department of Justice immediately appealed the Texas judges ruling to the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals.
Four days after the Texas decision, the 8th US Circuit Court of Appeals dealt another legal blow to Bidens program, granting a request for a preliminary injunction sought by six GOP-led states in a separate lawsuit. The ruling did not change the status quo since the program was already struck down.
The government has asked the Supreme Court to block the 8th Circuit Courts injunction.
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Next Steps For Borrowers Seeking Student Loan Forgiveness Under Account Adjustment
Borrowers who already have government-held federal student loans, such as Direct loans, should receive the benefits of the IDR Account Adjustment automatically. But these borrowers may want to explore switching to an IDR plan if they are not already in one and anticipate receiving significant retroactive credit under the initiative.
According to the Education Department, Borrowers who have commercially managed FFEL, Perkins, or Health Education Assistance Loan Program loans should apply for a Direct Consolidation Loan by May 1, 2023, to get the full benefits of the one-time account adjustment. The Education Department has not changed the May 1 consolidation deadline since it updated its guidance last fall.
All borrowers should carefully review the administrations on the account adjustment, which is periodically updated, often without any formal announcement.
Separately, last week the Biden administration announced it would be implementing significant reforms to a key IDR plan called Revised Pay As You Earn , which may significantly lower monthly payments and reduce student loan forgiveness thresholds for millions of borrowers. However, the Education Department has not provided a specific timeline for anticipated implementation of the new program.
Finding Your Loan Information
If you are unsure which agency is servicing your defaulted student loan, you may retrieve your loan information from the National Student Loan Data System . This system contains financial aid information collected from schools, agencies, and other educational institutions. You will need your Federal Student Aid ID information to access your account. Or, you may contact the Federal Student Aid Information Center .
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Is There A Legitimate Student Loan Forgiveness Program
Yes, in fact, there are many existing student loan forgiveness programs and repayment assistance programs offered by the federal government, states, employers and other organizations. These programs wont help every borrower receive relief, however, as each program has specific eligibility requirements.
Qualifications For Loan Forgiveness
Under certain circumstances, the federal government will cancel all or part of an educational loan. In August 2022, President Biden announced a plan to alleviate student loan debt burdens for borrowers who need it the most. According to The White House Fact Sheet, this new student loan forgiveness plan will impact around 43 million borrowers.
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Borrowers Will Need To Enroll
Once the new REPAYE plan is available, borrowers can call their student loan servicer to enroll in the option, or apply at StudentAid.gov.
“Any new plan will likely take quite some time to implement, so borrowers will have plenty of time to learn about how it might work,” said Scott Buchanan, executive director of the Student Loan Servicing Alliance, a trade group for federal student loan servicers.
Learn About Repayment Plans And Payment Postponement
Get Loan Details on the National Student Loan Data System
You can view all your federal loans and their details on the National Student Loan Data System at StudentAid.gov.
Explore Your Options Below or Model Your Loans with the Loan Simulator
When your federal loans enter repayment, they will automatically be placed into a Standard Repayment Plan. This is the fastest way to repay your loans and youll pay less over time than other options.*
Check out the information on this page to learn about some other common repayment options for federal loans.
If your loans qualify, the fastest way to apply is online, or, depending on the option you choose, by phone. This is not an all-inclusive list of every option that may be available.
To learn more, use the Loan Simulator at StudentAid.gov to evaluate your federal student loan options.
Are You in an Income-Based or Income-Sensitive Repayment Plan?
If you’re repaying federal student loans in an Income-Based or Income-Sensitive Repayment plan, each year you need to re-certify your plan by providing updated income documentation and certification of your family size. Generally, this is around the same time of the year that you first began repayment under the IBR or ISR plan.
Learn more at StudentAid.gov.
Develop a Plan to Keep You On Track
Access resources about federal student loan repayment at StudentAid.gov.
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How To Apply For Student Loan Debt Relief
. The form is easy to fill out and should only take a few minutes to complete. The application is also available in Spanish. The deadline to apply is December 31, 2023.
Keep an eye out for scammers. You might be contacted by a company saying they will help you get loan discharge, forgiveness, cancellation, or debt relief for a fee. This is a scam. You never have to pay for help with your federal student aid. Make sure you work only with ED and your loan servicers, and never reveal your personal information or account password to anyone. Verified emails to borrowers come from [email protected], [email protected], or [email protected].
Here are some other warning signs that you may be dealing with a student loan cancellation scam and what to do if you are contacted by a scammer.
Million Borrowers Have Applied For Forgiveness
On Aug. 24, Biden announced that tens of millions of Americans would be eligible for student loan forgiveness: up to $20,000 if they received a Pell Grant, which is a type of aid available to low-income families, and as much as $10,000 if they didn’t.
Long before Biden acting on pressure from consumer advocates and other Democrats made his move, Republicans had criticized student loan forgiveness as a handout to well-off college graduates. They also argued the president didn’t have the power to forgive consumer debt on his own without Congress.
Unsurprisingly, the legal challenges poured in. So far, at least six lawsuits have been brought against the president’s plan.
Originally, the Education Department had said that borrowers would receive forgiveness within six weeks after they applied. The full application launched Oct. 17, and within three weeks, some 26 million people had requested the relief. To date, 16 million of those requests have been approved.
For now, the department says it will hold the applications of borrowers who have already applied.
Borrowers should sit tight and wait to see what happens, said higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz.
“The program is suspended but the U.S. Department of Education is appealing,” Kantrowitz said, “And there were several aspects of the Texas court ruling that are unusual and may yield a successful appeal.”
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Student Loan Repayment Assistance For Nurses
In addition to national programs, many states offer loan repayment assistance to nurses. The Illinois Nurse Educator Program, for example, awards up to $5,000 per year for four years to qualifying nurses and nurse educators in Illinois.
As with other LRAPs, contact your state education authority for more information.
Get Help From The Ombudsman’s Student Loan Assistance Unit
If you live in Massachusetts and need help accessing federal loan debt relief or have a complaint against a loan servicer, you can file a Student Loan Help Request with the Ombudsmans Student Loan Assistance Unit. When filling out the request, please describe your student loan situation in as much detail as possible. Borrowers who dont live in Massachusetts can review this list of resources.
Your Student Loan Help Request form will be reviewed in the order in which it was received. It is very important that you continue to meet any deadlines while you are waiting to hear from us. If your request would be better handled by a different government agency, we will refer you to that agency.
The Attorney General’s Office cannot provide you with legal advice or act as your attorney. If you have questions concerning the specific application or interpretation of the law, please consult with a private attorney.
U.S. Department of Education Resources
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Where Do I Find Student Loan Forgiveness Programs
Its wise to cast a wide net for student loan forgiveness. Contact your federal loan servicer to learn about federal loan forgiveness programs search far and wide for state-based programs, including by using our LRAPs database and talk to your employer about its assistance options or to hiring managers or job recruiters about companies that offer this benefit. You should also consider hiring a student loan or credit counselor to help you research these programs.
How To Apply For Student Loan Forgiveness
To start your loan forgiveness application for Bidens plan, the first step is to fill out an online application that will be available in October 2022 on the governments student loan website. For other loan forgiveness plans you should reach out to your loan servicer. If Depending on your loan servicer and the type of loan forgiveness youre applying for, you may be able to make your student loan forgiveness application online and you may or may not be required to continue to make payments while your application is processed.
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Loan Forgiveness For Teachers And Nurses
Working nurses may be eligible for several types of student loan forgiveness, including Public Service Loan Forgiveness, the NURSE Corps Loan Repayment Program, and Perkins loan cancellation. If you qualify, the NURSE Corps Loan Repayment Program could pay up to 85% of your student debt, though it is highly competitive.
Similarly, teachers working full-time in low-income elementary and secondary schools may qualify for the Teacher Loan Forgiveness program, which can forgive up to $17,500 in Stafford or federal direct loans. To qualify, youll need to work in a qualifying public school for at least five consecutive years and have loans dating from later than October 1, 1998.
