RICHMOND, VA - The deadline for approximately 86,000 of Virginia’s public service borrowers with nearly $3.3 billion in student loan debt to qualify for time-limited changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program is fast approaching. Many borrowers were disqualified for PSLF due to having the wrong student loan, wrong payment plan or had periods of loan forbearance interrupting their payment plan. The federal government is suspending these rules for a short time. Virginians who have worked for a federal, state, or local government agency or non-profit agency on or after 2007 with student loans in repayment must apply by the deadline of October 31 to be considered for this debt relief.
To determine if you qualify for PSLF under the limited waiver opportunity, public service employees need to submit a PSLF application and certify all government and/or non-profit employment by October 31. To learn more about the process, visit the PSLF Help Tool at studentaid.gov/PSLF.
“Since the limited waiver opportunity was announced last October, our office has seen several previously ineligible Virginians receive loan discharges and in some cases, a refund on payments made beyond the required 120 months,” said Virginia’s Student Loan Advocate, Scott Kemp.“ “Even if you think you qualify for the President’s recently announced debt cancellation program, make sure you apply for PSLF in case you have a balance remaining once the debt cancellation action is completed.”
Some borrowers with older FFELP (Federal Family Education Loan Program) loans will need to consolidate to a Direct loan in order to qualify for loan discharge. This process can be completed online and must be initiated prior to the October 31, 2022 deadline.
Once the limited waiver opportunity ends and payments restart in January 2023, borrowers who still need additional months in order to qualify for loan forgiveness must sign up for an Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plan for all future payments. Once borrowers reach the 120th payment and their employment is certified for those months, the remaining balance will be forgiven.
“We ask all government and nonprofit employers to help us get this message to employees. This is an added benefit as public service employees,” said State Council of Higher Education for Virginia Director, Peter Blake. Sample email messaging for employers is available at: schev.edu/pslf .
Virginians with questions about the program should contact their loan servicer or Federal Student Aid (800-433-3243 or studentaid.gov/help-center/contact ) for assistance. Virginians with difficulties getting assistance from FSA or their loan servicer can get help from SCHEV’s Office of the Student Loan Advocate - pslf@virginiastudentloanhelp.org.
