Detailed Announcement on Student Debt Relief by the Biden-Harris Administration

Today, the Biden-Harris Administration shared a plan to help millions of borrowers with student debt. relief will start this Fall! The U.S. Department of Education is going to contact all borrowers who have federally held student loans through email. These emails will give updates about possible debt relief. Borrowers will have until August 30 to choose not to get the relief if they don’t want it.

Current Status and Next

• Email Notification: Starting tomorrow, borrowers should expect emails about relief options. These emails will explain how to opt-out by reaching out to their loan servicer before August 30, 2024.
• Rule Finalization: The rules for this relief aren’t finished yet. The Department will share more details once these rules are officially approved later this Fall.

Impact and Scope

If these new rules are finalized, they could help over 30 million borrowers! That’s pretty big. This would build upon the Biden-Harris Administration’s current efforts, which have already delivered more than $168 billion in student debt relief to about 4.8 million borrowers.

Student Loan Forgiveness Program Changed: Biden Administration Makes It Easier

Groups Eligible for Relief

With the proposed rules, partial or full debt relief could be given to certain kinds of borrowers:

1. Borrowers with Increasing Balances:
   1. Eligibility: Those whose loan balance is now higher due to lots of interest.
   1. Impact: About 23 million borrowers, mostly Pell Grant recipients, could gain from this.
2. Long-Term Repayers:
   1. Eligibility: Borrowers who’ve been paying back undergraduate loans for over 20 years (since July 1, 2005) or graduate loans for over 25 years (since July 1, 2000).
   1. Impact: This would help those who’ve made big payments for a long time.
3. Eligible for Forgiveness but Not Yet Applied:
   1. Eligibility: Borrowers who qualify for quick forgiveness via income-driven repayment plans but haven’t applied yet.
   1. Impact: Covers those eligible for closed school discharge or other forgiveness options.
4. Attendees of Low-Value Programs:
   1. Eligibility: Borrowers who went to schools that didn’t meet good financial standards or failed accountability checks.
   1. Impact: Provides support to those hurt by lacking educational programs.

Process and Opt-Out Information

• Automatic Relief: Eligible borrowers will get relief automatically—no application needed!
• Opt-Out Deadline: If borrowers want to opt-out, they must reach their loan servicer before August 30, 2024. Those who choose to opt-out won’t be able to apply again and might face temporary delays in forgiveness through income-driven repayment plans.

Additional Information

For more details, borrowers can check out StudentAid.gov/debt-relief.

Administration’s Track Record of Assistance

The Biden-Harris Administration has launched many programs aimed at easing student debt:

• Pell Grant Increase: A $900 boost to the maximum Pell Grant—the biggest increase in ten years!
• Protection Regulations: New rules created to shield borrowers from harmful career programs that lead to unmanageable debt.
• Debt Relief Approvals:
  • $69.2 billion for nearly a million borrowers through Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF).$51 billion for over one million borrowers from adjustments in income-driven repayment counts.$28.7 billion was allocated for 1.6 million impacted by school closures or fraud.$14.1 billion is directed towards over half a million borrowers with permanent disabilities.
  • $5.5 billion was given under the SAVE Plan for 414,000 borrowers.

These actions show the Administration’s promise to tackle the student debt issue and ensure that education is an opportunity—not just a huge financial burden!