To get rid of your student loan debt without paying, you can try to get a Government Student Loan Forgiveness program. It is known the federal government provides assistance with educational loans via two programs, including the public loan forgiveness program and the federal student loan repayment program.
Well, both programs will help the students who have their education debt without paying it off. However, to get those government programs, the individual should meet some requirements that have been set. So, let’s find out the guide to get the government student loan forgiveness programs through our post below!
Here Are Two Government Programs to Pay Off Your Student Loan Debt!
Thanks to government student loan forgiveness programs, the students who have their education debt will get easier to pay it off. Certainly, not all student loan borrowers will get the government program, meaning only qualified borrowers will get relief.
Here are some government student loan forgiveness programs that you will get:
- Federal Student Loan Repayment Program
With the help of the Federal Loan Repayment Program, the participating agencies will give roughly $10,000 a year, up to a total of $60,000, for student loan payment. After your student loan debt is paid off through the participating agencies, in return, you should work at that agency for at least 3 years.
There are at least all 15 cabinet-level departments that participate in the program, plus over 20 independent agencies. A lot of agencies actually specify the types of degree necessary to qualify for this program. They will also tailor their plans to recruit highly qualified candidates for hard-to-fill positions.
Here are the most common educational loans that qualify for repayment:
- Federal Family Education Loans (such as subsidized and unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loans)
- Direct Loans, such as the Direct PLUS Loan
If you are interested in applying for the Federal Loan Repayment Program, you can try to contact an individual agency to find more about their specific loan repayment program. For more information, a lot of agencies will also provide the information about loan repayment on their website.
- Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program
The government will actually forgive the remaining balance on your eligible student loans through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. You will be qualified to get this government program if you’ve worked in a public service job for at least 10 years.
To be eligible for this government student loan program, you should have already made 120 monthly payments and should be employed full-time in the Peace Corps position, AmeriCorps and other public service organization, including:
- Federal, state, or local government
- A public child or family service agency
- A 501(c)(3) non-profit organization
- A private organization that provides public service, such as public health, public interest law services, public safety, or law enforcement.
Through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, you will gain student loan cancellation to federal student loan borrowers who are enrolled in an income-driven repayment plan.
The benefit you will get from Public Service Loan Forgiveness is that you have to repay your federal student loans under an income-driven repayment plan.
To apply for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, you should submit the form annually or when you change your employers. You can also try to contact FedLoan, the PSLF provider at 1-855-265-4038.
Since one or all of the payments that you made on your Direct Loans were under a non qualifying repayment plan, your application may be denied. If it occurs, you may try to apply for Temporary Expanded Public Service Loan Forgiveness (TEPSLF).
Okay, those are the government student loan forgiveness programs that you can try to apply. If you’re denied one of them or both programs, don’t be discouraged, as there are a bunch of alternatives you can take that will help you pay off your student loan debt.
More Alternatives for Student Loan Forgiveness Program
As we’ve mentioned, there are a number of alternatives you can take for a student loan forgiveness program. If your application is denied for government programs, you can try to take one of the following student loan forgiveness programs:
- Teacher Loan Forgiveness
To be eligible for the Teacher Loan Forgiveness program, you may need to teach full-time for five complete and consecutive academic years in specific elementary or secondary school or also educational service agencies which serve low-income families.
If you meet other requirements, you will have a chance to get up to $17,500 of student loan forgiveness. For instance, if you have a plan to teach for at least 10 years, you will get total student loan cancellation with Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF). Through teacher loan forgiveness, you can apply for student loan cancellation.
- Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) Plan
Any outstanding balance on your student loan debt will be paid off once you make a certain number of payments over a specific period of time, if you repay your student loans under a repayment plan based on your income.
To qualify for income-driven repayment plans, make sure you have Direct Loans. You may also need to consolidate student loans into Direct Consolidation Loans, if you have Perkins Loans or FFEL Loans.
In order to get this loan forgiveness, you should ensure that you’re 20 years or 25 years of monthly student loan payment. Aside from that, you can also select one of four income-driven repayment plans, including:
- Income-Based Repayment (IBR)
- Pay As You Earn (PAYE)
- Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE)
- Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR)
If you want to apply for an income-driven repayment plan forgiveness program, you can just simply contact your student loan servicer.
- Military Service
There will be special benefits and repayment options for your student loans that are available from the U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. Department of Education. The benefits you will get include interest rate caps under the service members Civil Relief Act and Department of Defense student loan repayment programs.
Certainly, there are still a lot of student loan forgiveness options you can take. To find out more, you can try to type ‘Student Loan Forgiveness’ on your browser and see what student loan forgiveness is available for you.
