Student Loan Forgiveness After 20 Years: What It Is and How You Can Get It

Are federal student loans forgiven after 20 years?Federal Student Loan Forgiveness Programs After 20 Years of PaymentsFederal Student Loan Forgiveness By Loan Type20 Year vs. 25 Year Student Loan Forgiveness​How do I apply for student loan forgiveness after 20 years?Tax Bomb Temporarily EliminatedOther Loan Forgiveness OptionsWant help exploring your options for paying off student loans? Let’s talk.

Feeling defeated after paying student loan debt for years and seeing you owe more than what you borrowed is normal. Thankfully, federal loans offer student loan forgiveness after 20 years of payments in an income-driven repaymentIncome-Driven Repayment (IDR)A category of federal student loan repayment plans that calculate monthly payments based on income and family size rather than loan balance. Any remaining balance can be forgiven after 20–25 years of qualifying payments. plan.

Federal student loan forgiveness after 20 years is an option if your loans are only from undergrad or you’re eligible for the Pay As You EarnPay As You Earn (PAYE)A federal income-driven repayment plan that caps monthly payments at 10% of discretionary income and forgives remaining debt after 20 years. It is only available to borrowers who took out their first federal loans on or after October 1, 2007. or IBRIncome-Based Repayment (IBR)A federal income-driven repayment plan that caps monthly payments at 10% or 15% of discretionary income, depending on when the loans were taken out. Remaining debt is forgiven after 20 or 25 years of qualifying payments. Plan for new borrowers. Otherwise, if you have Parent PLUS Loans or loans from graduate school, you’ll have to wait five more years for loan forgiveness.

Private loans are different. Private student loan forgiveness options are typically limited to severe permanent disability loan discharge and death. No lender forgives offers forgiveness at the end of a repayment term.

Ahead, learn ways to get federal student loan forgiveness after 20 years.

Are federal student loans forgiven after 20 years?

The U.S. Department of EducationU.S. Department of Education (ED)The federal agency that oversees federal student aid programs, issues regulations for federal student loans, and is the ultimate lender on Direct Loans. forgives student loan debt after 20 years of qualifying payments under an eligible income-driven repayment plan. In most cases, federal student loans go away only when you make payments.

All types of loans — including spousal consolidation loans — are eligible for forgiveness after 20 or 25 years of payments except loans in defaultDefaultThe status of a federal student loan after the borrower has failed to make required payments for 270 days. Default can trigger collection actions such as wage garnishment, tax refund offset, and damage to credit reports.. However, if you have Parent PLUS Loans or Perkins Loans, you may need to consolidate into a Direct Consolidation Loan before qualifying for repayment plan forgiveness.

Typically, periods of deferment and forbearance don’t count towards the 20 years needed for forgiveness. However, all borrowers placed in the forbearance related to the coronavirus pandemic will receive credit towards forgiveness under their repayment plan from March 2020 through January 2022.

Learn More: Retiring With Student Loan Debt: Forgiveness and Repayment Options

Federal Student Loan Forgiveness Programs After 20 Years of Payments

Repayment plan forgiveness after 20 years happens under the following IDR Plans:

• Revised Pay As You EarnRevised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE)A former federal income-driven repayment plan that capped payments at 10% of discretionary income, with forgiveness after 20 or 25 years. REPAYE was replaced by the SAVE Plan in 2023. (REPAYE) Plan: for loans borrowed while in undergrad. Loans borrowed for graduate school are forgiven after 25 years of student loan payments.
• Pay As You Earn (PAYE) Plan for undergraduate and graduate student loans. Most people who borrowed federal loans before 2011 are ineligible for this payment plan.
• Income-Based Repayment (IBR) Plan: for new borrowers. People who borrowed loans before 2011 are eligible for forgiveness after 25 years.
• Income-Contingent RepaymentIncome-Contingent Repayment (ICR)The oldest federal income-driven repayment plan, with payments generally set at 20% of discretionary income or a fixed 12-year amount, whichever is lower. It is the only IDR plan available to Parent PLUS borrowers after consolidation. (ICR) Plan: ineligible for forgiveness after 20 years of payments. Federal Family Education Loans and Direct Loans from undergraduate and graduate studies are eligible for forgiveness after 25 years of payments. Read more about what happens to student loans after 25 years.

Note: The payment plan you choose does not affect your interest rate. Your rate remains the same no matter which plan that you’re in. The only way to get a lower interest rate is to refinance with a private lender. RefinancingRefinancingTaking out a new private loan to pay off one or more existing student loans, usually to lower the interest rate or change the repayment term. Refinancing federal loans into a private loan eliminates federal benefits like IDR and PSLF. causes you to lose federal benefits like loan forgiveness and income-based payments, so it’s not for everyone.

Federal Student Loan Forgiveness By Loan Type

Direct LoanDirect LoanA federal student loan made directly by the U.S. Department of Education under the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program. Most federal student loans issued since 2010 are Direct Loans. Program Loans, including Direct Consolidation Loans:

• 10 years for full-time public service employees under the PSLFPublic Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)A federal program that forgives the remaining balance on Direct Loans after 120 qualifying monthly payments made while working full-time for a government or qualifying nonprofit employer. Program.
• 20 years under the PAYE Plan for new borrowers only.
• 20 years under the REPAYE Plan for undergraduate loans only.
• 20 years under the IBR Plan for new borrowers only.
• 25 years under IBR and ICR Plans.

FFEL Loans/Stafford Loans, Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans: 25 years under the IBR and ICR Plans. If you consolidate FFEL Loans into a Direct Consolidation Loan, your loans may be eligible for the REPAYE, IBR, or ICR Plans and can be forgiven after 25 years of monthly payments.

Parent PLUS Loans: 25 years under the ICR Plan, but only after the debt is consolidated into a Direct Consolidation Loan. You can click here to learn more about how to get rid of Parent PLUS Loans.

Federal Perkins Loans: can be forgiven, but only if the loans are consolidated into a Direct Consolidation Loan.

Note: You’re a new borrower if you have no outstanding balance on a Direct Loan or FFEL Loan when you receive a Direct Loan or FFEL Program loan on or after

20 Year vs. 25 Year Student Loan Forgiveness

All federal student loan borrowers qualify for forgiveness of any remaining loan balance after making 20 or 25 years of qualifying monthly payments. Your eligibility for forgiveness after 20 years or 25 years depends on your type of loan, repayment plan, and when you borrowed the loans.

For each of the income-driven repayment plans, a qualifying paymentQualifying PaymentA monthly loan payment that counts toward federal forgiveness programs like PSLF or IDR forgiveness. Whether a payment qualifies depends on the loan type, the repayment plan, and the borrower's employment at the time of payment. is a payment made under:

• the 10-Year Standard Repayment PlanStandard Repayment PlanThe default federal repayment plan, which spreads loan payments evenly over 10 years — or up to 30 years for consolidation loans. It usually results in the lowest total interest paid among federal plans.
• any income-driven repayment plan (e.g., if you switch IDR Plans, you keep eligibility for payments under the old plan)
• any other repayment program, if the payment amount is at least equal to what the payment amount would be under the 10-year Standard Repayment Plan.

You also get credit for any month you are in an economic hardship deferment. However, except for the coronavirus pandemic forbearance, any month spent in any other type of forbearance or deferment doesn’t count towards forgiveness.

​How do I apply for student loan forgiveness after 20 years?

The federal government has yet to create a formal application for student loan forgiveness after 20 years. Instead, your student loan servicer is supposed to keep track of the payments you’ve made while in one of the income-driven repayment plans and send you written notification at least six months before you’re expected to qualify for loan forgiveness.

Keep in mind, you have to complete the annual recertification of your income and family size to stay in an IDR plan, which means your payment amount can change yearly.

The earliest a borrower might qualify for loan forgiveness under each of the plans is:

• 2020 for ICR
• 2032 for PAYE
• 2034 for IBR
• 2035 for REPAYE

Strategies for Loan Forgiveness

• Recertify on time. You have to certify your discretionary incomeDiscretionary IncomeFor federal income-driven repayment plans, a borrower's adjusted gross income minus a set percentage of the federal poverty guideline for their family size. Monthly IDR payments are calculated as a percentage of this amount. by the deadline date every year. Contact your servicer to confirm your recertification date.
• Track payments. Although your servicer is supposed to track the number of qualifying payments you’ve made, keep your own record. Your servicer may change over the next two decades, and errors may happen. You’ll want to have your document history to confirm your eligibility.
• Switch plans. If you’re in the ICR or IBR Plan and your loans are only from undergraduate studies, you can qualify for forgiveness five years sooner by switching to the REPAYE Plan.
• Avoid consolidation. If you have FFEL Loans and have been in the IBR or ICR Plans, consolidating into the Direct Loan Program will reset your number of payments to zero. There’s no way to get credit for prior payments.

Tax Bomb Temporarily Eliminated

In March 2021, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act, which prohibits the IRS from treating the remaining loan balance as taxable income at the end of student loan repayment plans. Before that law was passed, student loan borrowers would have to pay taxes on the amount forgiven, which would cause them to exchange one debt for another.

The ban on student loan forgiveness as taxable income lasts through the end of 2025.

Other Loan Forgiveness Options

For Public Service: The Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program forgives the remaining loan balance for full-time government and non-profit organization employees after making 120 qualifying payments. Although this program has its flaws, Congress and the Biden Administration have tried to fix it with the Temporary Expanded Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program and, most recently, the PSLF Waiver. PSLF forgiveness is tax-free.

For Disabled Persons: The Total and Permanent Disability Discharge Program offers debt relief to borrowers who suffer a severe and permanent mental or physical disability. TPDTotal and Permanent Disability Discharge (TPD)A federal loan discharge for borrowers who are totally and permanently disabled, as documented by the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Social Security Administration, or a physician's certification. cancellation is tax-free.

For Teachers: Educators who work in a low-income school can qualify for The Perkins Loan Cancellation Program and The Teacher Loan ForgivenessTeacher Loan ForgivenessA federal program that can forgive up to $17,500 of Direct or FFELP loans for teachers who complete five consecutive years of full-time teaching at a low-income school or educational service agency. Program, which forgives up to $18,500 of federal student loans. In addition, the American Federation of Teachers maintains a database of available grants and funds for your continuing education, professional development, and classroom.

For Medical Professionals: Nurses, doctors, and mental health professionals qualify for PSLF. In addition, check The Association of Medical Colleges for other repayment loan forgiveness options.

For Lawyers and Legal Professionals: Prosecutors, public defenders, and other attorneys working for the government or a nonprofit qualify for PSLF. Check the American Bar Association and Equal Justice Works for additional federal and state-level forgiveness and repayment programs.

Related: Art Institutes Borrower Defense

Want help exploring your options for paying off student loans? Let’s talk.

There are many options to get partial or total forgiveness of your federal student loans — but choosing the right option for you can be confusing. If you want help developing a strategy to deal with your student loans, I’m here to help. My entire law practice is dedicated to helping borrowers with federal and private loans.

Schedule a call with me today. We’ll work together to develop a plan that allows you to meet your future goals.

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